European car-free day - September 22

Victor · 18-09-2003 2:07pm #1

http://home.eircom.net/content/irelandcom/breaking/1517206?view=Eircomnet

Luas hampers European car-free day in Dublin
From:ireland.com
Thursday, 18th September, 2003

Luas works in Dublin means the City Council is unable to close any major streets in the capital on European Car-Free Day next Monday.

Last year a number of streets were closed even though the day clashed with the All-Ireland final and was particularly busy.

A spokesman for Dublin City Council said the amount of traffic in the area coupled with disruption from the Luas works meant that street closures could be "catastrophic for traffic in the city centre".

Instead the Corporation is holding a street party on Sunday, September 21st, which will be opened by the Lord Mayor Cllr Royston Brady. The Mayor will cycle along a traffic-free Sean McDermott St at 2.30 p.m. to encourage people to "get on their bike".

There is better news for Dublin Bus passengers who can avail of free journeys between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. on Monday. Company spokeswoman Ms Grainne Macken said the company chose this time rather than rush-hour because many buses are at or close to peak capacity at that time.

The company will also be giving out 20,000 of a new type of ticket allowing unlimited bus travel in a 90 minute period.

Bus Éireann is offering limited free travel to customers in Cork, Galway, Limerick, Waterford, Athlone, Sligo and Balbriggan between certain times. Intending passengers are advised to contact Bus Éireann for details.

Iarnrod Éireann is not offering free journeys. To support the car-free day the company is launching a series of guides to its car parking and bicycle facilities for Dart and commuter rail passengers.

Our man in Havana · 19-09-2003 9:59am

What right have they to stop me from using my car. I paid my road tax so I should have the right to use it when I want.

Anyway its a monday that will cause more hassle than it saves.

mrblack · 19-09-2003 12:23pm

Right with ya Mr Bond- when the Governement accepts 364 days road tax instead of a full year then I'll consider this car free day. In the meantime I urge all others to take the bus and train and maybe even walk on Monday so as the rush hour will be less for the motorist!

Victor · 19-09-2003 2:14pm

Originally posted by Bond-James Bond
What right have they to stop me from using my car.

Do you really want to drive down Sean McDermott St, want to come out with all four wheels on your car?

Sleipnir · 19-09-2003 2:20pm

Originally posted by Victor
The Mayor will cycle along a traffic-free Sean McDermott St at 2.30 p.m. to encourage people to "get on their bike".

I love this bit. He cycles 100 meters a year to tell us all that we shouldn't use our cars.
What does he drive again?
Volvo?
Jaguar?
BMW?

It sure as hell ain't a smartcar. And he doesn't pay the tax on it himself I'm sure.
Or does he always cycle into the city?

LFCFan · 19-09-2003 2:22pm

Originally posted by mrblack
Right with ya Mr Bond- when the Governement accepts 364 days road tax instead of a full year then I'll consider this car free day. In the meantime I urge all others to take the bus and train and maybe even walk on Monday so as the rush hour will be less for the motorist!

Can you imagine the Chaos if everyone DID decide to use public transport instead of their car! It's a mess as it is without adding another sh1t load of people. It makes me laugh when the government go on about leaving the car at home and using the bus/train. I would glady leave the car at home if:

1. I didn't pay through the nose for the car in the first place thanks to illegal taxes (ie. VRT)
2. I didn't have to pay a hefty Road Tax for roads that are falling apart and those that aren't I have to pay a toll on
3. My Insurance company weren't riding me up the jacksy
4. I could actually get a bus near enough the time I wanted to and wasn't stressed because of overcrowding.

What a joke of a country we live in :mad:

Victor · 19-09-2003 2:35pm

Guys back on topic and cut the whinging. Complain about VRT to the right places - Motors, B/E/F or here's an idea - your local TD.

Our man in Havana · 19-09-2003 2:45pm

Originally posted by Victor
Do you really want to drive down Sean McDermott St, want to come out with all four wheels on your car?

