Including retirement in the tail of a dying street is very disingenuous, says local group. TD says he likes to see cycle lanes and he cycles but complains of construction speed.Aontleader Peadar Tibn, a Meath TD, has claimed cycle lanes are massive and taking over the streets of Navan town when none of the cycle paths installed in the town is normally sized, and local campaigners say that only 1km of dedicated cycle lane schemes have been built in over a decade and another 1km or so is being built.The Navan Cycling Initiative said that it was very disingenuous to see Sean McGrane, a butcher, retiring after years of service, mentioned in the way it was, without any mention that he was retiring.In a video posted online with the title The traffic policy of Meath County Council in Navan is damaging the life blood of the town, Tibn refers to Ludlow Street, where McGranes butcher is located, as empty before explaining that he means footfall shops, not the food and bar businesses that dominate the street. Tibn said that there has been a loss of 94 car parking spaces in the last 6 years, with another 29 planned to be removed in the next number of years. But campaigners point out that the town centre alone has 3,600 parking spaces, including around 2,000 within a short distance of Ludlow Street.While the TD claimed that the width of cycle paths are massive, all existing and the current ones being built are within the norms for cycle path widths.The current active travel project under construction in the town is the Marthas Bridge to Circular Road Cycle and Pedestrian Scheme (artists impressive picture above). The general carriageway is planned to be 6.5 metres wide generally, and around 13 metres at some junctions. Alongside this, a two-way cycle path being built as part of the project is generally 3 metres wide.Some shorter sections of the cycle path are 3.5-4 metres wide, but at these points the carragway is maintained at 6.5 metres or above, and 4 metres is within the recommended width for cycle paths. Tibn also complained above about how long projects are taking to build, but the understood timeline from September 2025 to Q1 2027 is within the timeline range for similar projects, which include not just cycle paths but the reworkings of a number of junctions, and work on other areas such as around a small park. Responding to the video, Navan Cycling Initiative said: Sorry, but this is really disappointing to hear. Especially from someone who cycles regularly as yourself, which we know you do. For years and years, Navan was built to accommodate private motor vehicles, with decades of underfunding in public transport and active travel, with no bus lanes, no cycle lanes, no pedestrianised areas or civic spaces. It is inevitable, then, that as the town grows, that we have to reclaim some of that and reallocate road space to accommodate other modes of transport, the group said.The Navan Cycling Initiative said: There is simply no other choice. Yes, parking spaces have been lost, but there are still almost 3,600 parking spaces in Navan town centre, with approx 2,000 spaces within a minutes walk of Trimgate Street (2 multi-storey car parks, Fair Green, Abbey Road, Kells Road). There are also 180 new parking spaces on Moathill Park and Ride.It is also just bizarre to claim the cycle lanes are massive. Massive in what way? In Navan town centre, we have seen only 1km of dedicated cycle lane schemes built in over a decade, on the Trim Road. The cycle lanes themselves are 2m in width, which is the basic desirable minimum width (they could have been 2.5m). As a cyclist yourself, what other ways would you like to see cycle lanes built? the campaigners said.Added to the 1km already delivered, the 1km is being delivered as part of the above-mentioned Marthas Bridge to Circular Road on the Dublin Road. Cycle paths and tracks have also been delivered as part of the Park and Ride project on the N51 and as part of a relief road project called the LDR4 Route, but the active travel elements were not the main drivers of these projects.IMAGES: The Park and Ride project on the N51 and a part of the LDR4 Route (Photo: Meath County Council).The group said there are endless studies proving that to revitalise town centres people must come first and that Cars dont shop; people do.The Navan Cycling Initiative said a 2022 survey showed that only 54% of all shoppers to the town travel by car, and that of those, 87% of people who visited Trimgate Street parked elsewhere. The group added: We must pedestrianise more streets, we must build more active travel infrastructure, and we must make our streets more attractive and make Navan a must-visit town located in the heart of the Boyne Valley. It has so much potential.In reply, Tibn said: I support safe cycle lanes. I think they are a must. I cycle to work every day. But the projects in Navan are too slow and too over-engineered. The roadworks on the Dublin Rd are an example.The works have gone on for months, are driving people crazy, people are shopping in other towns, and businesses are suffering. Despite all of the works, at this stage all we have is the paths that were there being replaced. If this was happening in other countries, it would be a 24 hour works and it would be complete by now, he said.It is not normal for 1km active travel projects with significant rebuilding of paths and junctions to be built in a day in any democracy, and the project includes new cycle paths, bus stops with shelters, and major junction changes, including new crossings for people walking and cycling.