Cameras are to be used more extensively to better monitor the use of bus lanes, Minister for Transport Eamon Ryan has said.
The Green Party leader said behaviour on the roads “disimproved” throughout the pandemic, and since then.
He said he and Minister of State Jack Chambers, who has responsibility for roads and infrastructure, are working on road safety issues, which have become a “real problem”.
There has been a focus on road safety following a number of recent tragic incidents in which young people were killed in crashes.
The number of road fatalities this year so far has already exceeded last year’s total.
The Government plans to reduce speed limits and increase the maximum number of penalty points people can get in one incident in response.
Mr Ryan said: “One of the initiatives I’m going to be looking for… is a significant increase in the road safety spending.
“We’ve already earmarked about €27 million, which we’re looking [to use] to roll out more average speed cameras.
“There’s one on the N7, people know it’s there from Goffs to Naas [in Co Kildare]. We’re looking to roll out a number of those in other locations, particularly on national primaries, which aren’t segregated, where there’s a real safety issue.
“Lastly, we need to reuse much more effective speed cameras on the likes of bus lanes because the policing of the bus lanes is really problematic.
“Behaviour has disimproved through and after Covid. So using a lot of that camera technology to enforce use of bus lanes, that will help in terms of speed, and also speed management in the city urban areas.
“In the urban areas there’ll be cameras looking at speed, but also just people within bus lanes.”
Asked how many average speed cameras will be rolled out, he said: “We don’t have the exact number yet, we only have one at the moment so I’d be looking at multiplying that… It’ll be a high single figure.
“We’re going over to Scotland to look at their use of them. They, I think, have good experience, we have a lot in common with Scotland.
“It’ll be a slow start but next year we will start rolling out.”
Asked if Ireland is seeing more cars in bus lanes post-pandemic, Mr Ryan replied: “Yes, behaviour disimproved.”
By Gráinne Ní Aodha, PA
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