National Planning Framework: First Revision

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   National Planning Framework First Revision | Page 149 10.1 Governance and Oversight The publication of the NPF in 2018 laid the foundations for balanced regional growth and enhanced regional attractiveness across Ireland. It sets a coherent vision to drive coordination across national, regional and local levels. The alignment of the National Planning Framework with the National Development Plan through a shared set of National Strategic Outcomes or NSOs, provides a very solid foundation to deliver transformational change over the coming years, with consequential benefits for our quality of life and the built and natural environment. However, investment alone is not sufficient to successfully implement this Framework. It will also require more effective planning and co-ordination processes at national, regional and local levels, to ensure that the NPF shapes the policies and deliverable actions of Government Departments and Agencies, State bodies, local government and infrastructure providers, working in conjunction with communities, civic society, the private sector and neighbouring administrations. There is recognition that the key investments needed to sustain projected population growth and attractiveness to 2040, in areas such as housing, energy, climate, transport, healthcare and education, will give rise to coordination and capacity challenges. There is also recognition that the planning and project delivery itself has become increasingly complex and resource intensive. The Government is advancing a range of reforms and actions aimed at enhancing capacity and addressing constraints to NDP delivery. An ESRI report to Government titled ‘The National Development Plan in 2023: Priorities and Capacity’ (2024) also makes suggestions on how the timing and sequencing of NDP projects might be designed so that maximum benefits are derived. The OECD Report ‘Towards Balanced Regional Attractiveness in Ireland: Enhancing the Delivery of the National Planning Framework’ (OECD 2023) explores existing institutional and governance arrangements in Ireland, making recommendations in relation to initiatives that could be introduced or scaled to support NPF delivery. One of the key observations is that the NPF strategy for more balanced regional growth sets a new way forward and that in turn, governance and institutional arrangements need to adapt to support a move away from ‘business as usual’. The report sees a strong role for regional and local government, highlighting the need for greater clarity in relation to their role in NPF implementation. It highlights opportunities for greater leadership and competences at these levels. At a national level, the OECD recommends more formalised mechanisms to support the coordination of projects of regional concern e.g. through the PI2040 Delivery Board. The OECD also recommend new governance arrangements at regional level to improve coordination between national, regional and local authorities, infrastructure providers and other stakeholders in order to secure the delivery of Regional Spatial and Economic Strategies and Metropolitan Area Strategic Plans. These recommendations go beyond the scope of the NPF as a spatial planning strategy, but are relevant to the overall achievement of the NPF’s objectives and will need to be considered in parallel, to ensure that the relevant mechanisms are in place to support NPF delivery. Statutory Provision Part 2 of the Planning and Development Act 2000 (as amended) provides the legislative basis for the National Planning Framework, monitoring of its ongoing implementation and a statutory requirement for its periodic revision or replacement, as may be appropriate. The Planning and Development Act, 2024, once enacted, will replace this existing legal framework and retain the NPF at the apex of the hierarchy of national, regional and local plans and strategies. The Office of the Planning Regulator will continue to play an important role in ensuring the effective implementation of the NPF at both local and regional level through its statutory plan evaluation and assessment function under the Planning Acts. Through its work in this area since its establishment in 2019, the Office has enhanced the quality of the statutory development plan-making process nationally by ensuring that planning authorities apply consistent and best practice approaches to the development of their areas while also working towards the achievement of broader regional and national policy objectives. Phasing The National Planning Framework is a longterm strategy and sets out national, regional and city-specific population targets, all informed by ESRI research, to secure more effective regional development. Achieving these targets will take time and their implementation will need to be adaptive to the inevitable changes in circumstances and unforeseen events inherent in a long-run Framework approach.

