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.
What was already an unsatisfactory environment for pedestrians in most of our towns has now, with the need for social distancing and the likely increase in people avoiding public transport and staying near home, become a crisis. It is vital that we reallocate road space for walking and cycling. In addition, we need to ensure that those businesses which can use outdoor space to cope with the distancing and hygiene requirements of the pandemic can avail of space which otherwise would be allocated to cars.
Fingal’s Operations Department are doing an excellent job addressing the details of these changes, as they did with the School Street initiative at St. Oliver Plunkett’s School, and I have been urging them to take similar initiatives across the Howth/ Malahide area. I am urging the Chief Executive to ensure that sufficient staff resources are assigned to enable this sort of reallocation to happen throughout the County.
I wish to voice my family’s objection to the closure of New Street Malahide, we are aware this is on a trial basis but hope that this decision will be reversed at the end of the trial.
Having lived in Malahide my entire life, coming from 3 generations of Malahide family, there has never been a more ridiculous decision made than this. The whole flow of the village (town) has been lost causing traffic onto side streets that were never meant to have the amount of traffic they are currently experiencing.
Also the eye sore of taxis now using the top of New Street to park while waiting for a fare, I cannot believe they are being allowed to wait here, is there not enough space at the ranks??
It is totally understandable to close it for the week of the festival each year but after that it doesn’t work.
If we had the same climate as other European countries then I would understand, but unfortunately we don’t and never will, so this closure is only adding more stress and annoyance when coming to the village daily and will result in people not bothering to go to the shops etc
We are also not happy with the decision to place bicycle racks outside the scout den, we have yet to see any bikes using this stand and the parking spaces were much needed here to drop off or collect kids using the scout den and for the scouts/beavers bringing boats/kayaks etc to the water.
We hope you are listening to all the objections and that action will be taken soon to bring the village back to the way it should be.
Regards
Sinead Wilson
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