Distance from Public Transport Services

Distance from Public Transport Services

vehicles compared to that for pedestrians, in particular, and also for cycling and shared mobility services.

In order to assess well-being under the Housing and Built Environment dimension of Ireland’s Well-Being Framework, the CSO tracks the Average Distance to Everyday Services. This indicator refers to the average distance of residential dwellings to everyday services in Ireland such as schools and hospitals and provides insights on the differences in service accessibility within urban and rural areas. This indicator also provides information on the average distance of households to their nearest bus stop. The results of this indicator shows that the average distance for a house to the nearest public transport stop was 2.7km. However, as expected, this distance was significantly lower for urban areas and higher for rural areas. This reflects the greater provision of public transport services in more densely populated urban centres.

Noise Harmful Effects Assessments

Noise caused by transport is considered the second most significant environmental cause of ill health in Western Europe and as such, the reduction of noise pollution will be a benefit of this Strategy. To assess the impacts of the transport sector on noise pollution, the department will review the work of LAs and the other Noise Mapping Bodies (NMBs) (e.g. TII) in undertaking harmful effects assessments as required under S.I. No. 663/2021, European Communities (European Noise) (Amendment) Regulations 2021.

Road Traffic Volumes

The Central Statistics Office (CSO) periodically produces Road Traffic Volumes data38. This Road Traffic Volumes data comes from two important datasets:

Separately, the CSO, in conjunction with Transport for Ireland (TFI) conducted an examination of the share of the population located within a variety of distance-based catchments from public transport stops, (Luas, Train and Bus stops), and also assessed the frequency of services provided at those stops. Results are based on the 2016 Census and the Transport for Ireland Network survey in 2019. In addition to providing information on the national average distance to access public transport services, this metric also provides insights for specific cohorts of the population, such as the distances households who do not own a car or van, or older people aged 66 and over, have to travel to access public transport services. These indicators show that on average older people tend to be located further away from public transport services compared to the population as a whole. Conversely, households who do not own a private car or van tend to be located nearer to public transport services. This has important implications for monitoring wellbeing as ensuring that transport is accessible to older population cohorts and those who may not have access to alternative private transport modes.

1. The number of vehicles in the fleet

2. Regular odometer readings from roadworthiness tests

The number of vehicles in the fleet are obtained from the National Vehicle and Driver File (NVDF), administered by the Department of Transport.

Odometer readings are available from two separate administrative sources; the National Car Testing (NCT) Service and the Commercial Vehicle Roadworthiness Testing Service. These sources are linked to the NVDF by vehicle registration number. Odometer readings are typically captured for private cars (four years old or more) at least every second year. Odometer readings are typically captured for commercial goods vehicles, public service vehicles and other selected categories of vehicles on an annual basis.

Given that the principal unit of measurement used to assess Road Traffic Volumes is vehicle kilometres travelled (VKT), and one of the main metrics in CAP is a reduction in 2030 VKT, Road Traffic Volumes data will be used to assess the effectiveness of this Strategy and various measures rolled out in the coming years. Information on average Vehicle Kilometres Travelled is available on the CSO’s Transport Hub here.

38 Road Traffic Volumes - Methodology