2. Page 152

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   Page 150 | National Planning Framework First Revision Therefore, in order to facilitate monitoring and review, phased regional population targets to 2030 and 2040 are set out in Table 10.1. These may be reviewed by 2030, based on updated Census data, to inform any periodic revision or replacement of the NPF and the next full ten-year cycle of the National Development Plan. Based on projections, a significant proportion of additional population growth to 2040 is targeted in the period to 2030, which affords considerable ambition and flexibility to be built into Regional Spatial and Economic Strategies, and which in turn will guide and influence city and county development plans and local area plans. The targeted pattern of half of population growth in the five cities (NPO 4) will continue to apply, but phasing is not specified for the five cities. This will be addressed as part of the Metropolitan Area Strategic Plan (MASP) that will be prepared for each city in the context of the Regional Spatial and Economic Strategies. This is to allow for a transition period, during which time investment to support compact growth and the National Regeneration and Development Agency will assist in opening up greater urban infill capacity. 10.2 The Planning System The Planning and Development Act 2000 (as amended) supports a plan-led system aimed at ensuring proper planning and sustainable development through a hierarchy of inter-related and complementary plans and policies; from the NPF at national level, Regional Spatial and Economic Strategies (also known as ‘RSESs’) at regional level and development plans and local plans at city and county level. The development objectives of each lower tier plan are required to be consistent, as far as practicable, with the development objectives of the higher tier plans. Regional Spatial and Economic Strategies To ensure better co-ordination in planning and development policy matters across boundaries, local authorities are grouped into three regional assembly areas Eastern and Midland, Northern and Western, and Southern. Table 10.1 | National Planning Framework Phased Population Growth Region 2030 Growth % 2040 Growth % EMRA 270,000 49% 470,000 49% NWRA 85,000 15% 150,000 15% SRA 195,000 35% 330,000 35% State Growth 555,000 950,000 State Total Population 5,700,00 6,100,000

3. Page 153

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   National Planning Framework First Revision | Page 151 Since the publication of the NPF in 2018, the three Regional Assemblies have prepared Regional Spatial and Economic Strategies. Preparation of the strategies involved the relevant local authorities, working together with stakeholders, including the Minister and Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage and other interests, to put in place a regional co-ordination framework for statutory development plans at local authority level. The principal purpose of the Regional Spatial and Economic Strategies is to support the implementation of the NPF, and the economic policies and objectives of the Government by providing a long-term strategic planning and economic framework for the development of the regions. The RSESs support the growth strategy outlined in the NPF and seek to facilitate balanced regional development, focused on the five cities and five smaller regional growth centres, in order to support economic prosperity, environmental sustainability and climate action across all regions. The RSES in turn form the basis for local authority development plans and Local Economic and Community Plans (LECPs), to ensure their consistency with national and regional policy. Section 25A of the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended (the Act), requires each of the three regional assemblies to prepare a report every two years on progress on delivering the Regional Spatial and Economic Strategy (RSES), and to submit the report to the National Oversight and Audit Commission (NOAC). The monitoring reports specifically identify the progress made in objectives of RSES by planning authorities, public bodies and their agencies and the relevant regional assembly. The Planning and Development Act 2024 includes proposed statutory provisions to further align the planning policy hierarchy of plans by increasing the strategic lifespan of County and City Development Plans to 10 years, concurrent with the RSES 12-year period of implementation. Metropolitan Area Strategic Planning All five cities in Ireland incorporate more than one local authority area, with the metropolitan area of Dublin covering all or part of the area of seven local authorities. The multiplicity of plans addressing the individual and specific requirements of local authorities makes co-ordination of strategic development challenging. While the three Regional Spatial and Economic Strategies have been developed to co-ordinate local authority plans at a strategic and regional assembly level, it is recognised that the area of the Assemblies is too broad to be able to sufficiently focus on city and metropolitan issues. Accordingly, in tandem with and as part of the Regional Spatial and Economic Strategy process, metropolitan area strategic plans (MASPs) for the Dublin, Cork, Limerick, Galway and Waterford Metropolitan areas have been prepared. In line with the Regional Spatial and Economic Strategies, the MASPs provide a 12-year strategic planning and investment framework for the city metropolitan areas, addressing high-level and long-term strategic development issues. National Policy Objective 95 Metropolitan Area Strategic Plans for the Dublin, Cork, Limerick, Galway and Waterford Metropolitan areas and in the case of Dublin and Cork, to also address the wider city region, shall be reviewed by the Regional Assemblies in tandem with the appropriate authorities and as part of a review of the relevant Regional Spatial and Economic Strategy.

