Grand Canal Cycle Path - Be Careful

Nika Bolokov · 19-08-2018 11:11pm #1

Just a heads up for commuters who use this.

I was told today about a mugging here down at the Bluebell section in broad daylight on a Sunday.

I have read on Boards before that other Boardsies have encountered problems here so just posting this as a heads up.

Be careful out there guys especially on the Blackhorse / Bluebell section this isn't the first time I've heard of trouble here and it looks like it warrants keeping your wits about you again.

Great shame I often use it.

HugoMyBoss · 20-08-2018 8:15am

Nika Bolokov wrote: »

Just a heads up for commuters who use this.

I was told today about a mugging here down at the Bluebell section in broad daylight on a Sunday.

I have read on Boards before that other Boardsies have encountered problems here so just posting this as a heads up.

Be careful out there guys especially on the Blackhorse / Bluebell section this isn't the first time I've heard of trouble here and it looks like it warrants keeping your wits about you again.

Great shame I often use it.

Did the victim have their bike taken from them?

Tigerandahalf · 20-08-2018 8:39am

It would definitely turn me off doing the canals all the way into Dublin - too many little scumbags with nothing else to be doing.

mloc123 · 20-08-2018 9:24am

haven't used it since the last morning I saw two guys waiting to mug people, not worth the hassle

average_runner · 20-08-2018 12:51pm

Used it at 730 am, as all the scum are asleep then.

Pity we can't have good things in Ireland

dermabrasion · 20-08-2018 1:05pm

It just sickens me that people cannot travel into and out of work or take their kids on a bike path without risk of violence from these dirty skangers. This is a really good piece of cycling infrastructure in a city with mostly crap facilities. But because of non-policing and ASB it is to be avoided for most of the day.

marieholmfan · 20-08-2018 1:07pm

This isn't a cycling problem or a social problem or an infrastructure problem. This is a policing problem.

To Alcohol · 20-08-2018 1:56pm

average_runner wrote: »

Used it at 730 am, as all the scum are asleep then.

Pity we can't have good things in Ireland

From what I understand the scum have been out mugging along the canal at this time also.

mloc123 · 20-08-2018 2:05pm

To Alcohol wrote: »

From what I understand the scum have been out mugging along the canal at this time also.

Yup, I worked on the same assumption.. until the morning that they were out since 7am (assume still awake from the previous night)

benjamin d · 20-08-2018 2:10pm

mloc123 wrote: »

Yup, I worked on the same assumption.. until the morning that they were out since 7am (assume still awake from the previous night)

Probably at their most feral at that time if that's the case. I've considered running the grand canal as a long run but this thread and the recent one have put me right off that idea.

Tigerandahalf · 20-08-2018 2:16pm

benjamin d wrote: »

Probably at their most feral at that time if that's the case. I've considered running the grand canal as a long run but this thread and the recent one have put me right off that idea.

Once the schools open it should be better.

mloc123 · 20-08-2018 2:26pm

benjamin d wrote: »

Probably at their most feral at that time if that's the case. I've considered running the grand canal as a long run but this thread and the recent one have put me right off that idea.

I used to run it, city centre to Celbridge... in the dark with a head torch. Ignorance was bliss

Nika Bolokov · 20-08-2018 2:34pm

HugoMyBoss wrote: »

Did the victim have their bike taken from them?

Yep. Bike , wallet the lot

DanDublin1982 · 20-08-2018 2:50pm

Yea have avoided it myself since previous thread. A shame as it's actually a really enjoyable cycle.

average_runner · 20-08-2018 3:01pm

To Alcohol wrote: »

From what I understand the scum have been out mugging along the canal at this time also.

