De-Pedestrianisation - O'Connell Street, Sligo

JupiterKid

I see that a decision has been reached to de-pedestrianise O'Connell Street in Sligo town and return it to traffic. Now, over the past 35 years or so, cities and towns throughout the developed world have pedestrianised shopping streets to encourage shopping and a traffic free environment and these have largely been a success.

However, in a minority of cases, these has been evidence that some town and city centres were over-pedestrianised and this discouraged trade instead of helping it.

Was this the case for Sligo or is the reopening of O'Connell Street a giant leap backwards for the town? And are there any other cases of de-pedestrainisation that you can think of?

orbital83

As someone who lived in Sligo up till 2003, I am shocked every time I return how much it has turned into a ghost town over the past few years.

Bad planning is more to blame than the pedestrianisation of O'Connell Street; but it's a factor.
There are so few shops and so little pedestrian traffic on the street these days that there's hardly any justification for keeping it pedestrianised.
At the moment, you're almost expecting to see some tumbleweed where the cars used to be.

The last time I was down the latest outlet to close down was McDonalds - and if the world's most successful fast food chain can't stay in business...

Zoney

Has the inner relief road had a detrimental impact on footfall in the town centre?

I haven't been there since it was built, but it looked to be quite close to the main area people would be walking around, and I wouldn't fancy having to cross it.

Incidentally I was in Larne a while back, a town of a similar size in NI. Apart from a very small shopping area indeed, it also degenerates to ghost town very quickly (and some of the shops on the main street don't look like they make much money if the condition of the shop front is anything to go by). I had expected it to be a bit busier.

Sponge Bob

JupiterKid wrote: »

Was this the case for Sligo or is the reopening of O'Connell Street a giant leap backwards for the town? And are there any other cases of de-pedestrainisation that you can think of?

Quite a lot of pedestrian only mall area has been built in central Sligo in recent years thereby providing an alternative sheltered thoroughfare for pedestrians through the centre.

I would not condier depedestrianisation to be an absolute non non !

monument

Anybody have first hand or other information on the O'Connell Street in Sligo?

I don't know much about the Sligo case and it's been a while since I've been in the town, but remembering hearing on the radio a while back that the pedestrianisation was never finished fully, as in the streets were never paved like Grafton or Henry streets in Dublin.

That's not really giving it the best chance really.

But then again, if pedestrianisation is done in isolation without larger traffic planning or while car dependency is not tackled at a larger level maybe it would have never worked? Again, can't really comment as I don't know the full details.

aquascrotum

monument wrote: »

I don't know much about the Sligo case and it's been a while since I've been in the town, but remembering hearing on the radio a while back that the pedestrianisation was never finished fully, as in the streets were never paved like Grafton or Henry streets in Dublin.

Had the pleasure (!?) of visiting Sligo this weekend just past.

O'Connell street seems to be as it was before pedestrianisation but with a few large planters put in the road at either end. Half assed would be an understatement.

Imy successful pedestrianised schemes rely on decent quality traffic circulatory routes around the pedestrianised zone. After the 3 days I spent in Sligo I don't believe I've been in as poorly signposted a town centre, ever. Crystal Maze-esque one way system in places rubbish signage.

Mint Sauce

aquascrotum wrote: »

Had the pleasure (!?) of visiting Sligo this weekend just past.

O'Connell street seems to be as it was before pedestrianisation but with a few large planters put in the road at either end. Half assed would be an understatement.

Imy successful pedestrianised schemes rely on decent quality traffic circulatory routes around the pedestrianised zone. After the 3 days I spent in Sligo I don't believe I've been in as poorly signposted a town centre, ever. Crystal Maze-esque one way system in places rubbish signage.

exactly, very little was done, some street funiture, ie, the large planters, bollards at either end, removed in the morning to allow for shop deleveries, pavement has been unchanged, road dug up a few times to allow for services, ie, mains/piping and left exaclty as before, i.e a tarmacanded road, infact, have often and still do, walk on the pavement, trying to keep off the road, and forget that its a pedestian street, basically becuase it looks nothing like one, still even has the lowered kerb and the knobly paveing in place where there was once a crossing

brianthebard

Disappointed that they're going backwards here, maybe pedestrianising the street hasn't magically created new jobs or shops or whatever the council in its infinite wisdom thought it would do, but it hasn't damaged the town either in any way that I can see. As already said, they didn't give it a chance to work.

Cecil Mor

Unfortunately in Sligo the powers that be couldn't organize the proverbial nunshoot in a nunery.
As mentioned above the circulatory routes were terrible esp for persons unfamiliar with the town.
It's a shame but as usual the quick fix is chosen over a well thought out plan that may otherwise benefit the town.

dmeehan

any time i go to sligo i park in wine st carpark and then walk anywhere from there
i find it very handy to come in off the new road, park and wander about the town

Roche

When "pedestrianised" all they did was put ugly barriers at each end of O'Connell street. Such a project requires investment e.g. Rockwood Parade.Store fronts, cobble stone, busker & pedestrian friendly. Why not invest????? - Sligo has amazing beaches, mountains, and lakes. Allow boats up to Rockwood Parade and finish O'Connell street. Design a heart to the town!

Tech3

dmeehan wrote: »

any time i go to sligo i park in wine st carpark and then walk anywhere from there
i find it very handy to come in off the new road, park and wander about the town

Yes I do the same just park up in wine street as close to Tesco as possible! The parking seems like a huge problem to me with so much pestrianised, wine street was the closest to the town centre which is clogged up everyday. Also the one way system forces you to travel out so far out to come around into the town again.

There has been little development in the town centre itself until it was announced recently a huge shopping centre is going ahead in the next few years.

Also with the current economic crisis and the weak sterling over the border in Enniskillen demand has suddenly dropped and shops are closing left, right and centre. IMO the retail park outside the town was a bad idea its just all bad planning