4. Page 154

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   Page 152 | National Planning Framework First Revision National Policy Objective 96 Examine the existing governance arrangements for the MASP areas to scope out potential areas for reform that may be necessary to deliver on the co-ordination of strategic planning and development between all stakeholders. Given the ambitious levels of growth targeted for the five cities in this Framework, the wider metropolitan area around each will play an important role. In all cases, they are closely linked to or integrated with the nearby city, in terms of transport, employment, housing, amenities and services. It would be reasonable in the context of a Metropolitan Area Strategic Plan and as part of phasing-in the transition to achieving urban consolidation and brownfield targets, that a proportion of up to 20% of the phased population growth targeted in the principal city and suburban area, could potentially be accommodated in the wider metropolitan area i.e. outside the city and suburbs or contiguous zoned area. This would be in addition to growth identified for the Metropolitan area. Planned growth in the metropolitan area would be targeted towards the delivery of new sustainable communities at brownfield and greenfield locations along existing or planned high capacity public transport corridors in accordance with the principles of Transport Orientated Development. These provisions will support the transition from the current pattern of development. National Policy Objective 97 The Metropolitan Area Strategic Plans, shall include provision for large-scale Transport Orientated Development (TOD) opportunities and may target a proportion of planned growth in the metropolitan areas towards the delivery of new sustainable communities at brownfield and greenfield locations in the principal city and suburbs areas and in the wider metropolitan areas focused on opportunities arising from existing and planned major public transport investment, along planned high capacity public transport corridors and in accordance with the principles of Transport Orientated Development. Integrating Spatial and Transport Planning Planning and transport policies are interdependent. The integration of land uses with access to transport has cross-cutting benefits in terms of achieving compact patterns of development (through facilitating increased densities in accessible locations), transition to a low carbon and climate resilient society (through reduced emissions) sustainable mobility (through fewer journeys undertaken by car) and the transition to electric vehicles. Forms of Transport Orientated Development (TOD) in particular have the potential to locate a significant proportion of future population, housing, employment, services and amenities along high capacity transport networks and at transport nodes. Responsibility for the integration of land use and transportation outside of central Government, is a joint responsibility of planning authorities, the NTA and other government agencies. The NTA has responsibility for preparing a Transport Strategy for the GDA, the most recent of which was prepared for the period of 2022-2042. There is a statutory requirement for mutual consistency between the Transport Strategy, the Regional Spatial and Economic Strategy for the Eastern and Midlands Region and local authority development plans within the GDA. The NTA Transport Strategy provides a clear statement of transport planning policy for the GDA, around which other agencies involved in spatial planning, environmental protection, and delivery of other infrastructure such as housing, water and power, can align their own investment priorities. The Transport Strategy was developed to be consistent with the RSES, incorporating the MASP, which comprises a key input into the transport strategy by providing clear direction in terms of spatial planning policy at the Metropolitan level. It is an essential component, along with investment programmes in other sectors, for the orderly development of the Greater Dublin Area over the next 20 years. The legislative requirement for a transport strategy is unique to the GDA and is not a statutory requirement in any other part of the country. However, the NTA has worked with regional and local authorities to prepare non-statutory metropolitan area transport strategies for Cork, Galway, Limerick and Waterford, and local transport plans for regional growth centres and key towns, in addition to delivering transport services and infrastructure projects. The statutory arrangements that are already in place for transport planning in the GDA will be extended to all of Ireland’s cities, thereby strengthening the levels of integration between spatial planning and transport planning across the country, to the benefit of the economy and society.