Feck sake. Better avoid it for my runs so. Back to the N4 and into town!:mad:

mcdonrob · 20-08-2018 3:14pm

average_runner wrote: »

Feck sake. Better avoid it for my runs so. Back to the N4 and into town!:mad:

Not sure where you are coming from but you can avoid large parts of N4 by using St Catherines Park, then Lucan Village (with various incline options).... N4 to Palmerstown Village then Chapelizod and ducking into the Phoenix Park. A scrot-free route.

dhaughton99 · 20-08-2018 3:32pm

Yeah you’ll find them in here

https://touch.boards.ie/thread/2057822166/9

A female was mugged at 8:30am on the way to work a number of weeks ago. Cameras all along the stretch. I cycle it every day in the late mornings for 10 years and never seen a guard doing patrols here. The place is a hole. You have to deal with the scum from the flats then the scum from the halting site up further.

Bob24 · 20-08-2018 3:39pm

marieholmfan wrote: »

This isn't a cycling problem or a social problem or an infrastructure problem. This is a policing problem.

In the short term yes. But in a civilised country the police wouldn’t be required to ensure people can use a cycle path, so the problem goes much deeper than a lack of police presence.

jon1981 · 20-08-2018 4:14pm

Bob24 wrote: »

In the short term yes. But in a civilised country the police wouldn’t be required to ensure people can use a cycle path, so the problem goes much deeper than a lack of police presence.

Isn't this just a reality? Every city in the world has a no go area. This problem is that this stretch of path is so far out of the city and can be very intermittent with traffic, so it's ideal for these scum to catch someone.

Unfortunately it will take something awful to happen for some attention to be given by the police.

EDIT: not just the Grand canal

... this is pretty central too

http://www.thejournal.ie/canal-crime-courts-4122979-Jul2018/

One cyclist told us that a gang of mostly male youths had taken to shouting profanity at her each day, blocking her path, and even on occasion chasing her, on that stretch of the cycleway.

She claimed that she had reported the incidents to a number of local Garda stations but had been informed by each that they held no responsibility for the stretch of canal in question.

Not one f**k was given by the Gardai here.

Bob24 · 20-08-2018 4:36pm

jon1981 wrote: »

Isn't this just a reality? Every city in the world has a no go area. This problem is that this stretch of path is so far out of the city and can be very intermittent with traffic, so it's ideal for these scum to catch someone.

Well let’s say I doubt many cycle lanes in Tokyo or Singapore need dedicated police presence so that people don’t get mugged while using them.

Their models of society simply don’t produce the kind of parasite people we are talking about here at the same rate as ours does, and if they do they take care of them before they become a recurring issue requiring constant policing.

CantGetNoSleep · 20-08-2018 5:36pm

Bob24 wrote: »

Well let’s say I doubt many cycle lanes in Tokyo or Singapore need dedicated police presence so that people don’t get mugged while using them.

Their models of society simply don’t create the kind of people we are talking about here at the same rate as ours does, and if they do they take care of them before they become a recurring issue requiring constant policing.

I lived in Belgium once which has its own social problems, but none of the scum like you get here hanging around looking for trouble. They have a cycle path along the canal that goes through one or two of the most dodgy parts of Brussels for example. I checked it for a while every week - only once did I see a gang of young lads causing trouble for people using it. Approached where they were and recognized the accent - they were Irish travellers

mloc123 · 20-08-2018 6:32pm

Bob24 wrote: »

In the short term yes. But in a civilised country the police wouldn’t be required to ensure people can use a cycle path, so the problem goes much deeper than a lack of police presence.

I don't know. The problem stems from the fact the scumbags know nothing will come of their actions. If they feared the guards, judges and jail they would not be out mugging people and robbing bikes.

The guards do not actively enforce against "minor" crime in this country, unlike other first world countries.

KevRossi · 20-08-2018 6:43pm

Its a deeper issue, a never ending circle...

Scumbag causes trouble.... Gets arrested.... Gets let off by courts.... Learns nothing...causes trouble.... Gets arrested.... Gets let off by courts... Learns nothing.... Gets arrested....

At some point the Gardai give up. They get dogs abuse off the scrotes and the judges don't back them up.

The judges don't back them up as its an end to the free legal aid gravy train that they were once on and that is now driven by their friends and colleagues.

So the cycle continues.

About once a year a large bunch of Irish Travellers meet beside Cologne and cause trouble. Answer from the police there is to clear the site on Day 2 and fine anybody causing trouble. No cash? Fine. We'll impound the cars. They did this a few times and the Travellers have learnt from it.

