There is a need to address lethal conditions for school children in a Dublin suburb as motorists speed through the area with schools and make turns across red lights with little regard for children crossing the road, two Dublin City councillors have said.Cllr Carolyn Moore (Green Party) said there was a request for a site visit with councillors, officials and parents from Harolds Cross Educate Together National School to look at safety measures for children walking and cycling to the school.She said: The school was always going to be a tricky one for a school zone because its in a 50km/h zone, but the school doesnt actually allow drop-offs by car. So, every single child accessing that school is arriving by bike, on a scooter or on foot.At the South East Area committee meeting earlier this month, she called for a holistic approach to looking at the routes children use to the school, including looking at the need for School Traffic Wardens, safer crossings, and other traffic calming.Cllr Moore said near the school that the Mount Jerome junction is notorious in the mornings for cars, not actually observing the red light. Cars continue through that crossing while children are trying to cross.She said that another crossing beside the park is also promised in the councils programme of works for this year, and is welcomed, but questioned whether there will still be an issue of motorists turning right onto Harolds Cross Road and not necessarily seeing that the lights were red.The crossing at the south-east corner of Harolds Cross Park also featured in a Dublin Inquirer article covering red light running across the city (this article was planned since the council meeting earlier this month, but they published it first).Cllr Fiona Connelly (Labour) said: Im really glad that Cllr Moore has already raised some of these issues. I want to talk about the safety for how to get to Harolds Cross Educated Together school as well. Im actually biased in that regard because I walk that way with my own children every morning, and it is lethal.I think that looking at the whole journey that children have to take along the Harolds Cross Road or coming across from Mount Argus [Road], is really important, she said.She also asked for an update on proposed crossings at the Harolds Cross Road and Leinster Road junction, where theres currently a signalled T-junction but no pedestrian crossings (pictured above).People are breaking the right turn when they come across from the park; they turn right and go through the pedestrian crossing. So it is really, really dangerous, said Cllr Connelly. Is a 50km/h road, and people are very urgent in the morning, and people are breaking the lights. So I think we really need to take the requests of the parents associations really seriously.IMAGE: The turn at the south-east corner of the park, where motorists are turning right across red lights.She said that they have been asking for a site visit since around a year ago, but it has yet to happen, and she wants to see it happen to show how difficult the school run is every morning, adding: But I can verify the difficulties that parents go through because I am one of them.Colm Ennis, a senior executive engineer with Dublin City Councils Transport Advisory Group, said that they have been hoping to run a site visit since Christmas, but that theres been a couple of staff out over a long period so that has made it harder to make progress. But that officials would meet with parents on site.Of the new crossings promised, he said hes not sure when theyll be installed. But itll probably be towards the end of the year.At the meeting with officials, councillors and parents, Cllr Moore added: Just to emphasise, we cant let another school year go by and not be able to do it then during the summer, and she also asked for the new crossing to be installed before the new school year too.TIPS WELCOME:Were aware that IrishCycle.com covers Dublin City South East Area committee meetings a lot there are a number of reasons for this, including the committee meetings being more focused on traffic issues than other areas, and it being an area of the city centre which residents from many areas use to get to work or elsewhere. Often, when a meeting is watched for one issue, other public-interest issues relevant to readers are covered as well. If there are other area committee meetings with issues of interest, please send a link. If there are other issues around the country that you want IrishCycle.com to cover,please get in touch.