Please explain Victor

LFCFan · 19-09-2003 3:13pm

Originally posted by Victor
Guys back on topic and cut the whinging. Complain about VRT to the right places - Motors, B/E/F or here's an idea - your local TD.

what are you on about. car free day. VRT. mmm, they seem kind of related to me. Glad to see you think our local TD's have some mighty power that giving out about a national Tax is gonna do you any good. This thread is about Car free day which is supposed to promote the use of public transport and bicycles. My post was related to why we find it very hard to leave the car at home. Don't see why that's off topic. Of course I'm off topic now but that's because you made me :ninja:

Victor · 19-09-2003 3:40pm

Originally posted by Bond-James Bond
Please explain Victor

Sean McDermot street takes very little through traffic.

Secondly the North Inner City has a reputation (rightly or wrongly).

mike65 · 19-09-2003 3:47pm

When I saw this thread I thought it was a free car day...

Damn! :ninja:

Mike.

DadaKopf · 19-09-2003 4:04pm

That's crap. Reclaim the Streets will have to be moved forward a day then.

Iarnrod Éireann is not offering free journeys. To support the car-free day the company is launching a series of guides to its car parking and bicycle facilities for Dart and commuter rail passengers.

That's just typical. This is why nobody uses transport like they do elsewhere. NOTHING'S INTEGRATED. What use is an unlimited travel ticket when the bus service in its present state isn't even compatible with such a scheme and also doesn't cover rail transport?

This makes me very, very angry.

Victor · 19-09-2003 4:08pm

Originally posted by DadaKopf
That's crap. Reclaim the Streets will have to be moved forward a day then.

No, there will be two days of events.

Victor · 19-09-2003 9:58pm

Fingal events

http://www.fingalcoco.ie/NOTICES/CarFreeDay/CarFreeDay.pdf

sligoliner · 22-09-2003 12:06am

Car Free Day 2003 – Rail Solutions Necessary
Date: 18 September, 2003
From: www.platform11.org
Issued by: Platform11 Press Office

Monday 22nd September is the fourth International Car Free day. As a rail lobby group, Platform11 applauds this idea, but we must express concern regarding the lack of promotion of rail transport as an alternative to car usage. In particular we would like to make the following three points:

Rail as an Alternative
The official website for the International Care Free Campaign (http://www.22september.org/info/en/solu.html) does not mention rail as a means of public transport. In the Irish context, this is disappointing as the railway system in Ireland has great potential for commuting, business travel and leisure travel purposes.

Awareness of Rail Services In Ireland
The awareness of rail services and locations, has always been depressingly substandard in Ireland. In the UK and Europe large signs, (often illuminated) are used to identify railway stations. Here in Ireland, railway stations are almost invisible in many parts of the country. In Clonmel, many people who have lived their entire lives in that town have no idea that there are rail passenger services at their local station. In Maynooth, despite the reconstruction of the station and vastly improved services, most people stumble across the station by accident as Irish Rail appear to have made no effort to advertise the location of the station. A prominent illuminated sign at a railway station is such a simple marketing tool, but is worth much more in terms of attracting customers to rail transport than all the expensive slick TV and magazine advertising money can buy. Creating this awareness of local rail services is considered vital in most other countries, but is almost unknown here in Ireland. The one notable exception is the new Taney Bridge in Dundrum with its large illuminated “LUAS” sign visible for miles around.

The issues above are short to medium-term concerns but for Car Free day, Irish Rail and local authorities could place temporary signs showing railway stations and generally raise awareness about rail alternatives. Platform11’s understanding is that no activity of this kind will take place.

Quick Wins through the Use of Existing Infrastructure
Local Authorities are in the unique position of having local knowledge, transport expertise and political influence. It is therefore disappointing that Irish local authorities have not sought any “quick wins” through the use for passenger services of existing, but unused rail infrastructure.