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   National Planning Framework First Revision | Page 153 National Policy Objective 98 Statutory arrangements between spatial and transport planning in the Greater Dublin Area will be extended to other cities. The Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage and the Department of Transport are working with the LDA, NTA, local and regional authorities and infrastructure providers to identify suitable opportunities for Transport Orientated Development (TOD) at scale in the five cities, aligned to planned investment in the public transport network identified in the metropolitan area transport strategies. Transport Orientated Development supports NPF priorities for Compact Growth, Sustainable Mobility and Transition to a Low Carbon and Climate Resilient Society. Engagement with the relevant local authorities, LDA and NTA and infrastructure providers will continue to allow strategic planning for large-scale sustainable development projects to commence at the locations identified, and at locations that come forward during the NPF period. This work facilitates the identification and development of the necessary policy provisions at national, regional and local levels, and enhanced institutional and funding arrangements required to accelerate delivery. The two Departments are also reviewing opportunities for better integration of land use and transport in the regional centres. While locations outside of the metropolitan areas may not be suitable for large-scale TOD, the principles of TOD should be applied at local level to support compact development, sustainable mobility and climate targets. National Policy Objective 99 The Government will work to establish the necessary institutional and funding arrangements to support the development and accelerated delivery of Transport Orientated Development at suitable locations in conjunction with the ongoing programme of investment in the public transport network. Better Strategic Planning for Urban Areas Local area plans under the Planning and Development Act 2000 are proposed to be replaced, through the Planning and Development Act, 2024, by three new types of focused area plans. These plans will, subject to enactment of the legislation, enable planning authorities to provide a tailored response to particular contexts and development needs, informed by meaningful engagement with local communities. This will provide greater certainty for all stakeholders in respect of the expected outcomes from the plan making and consents processes. The three types of area plans are: Urban Area Plans for regional growth centres and key towns that have been designated at in the regional spatial and economic strategy, and where in the opinion of the planning authority the scale of planned growth requires an integrated approach to land use and transportation planning for the entire urban area. Priority Area Plans for parts of towns and cities that have the capacity to deliver significant housing or other development or that have a particular need for a bespoke plan for regeneration and renewal. Coordinated Area Plans to be prepared jointly by two or more planning authorities for the development of a settlement or part of an urban area of a settlement that straddles their functional areas. Such a settlement or part of an urban area of a settlement will be identified in the regional spatial and economic strategy. In addition, the introduction of new Urban Development Zones (UDZs) will empower local authorities to designate areas with significant potential for development, including housing, as Candidate Urban Development Zones and for the Government to designate such areas as a UDZ. These areas will be a focus of public investment in key enabling infrastructure in order to ensure that the potential for development can be realised in a timely manner.

