Cities around the world that are reducing car access

what_traffic

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121948965#Comment_121948965

Agree; should be more focus on this. Lots of towns all over the Country could get this treatment and still have practically the exact same car access but would stop the main streets been through car traffic routes. Oranmore outside Galway City is a good candidate for this. Would make Main Street living far more attractive as well if people want to live in the Centre of towns.

bk

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121949205#Comment_121949205

The Tories say one thing and do another. After all London has had congestion charging for over a decade now and the Tories have been in power all that time. I mean even when Boris was the Mayor of London and he didn't reverse it.

FG are our closest to the Tories, yet they are introducing this as part of the government. SF, many of young people who make up their base are the ones stuck in buses every day on the way into work, fuming at how poor public transport is, so don't expect them to reverse this.

I'm sure all our political parties will promise the world while canvassing, but once in power, they will largely go along with what the Civil servants and transport planners and experts are recommending.

KrisW1001

The only reason Boris Johnson didn't undo C-charging when in power in London is that it would have required effort, and he's not really an effort kind of guy...

Perimeter tolling (the general term for C charges) does need a pretty high quality of public transport alternatives within the perimiter, otherwise drivers will just pay the toll, and continue to enter, then they vote for whoever will scrap the scheme, and you're back to square one.

Cookiemunster

This is Sinn Feins response to the strategy.

https://vote.sinnfein.ie/draft-transport-strategy-doomed-to-fail-without-significant-public-transport-investment-martin-kenny-td/

They claim green credentials, but the last paragraph says it all.

“This draft strategy is yet another way for this out of touch government to punish motorists, hauliers and transport operators for using the only form of transport they feel able to rely on.”

If the Greens don't get back into government (and the polls are dropping then down to only a couple of TDs), then this strategy won't be implemented.

Pete_Cavan

The GP obviously support such plans but Metrolink, DART+ and BusConnects were introduced under the previous FG government so it's odd to suggest that they might be a threat to car reduction. I don't think these strategies will change if the GP isn't part of the next government.

If SF aren't the largest party in the next government then FF and FG will be and I'd expect them to continue on the current course, albeit with more emphasis on national road improvements. If anything, SF are our closest to the Tories on these issues.

magicbastarder

Attributing the metro to the previous FG government is a bit of a stretch, considering it's been in 'planning' for decades. In fact, it was 'deferred indefinitely' by LV in 2011 before being reinstated in 2015.

Sam Russell

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121950470#Comment_121950470

The state was bust in 2011, but has recovered since.

Metrolink and Busconnects would have a huge effect on travel times that would make modal shift from car to PT the obvious thing to do. Add in gradual reduction in on-street parking, increases in parking charges and Motor Tax (based on weight), and significant enforcement and we will be well on our way to efficient PT.

Zebra3

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121949484#Comment_121949484

Opposition parties say a lot of things when in opposition.

And many of them get dropped when they have the responsibility of power.

Some they are actually against and have to compromise on, others they were just grandstanding on.

I’d be fairly certain anyone standing against these issues are just looking for votes bar a handful of extremists. And if either FF or FG were currently in opposition they’d do the same thing.

We can after all, easily recall Varadkar’s comments about MM in the pre-GE debates last time around..

magicbastarder

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121950547#Comment_121950547

No argument there. I was just querying the statement that we have FG to thank for it.

Pete_Cavan

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121950470#Comment_121950470

Metrolink was introduced under the previous FG government, that is fact.

magicbastarder

if you mean they introduced a new name for the project, i'll grant you that.

On 22 March 2007, Transport Infrastructure Ireland began the procurement process for Metro North. In October 2007 it
announced that it had a shortlist of four consortia interested in building Metro North. Draft Environmental Impact Statements were
published in early 2008.

On 17 September 2008, the RPA applied for a railway order to An Bord Pleanála.[15] Oral hearings were heard during 2009 and 2010.[16]

On 5 October 2011, Metro North was granted planning permission by An Bord Pleanála.[17]

It was speculated by the media that the Metro North Project would
be indefinitely deferred on 12 August 2011 following a review by Leo Varadkar, then Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport. This was confirmed on 10 November 2011.[18]

just worth mentioning that it was in feb 2011 that FG won the election.

