DUBLIN CITY Council intends to scale back significantly its plans for a “bus gate” at College Green despite warnings from Minister for Transport Noel Dempsey that he wants the car-free zone in place by July.
The council’s traffic department had proposed a 24-hour public-transport-only route from Dame Street across College Green to Westmoreland Street.
A similar restriction would be in place for private traffic coming in the opposite direction, from D’Olier Street around College Green and into Dame Street.
Access to car parks would be retained, but private cars would be prevented from using O’Connell Bridge to cross the city.
The bus gate is part of the council’s City Centre Transport Plan for the management of traffic and the improvement of public transport up to 2020.
It is also necessary to allow work on the construction of Metro North to begin and to facilitate the Luas BX line which will connect the Luas red and green lines with a preferred route through College Green. However following lobbying from city business interests the council’s transport committee yesterday voted to restrict the bus gate to 7am-10am and 4pm-7pm Monday to Friday only.
Almost 80 per cent of submissions received during public consultation were opposed to the bus gate. The opposition came mainly from local retailers and car park owners who fear loss of business.
The traffic department yesterday told the transport committee that a retail assessment by Goodbody Consultants found the maximum potential decrease as a result of the bus gate would be 3.2 per cent. Several councillors on the committee remained in favour of the bus gate, although they voted for the reduced hours.
“If we continue to let cars drive through the city centre without restriction it will reduce the amount of people who can get into town and that will do serious damage to city centre businesses,” Labour councillor Andrew Montague said.
Labour’s Michael Conaghan said businesses had lobbied against the pedestrianisation of Grafton Street but it had been a huge success.
Fine Gael’s Gerry Breen said that if the bus gate was to facilitate Metro North it was unnecessary. “I’ll wager that the death cert for Metro North will be signed after June 5th.”
However, Mr Dempsey has given a deadline of July to have the bus gate in place. The Railway Procurement Agency (RPA) has said the traffic restriction is necessary for the development of metro and other Transport 21 projects, while Dublin Bus wants the bus gate, both to solve the current traffic congestion problems and to ensure it can still run a service through the city centre once the metro and Luas BX are in place.
The transport committee’s recommendation will now go before a full meeting of the council in May. However, the city’s director of traffic, Michael Phillips, said the bus gate could have to revert to the original 24-hours, once Metro North construction begins.
“It would be difficult at that time to have car traffic in the area, so it may have to change,” he said.
Dublin city manager John Tierney is to appear before an Oireachtas transport committee in relation to the bus gate today.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Showing posts with label dublin transport. Show all posts
Showing posts with label dublin transport. Show all posts
Thursday, 23 April 2009
Friday, 10 October 2008
New Luas Route
The route of the planned new Luas through west Dublin was unveiled today with tram lines running from Trinity College in the city centre to Lucan.
Operators expect an extra 25 million commuters to use the growing network but it could be early 2011 before work begins.
Journey times are expected to be around 45 minutes on the 15km route.
A spokesman for the Railway Procurement Agency said: “We would expect that journey times would be similar to the Tallaght journey. We would expect around 45 minutes.”
No price tag has been put on the huge project but planners insisted they are aiming to minimise disruption in the city.
“We would have to speed up time spent building the lines, that would be our intention, and we have already done that with the Docklands,” the Railway Procurement Agency (RPA) spokesman said.
“The man in the street might have felt we left areas unfinished during construction. We would certainly be more focused on limiting any disruption in all areas but particularly the likes of Thomas Street and Dean Street.”
The 15km Line F will start on College Green heading west along Dame Street to Christchurch before joining the existing Red Line at Fatima or St James’s Hospital.
Five stops later trams will continue west into Ballyfermot through Cherry Orchard and out of the city to Liffey Valley and a possible park and ride before stopping at Quarryvale, Castle Road, Griffeen Valley and the Newcastle Road.
It is also planned to build stops linking with the proposed Metro West and Metro North, rail and bus services.
Details on locations of stops have to be finalised in the coming months before a railway order is submitted in July 2010.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Operators expect an extra 25 million commuters to use the growing network but it could be early 2011 before work begins.