Different country, different system, different results.

silverharp · 20-08-2018 8:14pm

heard of someone who works in park west, same thing bike the lot, i think it was later in the evening. i do see bikes going from park west towards Dublin between 5 and 6 so maybe safety in numbers but cant be arsed using it. i dont mind the crumlin road etc. in any case

mcginty28 · 20-08-2018 8:23pm

when they get bored and no pedestrians to harass they resort to bricking the luas here also, many a window has been smashed with passenger journeys disrupted due to trams been withdrawn from service. Again the guards show little interest and the scum know chances of being caught are slim!

forward8 · 20-08-2018 8:40pm

In the all the years I lived in Bluebell I never saw a single guard on the canal stretch. The place has really turned into a little ghetto. One of the biggest halting sites at one end of the stretch and the flats at the other. I used to walk the dogs along it at night and there was always some group of scumbags looking for hassle, had to change my walk route after a few close calls.

The level of anti-social behavior was also affecting the local businesses, fair few shops had closed and people are traveling out of Bluebell for shops because of the constant gang(s) presence. Terrible to have to be afraid of other peoples children / teens.

velo.2010 · 20-08-2018 8:54pm

Vicious cycle for the youth from those areas. Most of the inner cities' children (and those from notorious suburbs) stay on and marry their own often crowding in with the in-laws. Few finish secondary school with grades of any note. a handful go to third level and the rest compete with the local reputation when looking for work.

And the cycle starts again. Pardon the pun!

Of course that's no excuse for the violence and intimidation of others. Nobody should be told to avoid certain routes/areas because they risk being abused.

They're bored with no money and nothing to do and almost see regular working folk as an affront to them having nothing at all - sure its no harm nicking a bike or purse if that person has a job and can replace it - not realising that most will struggle to replace that bike in the short term.

Its two distinct socio-economic worlds in this country now and current economic policies mean those two worlds are drifting further apart. That type of crime and intimidation nonsense just wasn't as prevalent 20 years ago.

average_runner · 20-08-2018 9:10pm

mcdonrob wrote: »

Not sure where you are coming from but you can avoid large parts of N4 by using St Catherines Park, then Lucan Village (with various incline options).... N4 to Palmerstown Village then Chapelizod and ducking into the Phoenix Park. A scrot-free route.

Coming from the other side. Yeah i jump into the phoenix park and back road of palmerstown.

dhaughton99 · 20-08-2018 9:11pm

forward8 wrote: »

In the all the years I lived in Bluebell I never saw a single guard on the canal stretch. The place has really turned into a little ghetto. One of the biggest halting sites at one end of the stretch and the flats at the other. I used to walk the dogs along it at night and there was always some group of scumbags looking for hassle, had to change my walk route after a few close calls.

The level of anti-social behavior was also affecting the local businesses, fair few shops had closed and people are traveling out of Bluebell for shops because of the constant gang(s) presence. Terrible to have to be afraid of other peoples children / teens.

It’s not like these ****s can complain that they have nothing to do in the area. There’s playgrounds, that massive community centre, fishing and now getting an all weather pitch. Also have multiple transport links at their door. I feel so sorry for the decent people of the area.

ED E · 20-08-2018 9:16pm

Was down along it recently, middle of the day. Some young lads were washing their horses at a lock, others further on were throwing stuff at passing cyclists.

Immediately its a policing issue but overall its a social issue. Jacynta who gets knocked up at 16 and then has four more kids to beat the housing lists can't raise kids well by herself. She's never learned to be an adult first. Sure she can drag them up but she can't properly raise them. Her little pack of scoundrels then repeat the cycle and the disconnected for reality population just grows and grows.

jon1981 · 20-08-2018 9:21pm

velo.2010 wrote: »

Its two distinct socio-economic worlds in this country now and current economic policies mean those two worlds are drifting further apart. That type of crime and intimidation nonsense just wasn't as prevalent 20 years ago.

The devil makes work for idle hands...

