My observations (click for details) on the proposed redesign of the pedestrianised New St. support the project and recommend:
The Green councillors on Fingal County Council have a made a submission to the consultation on Sustainable and Compact Settlements Guidelines run by the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage.
Our submission focusses on car parking issues, pointing to good policies adopted in the Fingal Development Plan 2023-2029.
Two aspects of the Fingal Plan are worth copying. First we advocate that minimum parking standards should be abolished from the planning system. The Fingal Plan does this for areas near public transport (which are effectively the entire developed area of Fingal.)
This is not abolishing parking entirely, it is that the planners will no longer require developers to provide more car parking than they want to, i.e. than they think the market is looking for. Our recommendations as regards car parking are informed by the work of planners like Donald Shoup and campaigns such as the Parking Reform Network. We are very conscious that minimum parking requirements have two significant negative effects. Minimum parking requirements reduce housing affordability, and it has been found again and again that removing the parking requirements enables the building of more housing. The cost minimum parking requirements imposes on housing becomes a subsidy which builds in an incentive to car use, contrary to our climate, health and quality of life goals for transport.
Secondly, we recommend that urban areas be designed primarily for walking, cycling and public transport, and that car parking be clustered rather than spread through out residential or mixed use areas as is often the case. We point to the provision of the Fingal plan providing for car-free neighbourhoods as a good example to be followed nationally. These recommendations are informed by positive experiences in pedestrianising existing areas and by the development of new car-free neighbourhoods in cities and towns across Europe and the world.
I have sent the following observations to Dublin City Council in response to their public consultation:
Thanks very much for coming to the meeting of the Howth/Malahide Area Committee to present this cycle route. As Chair of the Committee, I know I speak for the Committee as a whole that we welcome the improvements for active travel that you propose.
The following comments (some of which were raised at that Committee but are repeated for completeness) are made with the goal of further improvements:
Orcas at junction narrowing
The consultation document says that “radii of all the junctions are tightened up to a maximum radius of 6.0m with road marking.” This is very welcome. On the maps, in some locations. these are also marked by orcas. In others they aren’t. e.g. Alden Road, Verbena Avenue, Kilbarrack Avenue, St. Margaret’s Avenue etc. They should be marked by orcas/bollards at all junctions.
Narrowing of wide side roads at junctions
As well as the radius of the kerb, the width of the road at the junction should be narrowed where it’s very wide (e.g. St. Margaret’s Avenue.)
Tonlegee Road/Raheny Road/ Grange Road junction.
This is a real problem junction for less confident cyclists. In the absence of a more fundamental redesign, steps need to be taken to ensure that the use of the junction is appropriate for mixed traffic. Maybe a) a 30km/h speed at this junction for the interim scheme and b) signage reminding cyclists to take the lane and reminding other road users to expect cyclists to take the lane.
Kilbarrack Road/Howth Road junction.
This junction needs to be addressed in this scheme. There are no traffic light phases to access and leave the cycle route. The consultation documentation says “Cyclists are encouraged to access the existing two-way cycle lane along Howth Road via the proposed toucan crossing.” With the narrowness of the footpath, this is geometrically difficult for users of all bicycles, impossible for users of some bicycles (e.g. cargo bikes) at all times and impossible for all bicycles when there are people walking. I understand Fingal has already forwarded correspondence from one cargo bike user describing the difficulties she experiences at this junction; if this isn’t to hand, I would be happy to send it on.
Cycle lane width
The width of the cycle lane, stated to be 1.5m, is however showing in the drawings as less than 1.5m because of orcas placed in the cycle lane. They should be outside the cycle lane, between cycle lane and general lane.
Bus stops
The scheme should provide island bus stops at any opportunity and should consider whether moving bus stops can help with achieving this.
The NTA is also considering how to extend the N6 to the coast as originally planned in the Bus Connects redesign, with a possible terminus at Blackbanks. It would be important to ensure that any new bus stops are well sited.
Shops on Kilbarrack Road
Although this area is lined for parallel car parking between the cycle lane and the pavement, cars currently usually park diagonally, partly on the cycle lane and reverse out across the cycle lane. The proposal effectively intends to maintain the current road markings, which can be expected to mean that the current dangerous use of the road will continue. The scheme should provide for car parking outside the cycle lane.
Thanks for considering the above.
The Commissioner for Environmental Information has ruled on my appeal against Fingal County Council’s refusal to release planning compliance documentation in relation to condition 2 of planning permission SHD/012/19. The condition required the redesign of the junctions at either end of Station Road before development started, which didn’t happen. One has since been redesigned. The other still hasn’t. More background here.
The Commissioner found
The Commissioner has now directed the Council to undertake a fresh decision-making process.
At the September Council meeting I asked when for an update on the design of the Kinsealy-Portmarnock Greenway and was told it had gone to tender. I couldn’t find it on e-tenders so I raised at the Area Committee where I was told that the information at the Full Council was wrong and the request for tenders wouldn’t issue until early next year.
At the October Council meeting we considered the Capital Programme for 2023-2025. It only included the design work for Kinsealy Lane and the Kinsealy-Portmarnock Greenway. I submitted these motions to add to the plan the construction of the Greenways to Portmarnock and Kettle’s Lane and the redesign of Kinsealy Lane:
The first was defeated after the Mayor wouldn’t let me amend it to delete the words “and levies”. The other two were agreed with that amendment.
In our Development Plan process, I have submitted motions to include the two greenways on the Development Plan maps. Unfortunately the Chief Executive is opposing these motions. This is despite the feasibility study done in 2018 which is at https://davidhealy.com/?p=907.
A very large urban development application has been made on the Belcamp lands, in advance of the Local Area Plan which the zoning provides for. I have made an observation to An Bord Pleanála (version with appendices) focussing on the need to develop around high-quality public transport.
It has been clear to me for over 15 years that the large development area planned between Clonshaugh and Clongriffin, of which this Belcamp application forms part, should be served by an orbital light rail or metro connection to the Dart in the east and the Metro in the west, a link which will also be of wider benefit to the public transport network.
The only additional recent element is that NTA, in its proposals for revising the Greater Dublin Area Transport Strategy, now recognises that there will be a need for a light rail service on the Malahide Road, so it’s proposing a further link in the network.
Further details are now available on the pedestrianisation of New Street. This measure is in line with the overall approach which I and my Green colleagues on Fingal County Council have been urging and which enjoys wide support from other parties also.
Continue readingThe Operations Dept of the Council is continuing to work on the reallocation of road space and other measures to facilitate safe walking and cycling. We had an online meeting of the Area Cttee. last week and following input from constituents, I presented this list of options which is being considered. I would be grateful for any further feedback or suggestions.
The meeting received this update on the previous list of actions.
The other reports received by the meeting are also interesting – Covid 19 response and 2020 programme of works.
I made this submission to the public consultation on the draft Dublin Airport Local Area Plan and on the associated draft Variation to the County Development Plan. It refers back to my previous submission on the draft Local Area Plan and deals in particular with issues of climate change, noise, cycling access and water quality.
Fingal County Council is proposing the pedestrianisation of a section of Grove Road, from Church Road to The Rise, for school drop off and collection times. ( 08.30hrs – 09.15hrs and 13.00hrs – 14.45hrs weekdays, during school term times. ) This would be an 18 month trial to improve safety for schoolchildren arriving at and leaving school
There will be a public information meeting on Tuesday 8th October at 7.30pm in Portmarnock Hotel and Golf Links.
Further information in this leaflet and at https://consult.fingal.ie/en/consultation/traffic-scheme-grove-road-and-rise-malahide-co-dublin