Cities around the world that are reducing car access

MJohnston

Thelonious Monk wrote: »

Do you think the council would likely do anything about it? I emailed them photos and explained the situation to the parkingviolations email and got a case number.
I've noticed they've started putting planters up near the Dart station to stop people from doing this. It really is endemic in Dublin though.

Which council? DLRCC have been known to enforce on parking, DCC are pretty useless though.

Thelonious Monk

MJohnston wrote: »

Which council? DLRCC have been known to enforce on parking, DCC are pretty useless though.

DCC. It's just a total mess outside these days. I'll keep at them even if they're useless.

Seth Brundle

https://twitter.com/GraemeMcQ/status/1308032402464407558?s=19

Seth Brundle

Another tweet - this one showing how the number of cyclists aren't far off twice the number of motorists along the Grand Canal in Dublin...

https://twitter.com/db2909/status/1308881092158590976

Sam Russell

Seth Brundle wrote: »

Another tweet - this one showing how the number of cyclists aren't far off twice the number of motorists along the Grand Canal in Dublin...

https://twitter.com/db2909/status/1308881092158590976

It is very noticeable that the number of cyclists on he Dublin City roads has significantly increased since the Covid restriction began.

AlmightyCushion

Sam Russell wrote: »

It is very noticeable that the number of cyclists on he Dublin City roads has significantly increased since the Covid restriction began.

That tweet actually shows the opposite. There was more cyclists back in January and February than there was in March, April and May. It shows that cycling isn't just a recent Covid related phenomenon and hence why we should be investing in infrastructure for it and should have been for years.

MJohnston

What's interesting is the second tweet in that thread contains this chart:



December obviously dips because of the Christmas holidays. June/July maybe dip because of school holidays?

Otherwise it's notable how the constant motorist refrain of "they'll not cycle in winter" is completely incorrect — there's only about a 10% increase in numbers between January and the May peak.

LXFlyer

Cyclist numbers would drop when the colleges are on their summer and mid-term breaks surely?
Students would always be a major component of the numbers.

magicbastarder

i wonder how many of those being counted are 'professional' cyclists? specifically thinking of deliveroo, just eat, etc.

keane2097

Lot of people have cleared out of Dublin since the lockdown began so if the numbers are 'steady' there's probably more people cycling alright.

MJohnston

The chart I posted above is from 2019, you can see the 2020 one in the Twitter thread linked before.

gjim

magicbastarder wrote: »

i wonder how many of those being counted are 'professional' cyclists? specifically thinking of deliveroo, just eat, etc.

A pizza delivery by bicycle is still a win for everyone else in the city over delivery by car.

Any time a bicycle is substituted for a motorised vehicle, whether for commuting or commerce/trade, it improves the capacity and efficiency of the roads to get people from A to B.

magicbastarder

no argument there; i should have explained that i was curious how the lockdown would have affected the number of people ordering in food, rather than eating out, and thus the number of bike journeys being made by food deliverers.

Sam Russell

AlmightyCushion wrote: »

That tweet actually shows the opposite. There was more cyclists back in January and February than there was in March, April and May. It shows that cycling isn't just a recent Covid related phenomenon and hence why we should be investing in infrastructure for it and should have been for years.

I am just noting what I see as I go about. There are a lot of cyclists about - both the lycra and pleasure cyclists who are accompanied by children etc.

Zebra3

https://www.irishtimes.com/news/environment/four-central-dublin-streets-to-become-car-free-areas-1.4397644

Mickey Mouse progress. :rolleyes:

magicbastarder

that's about 250m of street in total. and it's obvious that two of the 'closures' announced are truncated by car parks.

AlmightyCushion

magicbastarder wrote: »

that's about 250m of street in total. and it's obvious that two of the 'closures' announced are truncated by car parks.

They're so disjointed as well. Just look at the existing pedestrianised areas on the map. It is Grafton street and all the other streets (apart from 2) are connected to Grafton street making a whole area that is pedestrianised. The new pedestrianised areas are just a bit of this street here, a bit of that street there, they aren't connected to each other or any other pedestrianised area.

It's better than nothing but that isn't saying much.

cgcsb

Are they at least removing the parking on BOTH sides of SWS and reducing the carriageway width. I'm sure there are plenty of wheelchair users who would like to go to SWS but who have never been because an able bodied person cannot even walk straight down the footpath without turning sideways to avoid poles for car-user signage, parking metres etc. Even when the pedestrian trials were on you'd want some hiking boots to get through the gaping chasms that DCC calls 'potholes'.