For Example:

The Connolly-Heuston railway line
The Navan-Drogheda line (to allow Navan commuters travel to Dublin by train via Drogheda).
The Mullingar-Athlone Line
While the above are short term issues, Platform11 is disappointed that for Car Free Day no attempt has been made by the relevant local authorities or Irish Rail to raise awareness of these opportunities or even run services on these lines on a once-off basis.

ENDS 18/09/03

Victor · 23-09-2003 1:54pm

http://home.eircom.net/content/irelandcom/topstories/1544012?view=Eircomnet

Car-Free Day results in little but a fairly carefree demo
From:ireland.com
Tuesday, 23rd September, 2003

Car-Free Day made no impact in Dublin yesterday morning as rain encouraged commuters to stick to their cars, creating traffic congestion that was worse than usual, according to the AA. Tim O'Brien reports.

Dublin City Council declined to close any streets, provoking the ire of the Dublin Cycling Campaign which accused it of virtually ignoring the event.

Campaigners erected a 5ft mock headstone on the steps of the Civic Offices to "mourn the day's passing". The headstone bore the inscription "Dublin City Council RIP Car Free Day 1998-2003"

The council was also the target of criticism from the campaign groups, Critical Mass and Reclaim The Streets, which were joint organisers of a "Repaint the Streets" demonstration in the city centre last night. Between 200 and 300 mainly young protesters walked or cycled in the company of a large Garda presence through the city centre to the Central Bank.

A number of garda cyclists in uniform accompanied the parade, as did gardaí on foot, on horseback and on motorcycles. It was monitored by gardaí in a van with closed-circuit television, from roof-tops by gardaí with binoculars and by a Garda helicopter.

At the Central Bank some marchers sat on the street and blocked traffic, while others produced chalk and drew zebra crossings on the ground.

To chants of "Whose world? Our world!" and "Whose streets? Our streets!" they blocked traffic for up to an hour. However, it was a good-natured event, and a number of plain-clothes gardaí smiled and laughed as they acknowledged their status for an Indymedia cameraman.

Also cycling were two Green Party TDs, Mr Ciarán Cuffe and Mr Eamon Ryan.

Dublin Bus handed out 20,000 free tickets. However, a spokeswoman agreed with the AA that the rain probably put a damper on the numbers availing of free public transport during the day.

The AA spokesman, Mr Conor Faughnan, said that in not closing the streets in Dublin the city council was only "accepting the reality that without an efficient public transport system there is no point in pretending that the city can do without the car.

"We [in the AA] have no problem with a complete car-free day, but it would be more realistic to call it a bank holiday."

Car-Free Day was also celebrated in towns and cities across the Republic.

http://home.eircom.net/content/irelandcom/topstories/1544040?view=Eircomnet

Heavy traffic on roads for Car-Free Day
From:ireland.com
Tuesday, 23rd September, 2003

Outside of Dublin, Car-Free Day began with little to distinguish it from any other "wet Monday morning in September" according to the AA. Tim O'Brien reports.

Across the State major traffic delays were experienced in all the usual spots approaching the regional cities but especially in Galway and Limerick.

Some 21 centres participated in the event. But many big centres such as Cork city had opted out. Clonakilty was the only town in Co Cork to take part.

In Galway's Eyre Square, half the traffic lanes were pedestrianised, leading to long tail-backs, while in Limerick and Waterford cities, street closures were also blamed for unusually high traffic congestion.

Bus Éireann said it had offered free off-peak travel in Cork, Waterford, Limerick and Galway.

However, the company saw "little sense" in offering free peak-time travel as "those seats are full anyway".

In Athlone, Mr Healy Hynes, a recent past president of the chamber of commerce, said the closure of Lloyds Lane, Church Street and Dublin Gate Street had "worked very well and did not cause any major upset".

There were music bands playing in the closed streets but the public were still able to access the car-parks in the centre of town without disruption, he said.

