Can Swords have nice things?

the_amazing_raisin · 23-05-2025 03:47PM #1

Alright, time for a rant 😁

I've lived in Swords for close to 10 years now and while I really like living here, I sometimes feel it's the forgotten town of Fingal

When I look at towns like Malahide, Howth or Donabate I can't help but feel a bit envious over the facilities they have

They all have fantastic green area, big well equipped playgrounds and some big events through the year

Meanwhile it feels like Swords is the town where they shoved all the new houses and not much else

To be clear, I don't begrudge anyone living in other towns, I'm glad they have such nice facilities for residents

I just wish we had more going on in Swords. We don't even seem to have a decent playground

I realise that a lot of it is down to geographical luck, a lot of the coastal towns are big tourist attractions with a train link to Dublin

Swords meanwhile has a castle with some small green area and a main street that's usually a traffic jam. Also a park with a big valley in the middle, which isn't exactly great for holding a concert or anything

Also I'm aware of the big shopping centre which has some amenities other towns don't and also probably takes a lot of business away from main street

Still, it's the main town of Fingal (apparently) and you'd kind of expect better. Things have definitely improved between the castle restoration and the upcoming cultural quarter

But there's some low hanging fruit that could really make the place nicer I think

A decent large playground in either the castle or river valley would be great, and maybe resurface and widen some of the paths

Closing main street to cars at the weekend would also be nice I think. I understand fully pedestrianisng it would be controversial but on sunny weekends it would be nice for a stroll

Anyway, what do others think? Is Swords in danger of becoming a sea of houses and business parks with no decent center, or am I just being jealous

DellyBelly · 23-05-2025 03:59PM

Been to Swords a few times and I agree with you it's just not a very nice area aesthetically…wouldn't like to live there to be honest. However as you say there are a number of things that could rejuvenate the place but not sur it will happen

the_amazing_raisin · 23-05-2025 04:20PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123478200#Comment_123478200

Yeah, it's a bit of an ugly town I'll admit😂

I'm probably sounding like a moaner about the town, it's actually a grand place to live in terms of safety and quality of schools and such

It could be a lot nicer though with some effort

For example there's the new coastal greenway which almost deliberately seems to avoid having a branch to Swords

I'm sure it's down to budget reasons but I can't help but feel like it was the residents of Malahide not wanting the orcs in Swords to come visit 😂

magicbastarder · 23-05-2025 04:43PM

Swords isn't really a town people from outside think 'oh, I must go visit there' the way they might with Malahide; but as pointed out above, that's a coastal town with a beach, and a nearby castle on parkland.

I suspect most of the 'outsiders' who end up in swords only ever go to the pavilions.

the_amazing_raisin · 23-05-2025 05:12PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123478358#Comment_123478358

Yeah true, it isn't exactly a destination

I see there's concert in the castle this summer, plus the food market once a month

So there's definitely some effort being put in which is good to see

rje66 · 23-05-2025 07:33PM

So donebate is a nicer town than swords??......im really struggling with this one?

Howth and Malahide probably have worse traffic , and they don't have a cinema!!!

07Lapierre · 23-05-2025 08:37PM

closing Swords main st to traffic would be a huge improvement! Same for the access road from Main st to the car park at the back of the mall.

John_Rambo · 23-05-2025 08:57PM

The most neglected area in the country.
Still no metro, still no proper public transport, just broken promises. Meanwhile, Swords, one of the fastest-growing towns in Ireland, is left cut off from the city with barely a bus to rely on.

I was in the Pavilions last week. Then I spent a few days in the midwest, driving on empty motorways that cost over €8 million per kilometre. Contrast that with people in Swords walking along a muddy track beside the R132 as cars & HGV's fly past. It would be funny if it wasn't dangerous and this was on a summers day.

Swords is punching way above its weight, but you wouldn’t know it by looking at where the tax money’s going. It certainly isn’t going back there.

billyhead · 23-05-2025 10:36PM

It's not the only town in NCD that's neglected. Lusk and Rush would have the same issue. Skerries would have the opposite.

rje66 · 23-05-2025 10:40PM

...."still no proper public transport, just broken promises. Meanwhile, Swords, one of the fastest-growing towns in Ireland, is left cut off from the city with barely a bus to rely on."....

