City Centre buses

markpb

bk wrote:

It really isn't that hard to fix, DB need to stop laying up in the city centre, I can't think of any other major city where buses lay-up in the city centre, it is mad when you stop and think about it.

This comes up quite frequently here, people are always keen to suggest that DB should re-organise their city centre operations and stop laying up in Marlborough st, etc. What I want to know is, how do other cities do it and what changes would you make, especially in the short term?

From my own experience, the only other city I know well is LA and they have the advantage of a slightly better heavy rail system than we do. They have lots of local services because of the way LA grew. They don't seem to have any cross-city buses, not that pass through the downtown area anyway, but I've no idea where those buses go in between routes.

My idea would be to have city-centre bus stations, perhaps one under Connolly station (Sheriff St / Amiens St). The buses could lay-up in the cark park and start/end all services underneath platform 4. I'm sure there are other locations like that around the city and I know DB have plans for at least one off Abbey st.

monument

Here's LA's bus maps...
http://metro.net/riding_metro/riders_guide/planning_trip-01.htm

Apprently LA's system was named the US's best by the American Public Transportation Association (PDF)...
http://metro.net/news_info/publications/apta_awards.pdf

Edit: There is also the advantage that a less percentage of people in LA county want to go downtown compared to in Dublin county and beyond. It’s mostly a business district that is pretty much disserted after office hours and at weekends - there’s little or nothing in the way of shopping entertainment compared to the rest of LA, and there are far more large population/work centres in LA. And LA Downtown’s wide streets can take buses easer then Dublin’s streets.

No really, Downtown LA is like a ghost town on a Sunday, and the homeless are the only ones around at night.

Enigma365

Downtown LA is seriously dodgy after dark.

Vancouver has a pretty good bus network. Think it was voted best in North America at one stage.

Both LA and Vancouver bus routes tend to terminate/commence at metro stations. In other words the bus routes are feeder routes to and form the metro line, which you would use for the majority of your journey.

That system works pretty well, especially considering that both cities have very limited metro systems.

Zoney

There's nowhere to put this in Dublin city centre, but the obvious "ideal" solution for quick drop-off/pick-up or longer wait would be a car-park style bus station. I.e. a big lot with parallel lanes that have pavements and bus shelters between. This would act in much the same manner as the on-street solution except without using up the streets!

Not much hope when even Bus Éireann have to terminate in a cramped place like Busaras - less space even than Limerick or Cork bus stations.

I don't know what you would do as compromise. I guess the current on-street solution is the compromise.

robd

There was a report written by MVN, release in March 2006, and available on the Dublin Bus website at http://www.dublinbus.ie/images/upload/news/DublinBusNetworkReview.pdf

It recommended changing the services to run through the city rather than stopping in the city. It recommended changes to the traffic flow along with bus only contra flow streets and bus only streets. It recommended additional high quality orbital bus routes. It recommended increasing the bus fleet significantly.

The problem is that the PD element of the current government believe that privatization is the solution to everything. The FF element don't agree. This has tied up the Dept of Transport into not allowing Dublin Bus to increase it's fleet so that they can obtain that objective.

Judging by the number of ads for Dublin Bus Drivers in the papers and the no. of Learner Dublin Buses I've seen over the last few months, something seems to be happening though.

Anyway, for anyone with a good bit of spare time the report is worth a read.

Xylophonic

The best short term solution IMO, would be to:

1. Convert Summerhill Garage to a Bus Station. This could be done easily by moving the remaining bus routes allocated to Summerhill to the Harristown Depot (16/AC, 20B, 33/A, 41/ABCX, 747/8). Summerhill could then serve as a Bus Station.
2. A section of Broadstone could also maybe be converted to cater as a bus station.
3. The 15's, 49/A, 54A, 65/B, 150 could terminate at Ringsend Road like the 50/56A etc. the move the buses which terminate on Pearse Street, Hawkins Street or Aston Quay to Eden Quay contra flow.
4. A bus station could be built to the right of Docklands Station. Connolly Station Car Park is ear marked to become another Bus Aras. And they could rush through the Strand Street terminal.

I do think the 150 should be moved from Fleet Street though to Ringsend Road.

MadsL

Wasn't there some talk of a underground bus station to built on Abbey St?

Ham'nd'egger

MadsL wrote:

Wasn't there some talk of a underground bus station to built on Abbey St?

There is plans afoot for a bus station on Upper Abbey Street. It however is a small site for a select amount of bus routes only so it won't be much good for most buses.