Few Galway drivers opted to leave their cars at home for the day and the traffic was particularly heavy with congestion on many of the main routes into the city.

However, Mr Conor Faughnan of AA Roadwatch attributed the heavy traffic leading into Galway and the other main cities around the country to the bad weather and not to the car-free initiative.

Nitrox · 23-09-2003 2:23pm

So typical Irish to make a mess of a great idea!!!
You whine and whine about congestion, cost and the poor state of public transport and now you demand to use the roads which u feel u have paid for....
COME ON, whats wrong with you guys.
I used to have a car also because it was the only means of transport where i lived, so no car, no work, simple as that.
However this was far away from any city, so public transport was non existing, and trust me, i had to pay far more in taxes and insurance than u ever will here in Ireland.

So have any of you even thought about why we should have this car free day?? well, it really does not sound like it..

Imagine if there was no cars clogging up the streets of Dublin, now all the busses, taxis and trucks who needed to deliver stuff could get around on time.

The first thing people with Cars think is, ohh noo, i habve to sit in a stinking bus and even pay for it, well that is true, but it would most likely go a lot faster without all the cars and in time maybe the extra income could be used to improve the public transport.

All this day is about is really to give people a vision of how things could work without cars in the citys, but in Ireland any plan that might improve things is dead from the start it seem.....big shame!!

ohh yeah, i mentioned i was once a bad car owner, now i am happy to be without it, and even if the Busses are far from perfect!! they still do get me where i need to go and the same for dart and train service, so if you have it, use it!!

Best time of day to use the dart is around 5 when you see the endless lines of cars stuck underneath the dart tracks, just remember it is your choice to sit there in the first place.

LFCFan · 23-09-2003 2:48pm

Originally posted by Nitrox
So typical Irish to make a mess of a great idea!!!
You whine and whine about congestion, cost and the poor state of public transport and now you demand to use the roads which u feel u have paid for....
COME ON, whats wrong with you guys.
I used to have a car also because it was the only means of transport where i lived, so no car, no work, simple as that.
However this was far away from any city, so public transport was non existing, and trust me, i had to pay far more in taxes and insurance than u ever will here in Ireland.

So have any of you even thought about why we should have this car free day?? well, it really does not sound like it..

Imagine if there was no cars clogging up the streets of Dublin, now all the busses, taxis and trucks who needed to deliver stuff could get around on time.

The first thing people with Cars think is, ohh noo, i habve to sit in a stinking bus and even pay for it, well that is true, but it would most likely go a lot faster without all the cars and in time maybe the extra income could be used to improve the public transport.

All this day is about is really to give people a vision of how things could work without cars in the citys, but in Ireland any plan that might improve things is dead from the start it seem.....big shame!!

ohh yeah, i mentioned i was once a bad car owner, now i am happy to be without it, and even if the Busses are far from perfect!! they still do get me where i need to go and the same for dart and train service, so if you have it, use it!!

Best time of day to use the dart is around 5 when you see the endless lines of cars stuck underneath the dart tracks, just remember it is your choice to sit there in the first place.

If we all decided tomorrow to ditch the car and use Public Transport the City would come to a standstill. It can hardly cope with the numbers as it is. Then you've got all the people who don't have access to buses at the right time. The Dart only runs on the Coastline so don't go on about using that. My girlfriend uses the train to get to work but I have to drive her to it because it's the only way she'd get it on time. Now with the Luas the 2 lines don't even meet. Until PT moves with the times and all the different forms integrate better with each other, people are gonna continue to use their cars. It would be a different story if we had a Public Transport system that actually worked but we don't.

Nitrox · 23-09-2003 2:59pm

U are totally missing the point, not saying we should all give up the car from now on and start using public transport, i am saying you should give this one day a chance for those who actually have a choice and every morning choose the car because they think they have a right or obligation to, they should just this one day try and use public transport and then the rest who have no choice but to use a car may see what the difference would be!
But no, not even one single day...that is just sad!