KrisW1001

Metrolink is not Metro North. Metro North was concieved by the FF government of the early 2000s, but was canned in the wake of the financial crisis.

Even when the situation improved, that previous project was deemed to be too expensive to proceed with, so a new approach was taken in 2018. That decision to resurrect the idea in a more achievable form was a Green/FG initiative.

Really, the only similarities are the general route and the first five letters of the name…

Pete_Cavan

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121951568#Comment_121951568

The GP was not part of the government of the 32nd Dáil. They had nothing to do with Metrolink initially, they had two TDs at the time.

KrisW1001

My mistake. Resurrection was entirely FG's idea, then, as was the suspension. Cancelling it in the first place was inevitable. As I recall, the two tenders to build this were fairly shaky by late 2011, if they hadn't already been withdrawn.. construction companies were struggling to find working capital, plus they would have been rightly wary of running up a big invoice with Ireland when it looked like the country was going to go bust.

cgcsb

Wondering what's become of DCC city centre transport plan? I see a cycle lane is being built through where a proposed bus gate is to be located only 4 months from now. Are there drawings I missed?

specialbyte

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121969010#Comment_121969010

Drawings and photomontages are here: https://www.dublincity.ie/residential/transportation/active-travel/projects/liffey-cycle-route

cgcsb

They don't load anymore and from memory they don't show the bus gate in any case

EVBusFan

The Dublin City Centre Transport plan for the South Quays is not a detailed design and is not incompatible with the the Liffey Cycle Route from George's Quay to Aston Quay as far as I'm aware. In the Dublin City Centre Transport plan proposals, section 8.2 Bachelors Walk and Aston Quay, it discusses the removal of 'through traffic' at the O'Connell Bridge junction so I suspect just after that at Aston Quay being a bus gate:
(Edit of Liffey Cycle Route drawings above)

LXFlyer

The cycle route works have already put an end to cars causing obstructions for buses & trams coming across Rosie Hackett Bridge due to other cars trying to nip into the straight ahead lane from the outside lane between RH bridge and O’Connell Bridge.

cgcsb

Thanks, I mean more that one would expect the detailed design to be in place within 4 months of the proposed completion date. I suspect the August date is fiction, as they typically are with DCC.

MJohnston

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121970258#Comment_121970258

I'd wager the removal of this lane has even managed to make the car traffic pass more efficiently too.

alentejo

I do note that Pearse St is more backed up particularly in the mornings

MJohnston

Well roll on the removal of the left turn from Tara Street to the Quays…

LXFlyer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121973454#Comment_121973454

Well that's the thing. Lots of "opportunists" would come up the outside lane and then try to merge into the straight ahead lane just west of Rosie Hackett Bridge, thus causing a delay for anyone turning right behind them and causing cars to stop prematurely in the straight ahead lane.

The side effect of that was frequent blocking of the yellow box for buses and trams coming off Rosie Hackett Bridge.

This change is an absolute godsend.

MJohnston

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121983341#Comment_121983341

There's so many of these situations around Dublin too — for example this junction of Wexford/Aungier and Cuffe/Kevin Street

Instead of 2 lanes straight ahead that suddenly merge into 1, just reconcile this into 2 lanes with more space for pedestrians and cyclists. I have no doubt that it would move way way more efficiently.

alentejo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121994043#Comment_121994043

That junction is going to require a full redesign as part of Busconnects. It will need to cater for a large no of Buses connecting from Wexford street and turning right on kevin St towards Stephens Green

MJohnston

Honestly I could make a good argument for Northbound Wexford Street (and all the way along that street with its various names to Dame Street) being bus only. Off the top of my head the mechanics of it would work out too.

Zebra3

https://x.com/rainmaker1973/status/1779787880145027449?s=46&t=4UVk0HSHSZ5vDu4r8jnEVw

Yes, please!!!!

MJohnston

That's just clamping in a different form really. The problem isn't the form of enforcement imo, it's the weird ways in which the standards are applied.

Thelonious Monk

https://www.breakingnews.ie/ireland/proposed-pedestrianisation-of-malahide-street-faces-court-challenge-1613743.html

who are these people that are bothered to bring this to court ffs, has it not been pedestrianised for years at this stage?