I really can't wait for more job automation to take hold...

E.G. i was in MacDonalds the other day, would have been a good employer of students and lesser qualified young folk back in my youth. Shame to see the level of automation they've introduced and it will continue.

Corca Baiscinn · 20-08-2018 9:57pm

A lot is being made of the fact that when the canal cycle routes are finished people will be able to cycle from Dublin City Centre to Clondra, Tullamore or wherever bu itt doesn't seem very likely that ex Dublin will become a route for Irish or overseas tourists, if local commuters are forced to avoid it. The claim mentioned by a poster of a woman finding that no garda station accepted responsibility for a section of the Royal Canal needs a PQ or something to ascertain who's responsible for which stretch.

LennoxR · 20-08-2018 10:43pm

velo.2010 wrote: »

Its two distinct socio-economic worlds in this country now and current economic policies mean those two worlds are drifting further apart. That type of crime and intimidation nonsense just wasn't as prevalent 20 years ago.

20 years ago is 1998. My memory is that back then the anti-social behaviour was exactly the same, if not worse. Around 1996 I played a schoolboy football game out in Bluebell and, as a sub, my main job was to stop the local kids from robbing our players coats and bags (and spare footballs) on the sidelines. I played for a club from Tallaght and some of our lads were no angels either in fairness, but Bluebell was definitely the roughest spot I remember.

Yes it's a long standing social problem, but it goes back much further than the Celtic Tiger etc. You can probably go back as far we have records, Dublin has always had an under employed underclass and high level of petty crime.

But anyway, just on the grand canal route; I've posted on this before here, no doubt the root cause is a deep social malaise. I was attacked there once myself in about 2011. I still use it now and again though and apart from minor hassle, no major issues since.

But the issue here is, the Gardai have a duty to protect law abiding citizens who use this amenity. And it's clear that (a) they are not making any effort to do this and (b) because of the impunity this gives the trouble makers, their behaviour is worsening and the threat to public safety is escalating. So really, it's time for some Garda foot or bike patrols on the grand canal path. It wouldn't take much and it would stop a lot of the nonsense that's been happening there.

LollipopJimmy · 20-08-2018 10:57pm

I was entering the path at Kylemore this evening - I live in the area - and 4 came at me trying to take my phone, I tried to just walk on and ignore when I got hit across the back with a stick. One of them now has a broken nose judging by what came out of it when my elbow connected clean the rest ran off then, not away from me but they were running to get reinforcements, luckily for me a taxi driver stopped and roared at me to jump in and he got me out of there and home. I'm actually fairly shaken and pee'd off now. These weren't kids, early 20's lads.

The 130quid a month to SBG became very worth it tonight though.

Brainz · 20-08-2018 11:01pm

I was attacked here about two months ago cycling from town towards clondalkin.
A group of lads were walking on the path and they moved off into the field at bluebell, as soon as I got up to the location one of them stepped out in front of me.
I jamed on the brakes and stopped a few feet away from him and he started swinging punches at me and tried to smash my bike up whilst abusing me calling me a fat b***ard and to watch where the fcuk I was going. I'm not one to back down and would have taken the little scrote out only for there was about 10 of them, luckily got on the bike quick enough and sped off with the little scummer trying to catch me. In hindsight I should have let him get as near to me as possible then teach him a lesson but was happy to get out unscathed.
I havent cycled that route since nor will I ever.

Bob24 · 20-08-2018 11:09pm

mloc123 wrote: »

Bob24 wrote: »

In the short term yes. But in a civilised country the police wouldn’t be required to ensure people can use a cycle path, so the problem goes much deeper than a lack of police presence.

I don't know. The problem stems from the fact the scumbags know nothing will come of their actions. If they feared the guards, judges and jail they would not be out mugging people and robbing bikes.

The guards do not actively enforce against "minor" crime in this country, unlike other first world countries.

Agreed this is a problem, but I don’t think it is contradictory with my point.

gk5000 · 20-08-2018 11:27pm

J'...s your scaring me. I have to cycle it tomorrow and most week days - no real problems.

