Walking, wheeling and cycling take up to 660,000 cars off the road each day in Ireland’s five largest Metropolitan Areas
Major survey shows majority of residents across all 5 Irish Metropolitan Areas support more investment in walking, wheeling and cycling
The annual economic benefit from walking, wheeling and cycling in the five Metropolitan Areas each year is almost €3billion
The National Transport Authority has today published the findings of the largest survey of walking, wheeling, and cycling in Ireland, which reveals that people who walk, wheel, or cycle for non-leisure trips when they could have used a car take up to 660,000 cars off the road every day in Ireland’s five largest Metropolitan Areas.
Extensive assessment of walking, wheeling, and cycling in Ireland
The Walking and Cycling Index provides the most extensive assessment of walking, wheeling, and cycling in Ireland – wheeling refers to the use of wheeled mobility aids. Delivered in collaboration with local authorities, the National Transport Authority and sustainable transport charity Walk Wheel Cycle Trust, the Index covers the Dublin, Cork, Galway, Limerick/Shannon, and Waterford Metropolitan Areas, representing 42% of the state’s population. 17 other city regions in the UK including Liverpool, Manchester, and Glasgow have also produced reports published today.
Hundreds of thousands of people are making every day journeys in a healthier, more sustainable way
The survey highlights the levels of walking, wheeling and cycling participation in all the Metropolitan Areas in the state, with the figures, once again, showing how hundreds of thousands of people are making every day journeys in a healthier, more sustainable way.
The number of adult residents walking or wheeling at least five times a week ranges from 70% in the Dublin Metropolitan Area to 45% in the Waterford Metropolitan Area. Those who cycle at least once a week ranges from 25% in Dublin to 12% in Waterford.
The survey also indicates a high level of support for more government spending on walking and wheeling, ranging from 78% in the Waterford Metropolitan Area to 64% in the Limerick Shannon Metropolitan Area. A similar level of support for additional spending on cycling was also noted ranging from 74% in Waterford to 54% in Limerick Shannon. The survey points to continuing desire on behalf of residents to walk or wheel more in the future, ranging from 52% in Cork to 41% in Limerick Shannon while residents desire to cycle more, ranging from 38% in Cork and Galway to 27% in Limerick Shannon.
Economic benefit of active travel approx €3Billion
The annual economic benefit from people walking, wheeling and cycling to individuals and society in the five Metropolitan Areas each year is almost €3billion. The Walking and Cycling Index uses a model to understand the costs and benefits of driving, walking, wheeling and cycling and inputs include travel time, vehicle operating costs, health benefits, air quality and taxation. In health terms alone, each year people walking and cycling in our Metropolitan Areas prevents a total of 5,874 serious long-term health conditions, and the cost saving to the HSE is estimated at €75million, equivalent to 1,300,000 GP appointments.
Saves 20,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions
The report also found that walking, wheeling and cycling saved a total of 120,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions across the 5 Metropolitan Areas, equivalent to 1,500,000 flights from Dublin to London.
Across all 5 Irish Metropolitan Areas, residents gave similar answers as to what would help them walk or wheel more – better footpath surfaces including dropped kerbs at crossing points, fewer cars parked on footpaths, and more frequent crossing points with reduced wait times and nicer places along streets to stop and rest. Residents also gave similar answers as to what would help them cycle more – infrastructural improvements such as traffic-free paths through parks or greenways, signed cycle routes along quieter streets, and cycle tracks along roads physically separated from traffic and pedestrians. There was also strong support across the board for building cycle tracks physically separated from traffic and pedestrians even when that means less room for traffic, ranging from 86% in Waterford to 69% in Limerick Shannon.
Dublin
Every day, up to 510,000 non-leisure return walking, wheeling and cycling trips are made daily in the Dublin Metropolitan Area by residents who could have used a car.
12% of adult residents in the Dublin Metropolitan Area cycle at least 5 or more days a week, up from 8% in 2023.
Older residents remain engaged in active travel – 62% of residents aged 66 and over walk or wheel at least 5 days a week, and 12% of residents aged 66 or over cycle at least once a week.
Cork
Residents walking, wheeling and cycling create an annual economic benefit for individuals and the Cork Metropolitan Area of €415.9 million.
The Cork Walking and Cycling Index found a marked increase in women walking with 69% of women saying they walk or wheel 5 or more days a week, up from 52% in 2023. 9% of adult residents aged 66+ cycle at least once a week, up from 5% in 2023.
Walking, wheeling, and cycling in the Cork Metropolitan Area save 13,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions in Cork each year, which is equivalent to about 130,000 residents taking flights from Cork Airport to London Heathrow Airport.
Limerick Shannon
64% of residents in the Limerick Shannon metropolitan area are in favour of additional investment in walking and wheeling, and 54% are in favour of additional investment in cycling.
Walking, wheeling, and cycling in the Limerick Shannon Metropolitan area prevents 325 long-term health conditions annually, valued at approx. €4.1m equivalent to the cost of over 68,000 GP appointments.
The number of young people aged 16-25 in the Limerick Shannon Metropolitan Area who cycle at least once a week has increased to 33%, up from 27% in 2023.