Swords express and plenty of buses at regular intervals....what rock are you living under????

the_amazing_raisin · 23-05-2025 11:19PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123479422#Comment_123479422

Rush has a massive playground whereas Swords has a couple of small ones dotted around

Lusk is definitely overstretched with all the new houses that got added to a small town

To be clear, I'm not saying Swords is the worst off town in Fingal. Nor am I saying resources should be diverted away from other towns

But it's one of the biggest town in the area, pretty sure only Blanch and Finglas (which is effectively part of Dublin City) would rival it

And yet it's facilities lag behind most other towns

I really feel like there could be a lot more ambition shown towards the town

the_amazing_raisin · 23-05-2025 11:21PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123479430#Comment_123479430

Swords express barely counts being a private bus, and the 41 takes over an hour most days to get to the north inner city. Good luck if you're heading southside for work

The Metro North would be a great addition to the town, but it'll never happen

Notice that after the election all the talk about building it has died down?

the_amazing_raisin · 23-05-2025 11:29PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123479076#Comment_123479076

I was walking down main street earlier this evening and thinking it would be nice without the traffic. Even closing for weekends would be great.

I get there's businesses along there that depend on traffic but a lot of them are closed at weekends (banks, solicitors, etc)

They need to do it up though, the pavements have more lumps than a 4th hand mattress

I'd really like to see the coucil take over the car park behind the plaza from the scam artists in Euro car parks

I also saw Drigheda was doing a scheme encouraging non licensed businesses (not pubs or restaurants) to over in tbe evening. I think that would be a great idea personally as I wasn't really in the mood for pints as I was walking but there's not much else to do

EchoIndia · 23-05-2025 11:33PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123479529#Comment_123479529

The metro is with Bord Pleanala at the moment. Until ABP issues a decision you're probably not going to hear any news about it.

John_Rambo · 23-05-2025 11:55PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123479430#Comment_123479430

If a private transport company can turn a profit in a heavily urbanised area of Dublin simply because there is no public alternative, then there is a serious problem with how public transport is being planned and delivered.

Public Transport… Not private monopolised excuses. We are talking about proper, publicly funded public transport, a modern rail MetroLink, not just buses in traffic. The Swords Express is a private service. It is fine if you happen to live near one of its limited stops and are not travelling at peak times, but let us not pretend it is world class infrastructure. It has simply monopolised on the lack of public services that other parts of the country take for granted.

Swords is one of the largest towns in Ireland and it's an urban town without a single rail connection, despite being promised one for over 20 years. Meanwhile, billions are poured into motorways that serve very few people.

T-Maxx · 24-05-2025 12:02AM

Where the hell are all the development levies going to??

Strumms · 24-05-2025 01:18AM

Swords is just too busy. You’ve a super long two lane Main Street and on that street you’ve one of the busiest shopping centres in the city, a big hotel, scores of pubs, restaurants, shops, county council offices, Garda Station, healthcare facilities, eateries etc.

50,000 + estimated to reside in the greater swords area now and that number is projected to trend upwards quickly to double by 2032 according to official sources in Fingal CC.

Everlong1 · 24-05-2025 06:54AM

Have you no local yokel Healy Rae type pothole fixer TD's that'll threaten to collapse the Government unless Swords gets it's fair share? 😂

the_amazing_raisin · 24-05-2025 08:15AM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123479780#Comment_123479780

Ha, for some reason we elected Darragh O'Brien who's main talent seems to be toeing the party line

He was telling RTE recently that he's working hard to remove the passenger cap on Dublin airport because what his constituents really want are planes flying overhead all night 🙄

the_amazing_raisin · 24-05-2025 09:30AM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123479701#Comment_123479701

Depending on whether you count Holywell and Drinam as part of the town it's either largest or third largest town in Ireland

