Bus Gate at College Green in Dublin
Dublin City Council is currently asking the public what they think of an idea to effectively remove all private cars from College Green, Dame Street and Westmoreland Street. This is not as dramatic as it sounds. In fact there are relatively few cars left in that central area since both the right-hand turn ban at the bottom of Georges Street and the restrictions in O’Connell Street came into force some years ago. In theory, the measure will greatly assist Dublin Bus and will see much improved services, but then we have heard that before, writes Conor Faughnan.
The proposals include:
- Banning general traffic from travelling to and from Dame Street through the introduction of a public transport only gate at the Grafton Street / College Green Junction.
- Introduction of a bus lane on College Green to prioritise bus movements from College Street to Nassau Street and Dame Street.
- Upgrade of the existing pedestrian crossings to allow for increased pedestrian volumes.
- Installation of a new pedestrian crossing on College Green at Church Lane.
This all sounds nice but there are some serious concerns. To begin with, the AA has met with Dublin Bus and expressed concern about the extent to which their route designs converge on O’Connell Street & College Green. At the moment, 60% of all bus passengers in the entire Dublin region are carried through O’Connell Street and College Green every day. That’s 100 million people per year out of the 160 million total passenger numbers.
Small wonder that the area is badly congested not with cars (there are few of them left as noted above) but with buses. The AA seriously questions whether this can possibly be the most efficient use of road space and I have asked Dublin Bus to explain to us exactly why they think it is necessary.
Just as seriously, city centre traders are worried about preserving access to their car parks for shoppers. No-one wants to damage the city economically and there is more convincing to be done there as well.
There are also the proposed rail projects. Both Metro North and the connections of the two Luas Lines will have a direct affect on the area and as yet we are no nearer to knowing when (or if) that work will begin.
As a motorists’ organisation we can actually be fairly neutral about this one. As I have noted above, not too many motorists will be directly affected. But we are all pedestrians as well, and very many of us are also cyclists and bus users. We all want to improve the city.
Please tell us what you think: email Conor Faughnan at publicaffairs@aaireland.ie. Please put 'College Green Bus Gate' in the subject box, and if you are an AA Member please include your membership number.