6. Page 156

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   Page 154 | National Planning Framework First Revision National Policy Objective 100 Provision will be made for urban area plans and priority area plans to replace current local area plan provisions; coordinated area plans to be prepared where a town and environs lie within the combined functional area of more than one local authority, and the designation of areas with significant potential for development as Candidate Urban Development Zones and Urban Development Zones in order to facilitate focused investment in enabling infrastructure and accelerated development. Strengthening Local Authority Planning: Plan Making and Core Strategies Reforms of planning legislation in 2010 introduced a new approach to justifying land use zoning objectives in local authority plans so that enough land is provided to service projected development needs but not so much that development becomes difficult to co-ordinate or undermines compact growth objectives and the regeneration of existing, but under-occupied and run-down urban areas. The core strategy reforms have realised major benefits and support a more evidence-based and strategic approach to planning. Since the publication of the NPF, further enhancements of the core strategy approach have been put in place through legislation and with the publication of the Section 28 Ministerial Guidelines on ‘Housing Supply Target Methodology for Development Planning’ to support the implementation of the National Planning Framework and the three Regional Spatial and Economic Strategies, to factor in dwelling vacancy and the balance between development in both urban and rural areas. Coordinating Land Use Zoning, Infrastructure and Services This Framework targets significant infill and brownfield development in order to achieve compact and sustainable growth that can act as a driver of urban regeneration and renewal in our cities and towns. Such an approach has the potential to revitalise traditional core areas while also ensuring that maximum benefit is derived from the very significant public investment that the State makes in services and infrastructure. This means that city and county development plans will need to relate these targets to the quantum and location of future land use zoning. Effective implementation will require substantially better linkage between zoning of land and the availability of infrastructure. The Residential Zoned Land Tax and the introduction of Land Value Sharing proposals will assist in incentivising the development of such zoned land in urban areas and ensuring that the necessary infrastructure is in place to facilitate development. The Tiered Approach to Zoning will continue to differentiate between zoned land that is available for development and zoned land that requires significant further investment in services for infrastructure for development to be realised. National Policy Objective 101 Planning authorities will be required to apply a standardised, tiered approach to differentiate between i) zoned land that is serviced and ii) zoned land that is serviceable within the life of the plan. National Policy Objective 102 When considering zoning lands for development purposes that require investment in service infrastructure, planning authorities will make a reasonable estimate of the full cost of delivery of the specified services and prepare a report, detailing the estimated cost at draft and final plan stages. National Policy Objective 103 When considering zoning land for development purposes that cannot be serviced within the life of the relevant plan, such lands should not be zoned for development.

7. Page 157

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   National Planning Framework First Revision | Page 155 Prioritising Development Lands There are many other planning considerations relevant to land zoning beyond the provision of basic enabling infrastructure including overall planned levels of growth, location, suitability for the type of development envisaged, availability of and proximity to amenities, schools, shops or employment, accessibility to transport services etc. Weighing up all of these factors, together with the availability of infrastructure, will assist planning authorities in determining an order of priority to deliver planned growth and development. National Policy Objective 104 Planning authorities will use compulsory purchase powers to facilitate the delivery of enabling infrastructure to prioritised zoned lands, to accommodate planned growth. National Policy Objective 105 Planning authorities and infrastructure delivery agencies will focus on the timely delivery of enabling infrastructure to priority zoned lands in order to deliver planned growth and development. In addition, to ensure that infill and brownfield lands are being developed and that the compact growth targets set out in NPO 7 - 9 are being achieved, it is also important to develop and implement new approaches to measuring and monitoring compact growth in cities and larger settlements, aligned to greater digitalisation of the planning system. National Policy Objective 106 Develop and implement new approaches to measuring and monitoring compact growth in cities and larger settlements aligned to increased digitalisation of the planning system. 10.3 Public Capital Investment – The National Development Plan and National Strategic Outcomes The alignment of the National Planning Framework with the National Development Plan since 2018 is tangible evidence of Government commitment to supporting the NPF with appropriate investment. This approach has contributed to the implementation of wider national objectives in areas such as transport, climate action, water resource management, waste management, communications and energy network roll-out and social infrastructure development in areas such as health, education and community facilities. The ‘Town Centre First’ policy also supports plan-led development through a targeted investment programme, including through the Urban Regeneration and Development Fund (URDF) and Rural Regeneration and Development Funds (RRDF), and other dedicated funding streams to drive regeneration and tackle vacancy and dereliction in urban centres. A programme of monitoring of the implementation of the National Planning Framework will be progressed in conjunction with key stakeholders including the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform, the Regional Assemblies and Local Authorities. Indicators will be identified with reference to the key strategic objectives of the NPF, in particular, the targets for more balanced regional development, for city-based growth, for compact growth and the infrastructure delivery required to achieve these outcomes. National Policy Objective 107 Continue to ensure the alignment of the National Planning Framework and the National Development Plan through delivery of the National Strategic Outcomes. National Policy Objective 108 Develop and implement a new programme of monitoring of the implementation of the National Planning Framework, with a focus on measuring outcomes relative to the key strategic objectives of the NPF including more balanced regional development, city-based growth, compact growth and infrastructure delivery.

