We continue our mini-interview series with the Velo-city 2019 Keynote Speakers! #VC19Keynote #MeetTheSpeakers #CyclingForTheAges

Brendan leads the mobility and traffic management division of Dublin City Council whose aim is to facilitate the safe and efficient movement of people and goods in the city. He is responsible for sustainable transport projects including the provision of better walking and cycling infrastructure as well as Public Transport priority projects.

Projects such as the Canal Way cycle route, Clontarf to City Centre cycle route and proposals for College Green pedestrianisation are examples of the various works undertaken by the department.

The use of Intelligent Transportation Systems is a key element in how Dublin assists movement in the city. Projects undertaken have included the deployment of a multimodal real-time passenger information system for all of Ireland covering bus, tram, and rail. He also was responsible for the design and implementation of HGV management strategy in Dublin with the banning of large trucks and the implementation of e-permits for all deliveries by large vehicles.

A number of initiatives have recently been put in place by the transport Department in advance of this including Cycle safe intersections, last mile delivery ECO hubs and the successfully launched regulated station less bike scheme to complement the Station Bike share scheme already in existence.

What does cycling for the ages mean to you?

For myself cycling for the ages means firstly providing safe infrastructure that all ages are able to cycle in the city without fear, but it also represents how cycling can be grown and developed in the ever-changing world. Dublin had a large cycling population up to the 1970s when it began to decline due to prosperity and the rise of the motor car in the city and now we are starting to build these numbers again, however, the various types of new mobility from autonomous cars to escooters represents both challenges and opportunities.

How will the city of the future look like taking into consideration the gaps in the developing and developed world?

The city of the future has to be more sustainable than current cities are,  this is challenging for the developed world where cities have grown up around the needs of the car and trying to retrofit cycling, walking and mass transit into existing streets and mind-sets is difficult and requires acceptance of the need for change and the benefits . Therefore while the developed city of the future will perhaps be more sustainable it will be uneven across developed cities. For the developing world they have the opportunity to avoid the mistakes that cities in developed countries have made in developing the unsustainable car-centric city, while at the same time possibly not having the resources to build the necessary mass transit systems needed and therefore developing their own unique solutions to  try and avoid the failures of the past.

What do you expect from Velo-city 2019 Dublin?

In Dublin, we are embarking on the next phase of our cycling infrastructure and want to learn from cities that have successfully grown cycling numbers and this means meeting with and listening to experts in all different areas. The experiences we learn from and the enthusiasm of other delegates will we hope inspire our staff, elected members of the City Council and national government to present a vision for the ages for Dublin and how we can deliver it as quickly as possible.

Brendan O'Brien is a speaker in the sixth plenary session of Velo-city 2019 Dublin, entitled “Partnership & Collaboration” to take place on Friday, June 28th 2019 at 9.00-10.00.
For more information on the Velo-city Programme, Exhibition and Registration go to: https://www.velo-city2019.com 
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