LXFlyer

cgcsb wrote: »

Are they at least removing the parking on BOTH sides of SWS and reducing the carriageway width. I'm sure there are plenty of wheelchair users who would like to go to SWS but who have never been because an able bodied person cannot even walk straight down the footpath without turning sideways to avoid poles for car-user signage, parking metres etc. Even when the pedestrian trials were on you'd want some hiking boots to get through the gaping chasms that DCC calls 'potholes'.

Given that the only access to South William Street will be for cars exiting the BT Car Park, then I would expect that will happen.

cgcsb

LXFlyer wrote: »

Given that the only access to South William Street will be for cars exiting the BT Car Park, then I would expect that will happen.

Literally nothing surprises me from the anti-progress wing of officialdom in this country. Didn't they turn off the red light camera at Blackhall place and never enforce any penalties?

magicbastarder

i can't remember where i read the maxim, but i am fond of 'the system evolves to protect itself'.

and it's not just 'this country'. it's any organisation which has existed long enough for that mode of thinking to set in.

LXFlyer

cgcsb wrote: »

Literally nothing surprises me from the anti-progress wing of officialdom in this country. Didn't they turn off the red light camera at Blackhall place and never enforce any penalties?

I think to be fair that there is scope here for reallocating the space.

But there will probably have to be some space for delivery vans to park in the morning window.

CatInABox

Hmmm, chance for a bit of fun with one of the most pro car radio hosts out there.

https://twitter.com/PatKennyNT/status/1324271491760955392

cgcsb

https://www.rte.ie/news/2020/1104/1176026-dame-street-pedestrians/

Have seen this in the news but nothing from DCC about the consultation process or the brochures. Looks great but given the College Green Fiasco of the last 5 years I'll reserve judgement.

I would like to see a large section of Dublin City Centre (i.e. from Stephen's Green to Parnell St) pedestrianised with buses able to use the quays and some through cycling routes. I think eventually the car parks will throw in the towel if these schemes go ahead, driving in will become too much hassle for most and there are much more valuable land uses.

cgcsb

CatInABox wrote: »

Hmmm, chance for a bit of fun with one of the most pro car radio hosts out there.

https://twitter.com/PatKennyNT/status/1324271491760955392

People who listen to the radio are mostly car divers. Who else would suffer the rubbish on the radiio? Radio broadcasting in Ireland is insufferable so when I'm in the car I usually have organised my listening. There's not enough music, the 'serious' stations have too many morons blabbing about their opinion and the more jovial stations have different breeds of morons arguing with each other about how to pronounce words or describing junk foods they like and original content is nowhere to be found between the two. The best radio here is lyric or the Irish language stations.

CatInABox

cgcsb wrote: »

https://www.rte.ie/news/2020/1104/1176026-dame-street-pedestrians/

Have seen this in the news but nothing from DCC about the consultation process or the brochures. Looks great but given the College Green Fiasco of the last 5 years I'll reserve judgement.

I would like to see a large section of Dublin City Centre (i.e. from Stephen's Green to Parnell St) pedestrianised with buses able to use the quays and some through cycling routes. I think eventually the car parks will throw in the towel if these schemes go ahead, driving in will become too much hassle for most and there are much more valuable land uses.

Here's the DCC page on it, consultation is live now.

cgcsb

Thanks for this. I note that in both options, a dangerously narrow footpath remains outside Centra. The bit between George's St and Christchurch also needs some work if you ask me but that's probably a separate days work. This will be a big win if it happens.

A future issue I can forsee is that there'll eventually be a design for a new East-West luas route south of the Liffey and ploughing it through here won't be an option. A Townsend-Cook St route will probably be preferred, requiring cut n cover in Templebar, shock horror, I expect the people will be less scared of tunnels once metrolink is in place though.

CatInABox

cgcsb wrote: »

Thanks for this. I note that in both options, a dangerously narrow footpath remains outside Centra.

Same story all over Dublin, to be honest. Tara St is ridiculous for this, considering the amount of people using it.

Dublin really needs a footpath version of the Wide Streets Commission.

LXFlyer

The revised bus routes through the city under BusConnects do help significantly in developing this plan with far fewer significant detours for bus routes and no daft looping from O'Connell Street to the Quays via D'Olier Street, College Street and Westmoreland Street.

However, I'd like to see the 71 and 72 use Parliament Street in both directions (northbound contra-flow bus lane).

That would be a more reasonable dogleg than forcing them to go via Winetavern Steet.

cgcsb

CatInABox wrote: »

Same story all over Dublin, to be honest. Tara St is ridiculous for this, considering the amount of people using it.

Dublin really needs a footpath version of the Wide Streets Commission.

I think if there were a competition then Merrion Row would have to win for reckless and senseless endangerment of pedestrians.