8. Page 158

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   Compact Growth From an urban development perspective, we will need to deliver a greater proportion of residential development within the existing built-up areas of our cities, towns and villages and ensure that, when it comes to choosing a home, there are viable attractive alternatives available to people. Combined with a focus on infill development, integrated transport and promoting regeneration and revitalisation of urban areas, pursuing a compact growth policy at national, regional and local level will secure a more sustainable future for our settlements and for our communities. Since the publication of the NPF in 2018, there has been significant investment in our urban areas aimed at supporting compact growth and progress has been made on land activation and active land management measures aimed at bringing forward brownfield and infill lands for development. Urban Regeneration and Development Fund and Rural Regeneration and Development Fund To secure the delivery of this objective, two tailored funding mechanisms have been established under the National Development Plan; The Urban Regeneration and Development Fund (URDF); and The Rural Regeneration and Development Fund (RRDF). The purpose of the €2 billion Urban Regeneration and Development Fund (URDF) is to achieve more compact and sustainable development in Ireland’s five cities and other urban centres based on the following overarching criteria: Enable urban infill development that would not otherwise occur; Improve ‘liveability’ and quality of life, enabling greater densities of development to be achieved; Encourage economic development and job creation, by creating conditions to attract internationally mobile investment and opportunities for indigenous enterprise growth; Building on existing assets and capacity to create critical mass and scale for regional growth; Improve accessibility to and between centres of mass and scale and better integration with their surrounding areas; Ensure transition to more sustainable modes of travel (walking, cycling, public transport) and energy consumption (efficiency, renewables) within an urban context; Encourage labour mobility to support employment-led growth, including affordable improved community and family services including childcare. The fund does this by part-funding regeneration and rejuvenation projects in Ireland’s five cities and other large towns. To date the URDF has committed to part-funding 132 projects, comprising almost 400 subprojects across the country. There have been a total of three calls to date. Call 2 in particular sought to facilitate a greater proportion of residential and commercial development, supported by infrastructure, services and amenities, within the existing built-up areas of larger urban settlements. The third round of funding support is specifically designed to address long-term vacancy and dereliction across URDF cities and towns (>10,000 population) and the acceleration of the provision of residential accommodation. National Strategic Outcome 1 National Strategic Outcomes As outlined earlier in Chapter 1, implementing the National Planning Framework is focused on policies, actions and investment to deliver the 10 National Strategic Outcomes set out in more detail below. Page 156 | National Planning Framework First Revision