Galway
The Galway Metropolitan Area Walking and Cycling Index revealed that 67% of residents walk or wheel at least five times a week, up from 60% in 2023. The survey also reveals that at least 1 in 5 (21%) adult residents cycle at least once a week.
There is strong support (82%) amongst residents in Galway for building cycle tracks physically separated from traffic and pedestrians, even where that means less room for other traffic.
There is a €1.67 net economic benefit for each km cycled instead of driven and €1.19 net economic benefit for each km walked instead of driven in the Galway Metropolitan Area.
Waterford
In the Waterford Metropolitan Area, the survey reveals that 78% of residents are in favour of additional investment in walking and wheeling, up from 68% in 2023, while 74% of residents are in favour of additional investment in cycling, up from 63% in 2023.
More than half of adult residents in the Waterford Metropolitan Area want to walk or wheel more and a third want to cycle more.
Every day those who walk, wheel or cycle for non-leisure trips when they could have used a car take up to 15,000 cars off the road in the Waterford Metropolitan Area. If all of these cars were in a traffic jam it would tail back 70 kilometres.
Government’s significant investment in active travel over €1B since 2021
Welcoming the publication of the Walking and Cycling Index, Minister for Transport Darragh O’Brien said: “I am delighted to see that the Government’s significant investment in active travel, totalling over €1 billion since 2021, is having results. Increases in the number of people walking, wheeling and cycling in our urban areas are definitively reported across all five cities in these latest reports.
This will have significant benefits, not only for individual health and wellbeing, but also for the wider community through decreases in congestion levels and transport emissions. I would like to commend the Walk Wheel Cycle Trust and the National Transport Authority for their significant work in collating these reports. I look forward to seeing more and more people choosing to walk, wheel and cycle as part of their daily commute.”
We also see that people want to use active travel modes more
Minister of State at the Department of Transport, Seán Canney said: “The positive results we see from the 2025 Walking and Cycling Index reports are a clear indication of the importance of our investment in active travel. Not only do we see increases in participation in walking and cycling by key target groups such as women and young people, but we also see that people want to use active travel modes more. We must continue to establish safe, connected and sustainable networks of walking and cycling infrastructure in order to encourage people to take that leap and move away from private car use wherever possible.”
NTA providing valuable insights into how people living in our five main Metropolitan Areas travel
Anne Shaw, CEO of the National Transport Authority said: “The Walking and Cycling Index provides the NTA and our local authority partners with valuable insights into how people living in our five main Metropolitan Areas travel and what is needed to make walking, wheeling and cycling safer, easier and more attractive.
It is really encouraging to see such strong levels of support for more investment in walking, wheeling and cycling. We will use this data to guide our work as we continue to deliver high quality walking and cycling infrastructure, more safer routes to school, and active travel networks that connect people’s homes with their work, school and local amenities.”
Xavier Brice, CEO of Walk Wheel Cycle Trust said: “The Index highlights the wide-ranging benefits walking, wheeling, and cycling bring to daily life and our towns and cities. More active journeys mean healthier people, safer, cleaner streets, and less traffic for everyone.
This change doesn’t happen by accident. It requires safe, welcoming, and accessible routes that give people the confidence to travel actively. With strong public support for better infrastructure, communities across Ireland are ready. We’re proud to partner with the National Transport Authority and local authorities to help make walking, wheeling, and cycling the natural choice for everyday trips.”
Further information
Walking and Cycling Index 2025 – National Transport
Additional information on the Methodology
- The Walking and Cycling Index is the biggest assessment of walking, wheeling and cycling in urban areas in Ireland and the UK.
- In the Republic of Ireland, it is delivered in collaboration with the NTA and the local authorities for the 5 Metropolitan Areas of Dublin, Cork, Galway, Limerick/Shannon and Waterford. 17 UK cities and urban areas are also involved, including Liverpool City Region, Greater Manchester, Glasgow and Edinburgh.
- The information in the reports comes from local data, modelling and an independent demographically representative survey of at least 1,100 residents aged 16+ in each Metropolitan Area.
- The survey was conducted face-to-face by the independent market research company Ipsos B&A from April to July 2025.
- The survey is representative of all Metropolitan Area residents, not just those who walk, wheel or cycle.
- The Walking and Cycling Index uses a model to analyse the costs and benefits of driving, walking and cycling. Inputs include travel time, vehicle operating costs, health benefits, air quality and taxation.
- All other data is sourced from city partners, national data sets or modelled and calculated by Walk Wheel Cycle Trust.
- There is a +/-3% margin of error.
- A more in-depth methodology is available at walkwheelcycletrust.org.uk/walking-cycling-index and Walking and Cycling Index 2025 – National Transport
- Use of the term ‘wheeling’ – Walk Wheel Cycle Trust provide this definition for the term ‘wheeling’ in the body of each Report. “We recognise that some people who use wheeled mobility aids, for example a wheelchair or a mobility scooter, may not identify with the term walking and may prefer to use the term wheeling. We use the terms walking and wheeling together to ensure we are as inclusive as possible.”