Seem two guards walking it last Friday - first time ever.

Anyway, if you are heading over the Kylemore road going out of town - just after the style there is an apple tree on canal side with ripe apples. One of the locals threw me a few a few weeks ago and they were nice, but not fully ripe. Only problem now is that all the ones within reach are gone.

I shall continue to cycle it twice a day - and as I have said on another thread on this - head up, slow down and acknowledge the locals.

n!ghtmancometh · 20-08-2018 11:38pm

Brother is a guard and warned me to avoid the area when cycling. Group of teens/early 20's lads on a rampage most of the summer between mugging people on the canal & the luas from Blackhorse-Drimnagh and just generally being scum. He's personally brought one of them to court for such, and they were back out on bail in a matter of hours.

LennoxR · 21-08-2018 12:34am

n!ghtmancometh wrote: »

Brother is a guard and warned me to avoid the area when cycling. Group of teens/early 20's lads on a rampage most of the summer between mugging people on the canal & the luas from Blackhorse-Drimnagh and just generally being scum. He's personally brought one of them to court for such, and they were back out on bail in a matter of hours.

Man, that is depressing.

dhaughton99 · 21-08-2018 11:25am

4 yolks on bikes gathered behind the gate at 11 am this morn.

average_runner · 21-08-2018 11:45am

dhaughton99 wrote: »

4 yolks on bikes gathered behind the gate at 11 am this morn.

Can we not throw these people into the canal with rocks tied to them. We be doing the country a favour.

LollipopJimmy · 21-08-2018 1:11pm

average_runner wrote: »

Can we not throw these people into the canal with rocks tied to them. We be doing the country a favour.

I'm happy to continue practicing my elbows. I have bruising on my back from the stick though

Nika Bolokov · 21-08-2018 7:59pm

Broken glass at most of the kissing gates this evening and the usual horses roaming about . Area beside Labre park an open rubbish tip with feral dogs picking at God knows what.

Such a sad waste of a great resource

Tigerandahalf · 21-08-2018 8:45pm

Nika Bolokov wrote: »

Broken glass at most of the kissing gates this evening and the usual horses roaming about . Area beside Labre park an open rubbish tip with feral dogs picking at God knows what.

Such a sad waste of a great resource

Is there any way the canal could be closed off with high fencing on its sides?

Nika Bolokov · 21-08-2018 9:48pm

Tigerandahalf wrote: »

Is there any way the canal could be closed off with high fencing on its sides?

There's already a lot of fencing along the sides sadly.

Yet the horses and mini motorbikes get through

ED E · 21-08-2018 10:02pm

Fencing won't solve this unless you want to close it off to the public entirely.

mloc123 · 21-08-2018 10:05pm

The issue is the kissing gates. Cyclists have to slow and/or dismount giving the scumbags the perfect opportunity to attack.

ED E · 21-08-2018 10:06pm

mloc123 wrote: »

The issue is the kissing gates. Cyclists have to slow and/or dismount giving the scumbags the perfect opportunity to attack.

They're meant to have been removed as a matter of national policy but WI/DCC are lazy gowls.

irlirishkev · 22-08-2018 11:53am

ED E wrote: »

They're meant to have been removed as a matter of national policy but WI/DCC are lazy gowls.

Last I heard was that Waterways Ireland said that the gates would not be removed, and that any antisocial behaviour was a matter for the Gardai.

So.. nothing will happen :mad:

onmebike · 22-08-2018 12:04pm

mloc123 wrote: »

The issue is the kissing gates. Cyclists have to slow and/or dismount giving the scumbags the perfect opportunity to attack.

I don't think it's just the kissing gates. It serves as a current focal point but if those gougers are intent on having their fun by intimidating people or robbing them, then they can easily force somebody off a bike or get up to other things that I can imagine.

The gates are probably useful in that they stop cars from being driven up and burned out.

In my view, it's f*ed as an amenity.

De Bhál · 22-08-2018 12:20pm

If you're from the area you should complain to your local Councillor or TD.

Grand Canal Cycle Path - Be Careful

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