Truck drivers turning from Dolphin Road to Dolphens Barn, while people were cycling on their left, has resulted in serious and fatal injuries.New signage and possibly other measures are to be installed at Dolphens Barn Bridge to reduce the risk of crashes between motorists turning and people walking and cycling. Cllr Noelle Brown (Social Democrats) said there was a meeting after a traffic incident involving a truck driver and a person cycling at Dolphens Barn Bridge last November, but no action has been taken since. As reported at the time, a woman in her 30s was seriously injured in a collision involving a truck driver turning at the bridge.At this months South East Area committee meeting, Cllr Brown also referenced a previous fatal collision when a truck driver was turning while a cyclist was using the cycle lane beside them in November 2023.The person cycling in this case was Josilaine Ribeiro, a 36-year-old Brazilian carer who was living in Dublin and cycling to work at the time of the crash. After that collision, bollards and planters were installed to protect the cycle lanes on the approach to the bridge, but that seems to have failed to fully address the issue. As a measure to prevent another incident, there could be temporary signage put in to alert drivers to pedestrians and cyclists turning left and the response I got was about BusConnects and all of the works due to take place, Cllr Brown said. She called for action ahead of longer-term works to prevent more severe injury or deaths. Colm Ennis, a senior executive engineer with Dublin City Councils Transport Advisory Group, said that the written response to the councillor should have referred to planned interim measures.I think it should have been included in the response that were looking at interim measures before the bigger job thats to be done by Active Travel on the bridge there, he said.He said that these interventions would include signage on the approach to both sides of the bridge.Ennis added: Its something that such a regrettable situation there. So rather than waiting for the big beautiful solution to it and putting interventions even if we need to do more before the bigger job.Cllr Brown asked for a timeframe around the works as she receives complaints from the public that nothing is being done to make the junction safer. Ennis said that additional signage should be added over the next few weeks, with extra work on the cycle and bus lane from the bridge to the South Circular Road in the weeks after that.TIPS WELCOME: Were aware that IrishCycle.com covers Dublin City South East Area committee meetings a lot there are a number of reasons for this, including the committee meetings being more focused on traffic issues than other areas, and it being an area of the city centre which residents from many areas use to get to work or elsewhere. Often, when a meeting is watched for one issue, other public-interest issues relevant to readers are covered as well. If there are other area committee meetings with issues of interest, please send a link. If there are other issues around the country that you want IrishCycle.com to cover, please get in touch. IMAGE: File image of the layout of the road and the ghost bike on the bridge installed after the death of Josilaine Ribeiro.

Greenways of Ireland, a new book of greenways in Ireland and Northern Ireland, is described as a practical guide containing everything you need to know about 25 greenways around the island, with a total distance of over 750km.The book contains detailed descriptions, including directions, facilities, and points of interest, for 12 longer greenways over 20km and 13 shorter greenways between 5 and 19km. The books author, Richard Manton, whose day job is the director of sustainability at the University of Galway, said in a LinkedIn post: The book also looks to the past, charting the history of the waterways and railways that have been reimagined as greenways, and to the future, exploring how the greenway network is set to expand in the coming years. It is packed with historical information, detailed maps, practical details on access and transport, as well as plenty of quality images.The book is published by Three Rock Books and can be bought directly from their website for 25.00 plus shipping at threerockbooks.com.

A pilot project is to look at the use of cargo bikes in residential buildings to be shared among residents.Its one of the latest projects planned by The Bike Hub, a Dublin-based social enterprise, which is soon to launch its Mobility as a Service platform called SmartGo. As covered late last year, this will include cargo bike rental from hubs.Stephen McManus, co-founder at The Bike Hub, in a post on LinkedIn, said: 2026 is proving to be a remarkable year for The Bike Hub. We expect to have a few more big news items to share over the coming weeks. The first one is the launch of SmartGo, our MaaS (Mobility as a Service). This service will be available at our hub in Dun Laoghaire and a new hub to be announced in the near future.In addition, a pilot is planned for the installation of cargo bikes in residential buildings, to be shared among residents. Watch this space for more news, he said.McManus added: The service includes a fleet of high-quality cargo bikes designed for different uses.

Work is progressing on the latest section of Corks Lee 2 Sea Greenway, from Passage West Ferry to Monkstown, Co Cork.While some sections are usable, the project is a work in progress, with construction ongoing on the greenway path and the carriageway. The project is Phase 1 of the Glenbrook to Raffeen Pedestrian and Cycle Route, which will use the old railway tunnel between the two towns and link with the Monkstown Active Travel Link and Public Realm Enhancement project, which includes shared greenway paths and public realm improvements in Monkstown.The work between Passage West Ferry and Monkstown, which also includes drainage improvements, is expected to be finished by Q2 2026.Thanks to a reader for the following images and video clip of the progress. Video:Images:Computer-generated video of the Monkstown Active Travel Link and Public Realm Enhancement project:

Comment & Analysis: Whether on cycle paths, cycle lanes or low-traffic streets, a key to designing for Dutch-like cycling is visualised below:Its, of course, whats referred to as social cycling or side-by-side cycling.A mother cycling home from the shops with her son, two friends cycling with each other, partners cycling holding hands, a father pushing their young child along, three teenagers cycling to school between two urban areas, mothers cycling cargo bikes with each other, parents bringing children to school, an older couple cycling in a town centre, and so many combinations. The width of cycle paths is also important for safety, and to allow overtaking, combined with social cycling, its the reason why Dutch guidance is now recommending:The minimum width needed by two cyclists to cycle side by side safely and comfortably, regardless of intensity. This minimum width is set at 230 centimetres.But I think designs should just as much look at what kind of cycling they are enabling are school children able to cycle side-by-side and talk when cycling to and from school? Are parents able to push their young chidlren along when they get tired? Are

