The Department of Finance says it is close to finalising a bike to work scheme for civil servants five months after it came into effect.
The scheme was announced in last October's Budget and offers an exemption from benefit in kind for employers who are willing to buy bicycles for their employees to travel to work.
But although the scheme has been up and running in the private sector, it has been held up for most of the civil service because of concerns over liability, tendering and warranty.
The Department of Finance said today the scheme is close to being finalised and that the Office of Public Works will be advertising next week to compile a list of authorised suppliers.
Once adopted by the Civil Service, this scheme is expected to be available to all 300,000 workers in the public sector.
Employees repay the cost of bicycles through their wages and effectively write this off against tax, leading to savings of up to €410 on the purchase price.
The Department of Transport, which says it has already implemented the scheme among its own staff recently, announced spending of €2 billion over the next 11 years to quadruple the amount of people cycling to work.
James Leahy of Bike To Work, a company that helps firms implement the scheme, said that in Britain over 30% of all bicycle sales are now processed through a similar tax break there.