Journey times are expected to be around 45 minutes on the 15km route.
A spokesman for the Railway Procurement Agency said: “We would expect that journey times would be similar to the Tallaght journey. We would expect around 45 minutes.”
No price tag has been put on the huge project but planners insisted they are aiming to minimise disruption in the city.
“We would have to speed up time spent building the lines, that would be our intention, and we have already done that with the Docklands,” the Railway Procurement Agency (RPA) spokesman said.
“The man in the street might have felt we left areas unfinished during construction. We would certainly be more focused on limiting any disruption in all areas but particularly the likes of Thomas Street and Dean Street.”
The 15km Line F will start on College Green heading west along Dame Street to Christchurch before joining the existing Red Line at Fatima or St James’s Hospital.
Five stops later trams will continue west into Ballyfermot through Cherry Orchard and out of the city to Liffey Valley and a possible park and ride before stopping at Quarryvale, Castle Road, Griffeen Valley and the Newcastle Road.
It is also planned to build stops linking with the proposed Metro West and Metro North, rail and bus services.
Details on locations of stops have to be finalised in the coming months before a railway order is submitted in July 2010.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Wednesday, 23 July 2008
Private car ban in city centre from next April
PLANS TO ban private cars from parts of Dublin City centre, including O'Connell Street, Westmoreland Street and College Green, should go ahead by next April, a key Oireachtas Transport Committee report will recommend today.
The proposals to allow only public transport into the central area by next year, as outlined by Transport Committee chairman Frank Fahey last May, had been expected to be postponed after strong opposition from city traders and members of Mr Fahey's own Oireachtas Committee.
Objections centred on claims that there are insufficient buses or other public transport in the area to support the ban. Objections also cited insufficient time to steer a proposed new bridge across the Liffey through the planning process, and that the proposed Samuel Beckett bridge at Macken Street will not be open before 2010.
The car ban was planned by the Dublin Transportation Office to coincide with the start of work on Metro North and the building of the city centre Luas link. While Metro North is not now expected to start until 2011, and the Luas works will not happen before that, it has been decided to recommend early 2009 as the start of the car ban.
The Irish Times understands the report will recommend a "bus gate" be established at College Green by next April, and that only buses, bicycles, taxis and other public service vehicles be allowed to access the central core area.
Efforts to contact Mr Fahey yesterday were unsuccessful, but he has previously insisted: "We are quite satisfied that the proposals within this report are possible and can be implemented."
The report recommends the acquisition by Dublin Bus of 350 new buses - to be leased from the private sector if not immediately available to buy.
The proposed Bailey bridge between Marlborough Street and Hawkins Street is to be reserved for public transport and will be replaced by a Luas bridge.
The Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
The proposals to allow only public transport into the central area by next year, as outlined by Transport Committee chairman Frank Fahey last May, had been expected to be postponed after strong opposition from city traders and members of Mr Fahey's own Oireachtas Committee.
Objections centred on claims that there are insufficient buses or other public transport in the area to support the ban. Objections also cited insufficient time to steer a proposed new bridge across the Liffey through the planning process, and that the proposed Samuel Beckett bridge at Macken Street will not be open before 2010.
The car ban was planned by the Dublin Transportation Office to coincide with the start of work on Metro North and the building of the city centre Luas link. While Metro North is not now expected to start until 2011, and the Luas works will not happen before that, it has been decided to recommend early 2009 as the start of the car ban.
The Irish Times understands the report will recommend a "bus gate" be established at College Green by next April, and that only buses, bicycles, taxis and other public service vehicles be allowed to access the central core area.
Efforts to contact Mr Fahey yesterday were unsuccessful, but he has previously insisted: "We are quite satisfied that the proposals within this report are possible and can be implemented."
The report recommends the acquisition by Dublin Bus of 350 new buses - to be leased from the private sector if not immediately available to buy.
The proposed Bailey bridge between Marlborough Street and Hawkins Street is to be reserved for public transport and will be replaced by a Luas bridge.
The Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
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