LFCFan · 23-09-2003 3:17pm

Originally posted by Nitrox
U are totally missing the point, not saying we should all give up the car from now on and start using public transport, i am saying you should give this one day a chance for those who actually have a choice and every morning choose the car because they think they have a right or obligation to, they should just this one day try and use public transport and then the rest who have no choice but to use a car may see what the difference would be!
But no, not even one single day...that is just sad!

You're missing the point too. Even if I wanted to use the bus, I can't because the service is poxy. I can't use the Dart because it's the other side of the city. My girlfriend does use the train but I still have to drive her there. Car Free day will not work in Cities that have a useless Public Transport service. If I had a choice between my lovely comfortable warm car that I've spent a lot of money on, or going out in the pissing rain, squezzing onto an overcrowded bus and then not having the freedom later on of the car and leaving when I want then I know which I'll be choosing. Until our options are better, Car Free Day ain't gonna work!

Jak · 23-09-2003 3:44pm

Amusingly enough in our office the other day the 2 people who tried car free day were over an hour late.

Anyhows CFD is a bit of nonsense at this point in my view. I met the organising body at a conference in Brussels once and it's shocking the amount of money that gets plunged into this effort.

LFCfan is absolutely correct. And even the organisers acknowledge that PT in Dublin could not cope with the increased demand ...

"There is better news for Dublin Bus passengers who can avail of free journeys between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. on Monday. Company spokeswoman Ms Grainne Macken said the company chose this time rather than rush-hour because many buses are at or close to peak capacity at that time."

I firmly believe in bringing about modal choice and charging options with regard to dealing with traffic congestion. However while there may be a need for sticks as well as carrots in getting people out of their cars - you can't force people onto a bus if there isn't one there.

Incidentally relating to people who believe they pay enough already with their VRT, road tax and so on. You do pay enough to cover total costs relating to the roads, however the issue is that you are not covering the marginal costs to society that your decision to make each trip by car incurs.

JAK.

Nitrox · 23-09-2003 3:55pm

well, i gues we wont know until car owners give it a chance, do we???
rather typical of car owners to be very cofident that without their car the world or at least their world would go under, i know since i used to be like this also.
but i am not getting at you and people like u LFCFan, seems u really do not have any real choice at the moment, but a lot of people do and they should really considder at least leaving their car for a day.

gurramok · 23-09-2003 5:14pm

Parents who bring their kids to school by car should be top of any target list for any car -free day.
If i dropped the car on monday and used PT (2 buses only available) i would of been more than an hour late for work, not exactly impressive for the boss. That risk is too high for travel everyday.

Those that have the train\dart available as well as efficient buses have no excuse for not dropping the car in favour of PT.

sligoliner · 29-09-2003 8:22pm

I firmly believe in bringing about modal choice and charging options with regard to dealing with traffic congestion. However while there may be a need for sticks as well as carrots in getting people out of their cars - you can't force people onto a bus if there isn't one there.

"Time for the Government to Act"

Date: 29 September, 2003
Issued by: Platform11 Press Office www.platform11.org

European Car Free Day has come and gone. If it proved one thing to us, that Ireland is in the dark ages when it comes to public transport in our cities. Platform11 welcomed the initiative as an opportunity to publicise the serious inadequacies in our rail network, which is just one part of the public transport system.

The aftermath of Car Free Day is perhaps the most astonishing story of all. On the 23rd of September, it was reported that the NRA is preparing to submit a €700 million plan to the Government to reduce gridlock in Dublin. This plan is predominantly based around the infamous M50. It includes the widening to three lanes on either side and the construction of flyovers at bottleneck junctions such as The Red Cow Roundabout, features that should have been included in the original construction. While Platform11 completely understands that a modern road network is essential in the 21st century, we are absolutely dismayed that the NRA's reaction to gridlock is to try and secure a huge amount of money for a project that will most definitely encourage even more vehicles onto the motorway and may lead to a situation where we are constantly pouring money into a road, while struggling against the ever increasing amount of traffic using it. Policy like this has to stop. When will we hear of a plan to build a cross-radial rail line in the suburbs that links all lines into Dublin and provides a viable alternative to many of the motorists stuck on the M50? Why did we not incorporate a rail line when we planned the M50? The answers to these questions are simple. Our government and transport planners are incapable of understanding the benefits of rail transport.