Despite that, no hospital, no 3rd level education institution and a cracked up main street choked with cars|

Oh, no river paths or greenways either

There is progress, the new cultural centre looks like its going to be great. But the rate of house construction is outpacing the town's infrastructure

magicbastarder · 24-05-2025 09:42AM

John_Rambo mentioned it above, but I usually cite that as the worst cycle lane I know. A path barely over a metre wide which in theory should carry all cycle and foot traffic between swords and the city. It's the stretch between the. Coachman's roundabout and the roundabout at the airport.

https://maps.app.goo.gl/ueZaJfXwrPirGgJf8?g_st=ac

07Lapierre · 24-05-2025 01:16PM

I cycled down main st. About 12:00 today. Traffic was at a standstill! There were people having their lunch sitting at tables on the pavement. Yes I know it’s warm today but sitting on a street with parked cars, a long queue of buses and cars belching out exhaust fumes! It’s an awful street! Removing cars at weekends is a start but as you say, the street should be redeveloped as a pedestrian street with seating / street furniture etc.

the_amazing_raisin · 24-05-2025 01:28PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123479963#Comment_123479963

Ugh, yeah I've used that cycle path many times

To be fair, it's pretty terrible all the way into Dublin except for the bit past the airport. Not just a Swords thing

My favourite bit is after the airport heading into Dublin where the cycle path just ends

It's like they got bored and hoped the cyclists would despawn like in Sim City or something

My personal contendor for worst bit of path/cycle track would be further north at the junction of the R132 and M1

There's this network of underpasses for pedestrians and cyclists so they can get past the junction without going onto the roads

Except all the paths and cycle lanes pretty much disappear or get much worse within 100 metres. Another example of a good idea that probably fell prey to budget cuts

mykrodot · 24-05-2025 04:56PM

I grew up in Swords, before the Pavillions, before all the shops, back when tractors drove down the main street. We even had the 41 bus then! I have good memories of it but absolutely hate what it has become now. Its a depressing place, nothing aesthetically pleasing about it. We used to know everyone, there was great community spirit, great fun down by the river as kids, and cycling over to the estuary. I am so glad I left, its a concrete suburb of Dublin now, an example of planning gone mad (thanks to Ray Burke FF TD and lots of brown envelopes).

I moved to Kerry a few years ago and have never been happier, rural life is nicer, people are friendly to a fault, a bit like Swords when I was a kid. I suppose the only way to effect change is to lobby local politicians hard! A playground and a park should be the bare minimum.

SVI40 · 24-05-2025 05:32PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123479430#Comment_123479430

The Swords express, in my experience is the most unreliable bus service ever. I've lost count of the amount of times it has not show, yet the app shows in on the way.
When it works, it's a brilliant service, but it's not reliable. Had one recently that decided to leave 8 minutes early from the quays. It just happened to be the last bus of the night too. Driver must have wanted to get home early. That is not acceptable.

the_amazing_raisin · 24-05-2025 07:27PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123481227#Comment_123481227

It's gone downhill significantly since COVID IMO

I reckon the owners don't make much money on it anymore and are reluctant to invest into the service while employees are still seeking to work remotely

There's also a question of what you can realistically do. If they doubled the number of buses then you'd have twice as many buses stuck in Dublin traffic

Breaking up the route in Swords so it doesn't snake through the town would help a bit, but there's not much you can do about the choke point along the quays

It's still better than the 41 generally IMO. Getting the 41 is like playing a game of Oregon Trail, there's a serious debate over whether you'll arrive or be eaten by the cannibals

the_amazing_raisin · 24-05-2025 07:28PM

On the topic of unreliable buses, I saw three 102P buses arrive at the same stop together two days ago

Some funky scheduling going on there I reckon 😂

magicbastarder · 24-05-2025 08:12PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123480502#Comment_123480502

Ugh, yeah I've used that cycle path many times

i refuse to use it; but that said, i don't commute so any time i'd be passing, it'd be daylight and generally dry. i take the road.

Can Swords have nice things?

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