9. Page 159

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   National Planning Framework First Revision | Page 157 Call 3 identified the necessity to bring long-term vacant and derelict buildings and sites into use for residential and other purposes. The URDF programme will continue to support the progression of approved proposals and projects through their project lifecycles. The purpose of the €1 billion Rural Regeneration and Development Fund (RRDF), is to support sustainable growth in Ireland’s rural areas, and subject to the nature of the proposal, smaller urban centres (<10,000 population), based on the following overarching criteria: Enhance the attractiveness, viability and vibrancy of smaller towns and villages and rural areas as a means of achieving more sustainable patterns and forms of development; Ensure transition to more sustainable modes of travel (walking, cycling, public transport) and energy consumption (efficiency, renewables) within smaller towns and villages and rural areas; Encourage and attract entrepreneurship and innovation in the context of the rural economy and its continuing sustainable diversification, particularly where low carbon outputs can be achieved; Cater for a niche or specialized development that is intrinsically required to be located in a rural setting and has wider benefits for the local rural and regional economy; Cross-boundary collaboration at county and regional level to achieve more sustainable outcomes for rural communities, e.g. applicable to shared settlements, landscapes and amenities as well as lands in state ownership; Enhance co-ordination of various funding streams for rural development that support the place-making polices of the National Planning Framework. The large-scale capital projects supported by the fund assist in the revitalisation of rural towns and villages by addressing vacancy and dereliction, and positioning them for further growth through regeneration and town centre renewal. Following four calls for proposals the RRDF is supporting 215 projects across Ireland. The fifth call for capital projects was announced in 2023. Further to the RRDF, the regeneration of rural towns is also supported by the Town and Village Renewal Scheme, which includes a Building Acquisition Measure for vacant buildings and sites, and the Town Centre First Policy 2022, which provides a coordinated whole of government framework to address the decline in health in towns of all sizes, and has established a suite of supports and measures to regeneration and revitalise them. Land Activation and Active Land Management The Government is advancing a number of land activation and active land management measures through legislation to ensure that the potential for urban development in the built up footprint of cities and towns, with proximity to services and good quality public transport, can be accelerated. The Residential Zoned Land Tax (RZLT) introduced under the Finance Act 2021, will come into effect in 2025. The tax is aimed at encouraging the activation of development on suitably zoned and serviced land for housing. Proposals for the introduction of Urban Development Zones (UDZs) are being progressed through the Planning and Development Act, 2024 in order to prioritise the planning and delivery of plan-led proposals for the development of areas with significant potential for growth, with an emphasis on the provision of the infrastructure required to support delivery. These zones will involve a focus on the creation of mixed-use neighbourhoods with high levels of accessibility having regard to existing or planned public transport links, including opportunities for Transport Orientated Development, in particular in the Dublin Metropolitan Region. Proposals for legislation to support Land Value Sharing (LVS) are also being progressed to ensure that the State can secure a proportion of the uplift in land values that results from public decisions to zone or designate land for development. The intention is that the obligations secured will be used to provide the infrastructure needed to enable housing and related development to take place, in addition to providing the services and facilities that communities need.

10. Page 160

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    Page 158 | National Planning Framework First Revision Enhanced Regional Accessibility Enhancing connectivity between centres of population of scale will support the objectives of National Planning Framework. Better connectivity between the four cities of Cork, Limerick, Galway and Waterford and to the Northern and Western region is seen as critical to enable the potential of these centres to be activated. The interurban rail network plays a key role in offering sustainable travel alternatives to private car travel and broadens labour catchments, benefitting the international competitiveness of our major cities. There is further potential, as identified within the All-Island Strategic Rail Review, to enhance rail links between our major cities (including an intercity spine connecting Belfast, Dublin and Cork) with increased capacity, line speed and frequency of service. It is also important that vehicular traffic is removed from urban areas, where possible, to enable the efficient use of the national road network, in particular for commercial traffic. This will also increase user safety and remove traffic congestion in urban and rural centres. Cycling will also play a role in enhancing regional connectivity, through the implementation of the National Cycle Network, published in 2024. This network will integrate greenways, the EuroVelo network and regional and local cycling routes and will support economic growth of regional urban areas of 5,000+ population as well as priority tourist destinations. Inter-Urban Roads Maintaining the strategic capacity and safety of the national roads network including planning for future capacity enhancements; Improving average journey times targeting an average inter-urban speed of 90kph; Enabling more effective traffic management within and around cities and re-allocation of inner city road-space in favour of bus-based public transport services and walking/cycling facilities; Advancing orbital traffic management solutions, including the Galway Ring Road and the Cork City Northern Transport Project; Accessibility to the North-West Upgrading access to the North-West border area, utilising existing routes (N2/N14/A5); Upgrading northern sections of the N4 and N5 routes and sections of the N3/M3 national primary route; Progressive development of the Atlantic Economic Corridor from Galway northwards by upgrading sections of the N17 north where required and upgrading the N15/N13 link. Public Transport To strengthen public transport connectivity between cities and large growth towns in Ireland and Northern Ireland, as identified within the All-Island Strategic Rail Review, with improved services and reliable journey times. Cycling Develop a safe and connected cycle network between cities, towns and key tourist destinations to reduce the carbon impact of transport, promote a healthy and inclusive society and promote economic growth. National Strategic Outcome 2

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