Roads alone will not solve our traffic problems. The Irish Government must finally wake up from their complacency and realise that ploughing money into large scale road projects in our cities at the expense of Public Transport is simply not good enough for the tax payer. Platform11 is particularly concerned with the Railway aspects of our public transport system. There are examples in all our major cities of serious gridlock on road routes that are also serviced by parallel rail lines. However these rail lines have no commuter services and many of them are overgrown, while huge traffic jams fill up the roads alongside them. This is a national disgrace. But our Government has the power to change things.

Platform11 calls on the Minister for Transport to admit that the solution to gridlock in our cities can be progressed by utilising rail alignments and to act now before our cities are consumed by gridlock and pollution. Our current government seems happy to repeat the mistakes of the past.

Listed below are Road routes into our major cities that are affected by serious traffic problems. These routes are also served by rail lines that have no services or very limited services.

Dublin
Heavily populated areas like Blackhorse Avenue, Cabra and Phibsborough/Glasnevin have a perfectly suitable rail line running through the areas. It isn't used for commuter traffic. The current excuse from Irish Rail is lack of Platform space in Connolly Station. Platform11 presented a solution to the Oireachtas Committee on Transport. "Time for the Government to act."

N21- Patrickswell - Limerick City.
Rail line currently out of use. "Time for the Government to act."

N18 - Ennis - Limerick City.
One train a day in either direction. "Time for the Government to act."

N7 - Nenagh - Limerick City.
No commuter service on rail line. "Time for the Government to act."

N17/N6 - Tuam - Galway City (via Athenry)
The rail line from Tuam to Athenry is in a deplorable condition. No services. It is disconnected from the mainline at Athenry. (As recently as this year) The line from Athenry has no commuter services to Galway. "Time for the Government to act."

N25 - New Ross - Waterford City.
Rail line is in a deplorable condition. No services. "Time for the Government to act."

N25 - Youghal - Midleton - Cork City.
Rail line is in a deplorable condition. No services. "Time for the Government to act."

N20 - Mallow - Cork City.
The rail line on this route is part of the mainline to Cork. No Commuter services. "Time for the Government to act."

It's also frightening to know that at a recent Transport Summit, Irish rail confirmed that they'd rather concentrate their investment on existing Inter-City services and existing commuter services in Dublin. Platform11 has learned that Irish Rail management believe increased intercity services can also act as commuter services. This is unacceptable as it will undoubtedly lead to further problems. Both the Government and Irish Rail must now show some commitment to the development of commuter services nationwide, before this country is swallowed by road traffic gridlock.

Our government and transport planners are still lost in a 50 year old Anglo-American time warp when motorways were viewed as the endgame in transport, making all other modes redundant and obsolete. In Europe, funds was channeled equally into motorways and rail transport, and the result are clear for all to see. Vibrant urban centre with less traffic and more livable and culturally rich cities. You don't find dead, soulless cities such as Los Angeles or Birmingham, where the motorway has destroyed urban life and cultural while making wastelands of once vibrant city centres.

Perhaps the Oireachtas Transport Committee, along with the Minister for Transport on their next fact-finding trip, should visit Los Angeles and see what the future has in store for Irish cities if the backward "car-only" culture of the Irish government and Irish transport planers is to remain out only option. It is indeed incredible to think that a 50 year old failed transport policy, now universally looked upon with dismay is still being promoted as the only game in town here in Ireland.

ENDS 29/09/03

European car-free day - September 22

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