Comment & Analysis: Because enforcement of speed limit laws remains very limited in Ireland compared to many countries with far more speed cameras, its fully expected that attempts to improve enforcement will be controversial for some motorists. The increase in the speeding fine from 80 to 160 is also likely to have a stinging effect. So, its not unexpected that some local newspapers and veteran WLR FM broadcaster Damien Tiernan are reporting on a new speed camera as a controversy.In a video Tiernan posted to Facebook, the broadcaster included the following: Controversy continues near Glenmore!!! Sent by a listener to Deise Todaywhy o why wont Transport Infrastructure Ireland put up more warning signs? The first and only 80kph signs too close to the camera?The single staticspeedcamera has been in place on the N25 between Waterford and New Ross since early last year, but the limit was then also reduced from 100km/h to 80km/h in November. A local newspaper, the New Ross Standard, reported it as a deadly dangerous national road.The comments, as you might expect, include a range of views, from people claiming they cannot see the two large signs to sociopaths urging others to cut the speed camera down or claiming it wont be left standing for long. A lot of people are also saying the signs are perfectly visible if people are watching. Some commenters also question whether those who are unable to reduce their speed between where the signs are visible and where the cameras are were doing 100km/h to start with.While on the more daft end of the comments, theres the usual claims that speed cameras are just a money racket (just obey the limit and deprive them of money then!), as well as some thinking driving so close behind trucks that see signs is some kind of defence, and others who think youre only suposed to slow down after the lower speed limit sign.Sadly, I think the last point might be the problem a lot if not most people have because they dont slow down before they get to a lower limit. I shouldnt have to explain this, but its a basic of driver training that youre supposed to slow down before a speed limit lowers, not after the signs.If people are really being caught for speeding just after the 80km/h signs, the photo evidence should show this. It would still be legal, but would it be fair? Thatll depend on your tolerance for speeding and your care for road safety. Lets not kid ourselves with the often-repeated line that everybody does their bit for road safety there are sociopaths and psychopaths among us, as well as people who just overestimate their skills (after all, the majority of drivers rate themselves as more skilful and less risky than the average driver.The issue, of course, made it to Reddit, where one commentator said: Apparently, theres 200+ people per day getting caught out there, and theres a lot of uproar about the signage.Two Reddit commenters who say they drive the road daily say they cannot see the issue, with one who said: I drive this road every single day and never understand what people are saying about signage, and another said: Youre not missing anything. I also drive it every day. Coming from Waterford, there are 9 80km signs and 2 speed camera signs between Rhu Glen and the speed camera. Going the other way, there are 2 big 80km signs with speed camera graphics on either side of the road. It seems people are looking for something to blame other than their own behaviour.Look, with all the hullabaloo, its likely more signs will be added further back with a warning that the speed limit is about to change.The best solution would be to replace the last 100km/h repeater sign with a lower-limit warning sign (its a speed limit with a black circle and the distance showing how far the change is away). But thatll likely cause some motorists to slow down at that sign, which will annoy other drivers no matter what authorities do here, everybody will not be happy. People were also being fined even when large electric displays were up, warning of the change in limits for months. Should we take this into account when motorists also say they cannot see people walking and cycling? However, while the law is the law, and when people are caught, theyll come up with all sorts of excuses, average speed cameras are likely a better idea. Average cammras are a system that measures speed over a longer distance using two cameras, accounting for the distance and time between them. This is probably a fairer system, while doing a better job of keeping speeds lower for longer. This should be taken into account with the rollout of speed cameras.The reaction to greater enforcement also shows that we have a problem with speeding that many people are in denial about. Average speed cameras will still not make those people happy.

After the inner city, the Kimmage-Rathmines area is one of the first areas to get the lockersA total of 1,463 Dublin residents have registered their interest in renting 2,633 potential spaces in on-street bicycle lockers called BikeBunkers, which are aimed at residents without secure bicycle parking near their homes. That data is as of last month, when around 20 BikeBunkers had been installed, providing 120 spaces. It is planned that the rollout will initially include around 300 lockers, totalling in the order of 1,800 spaces. So demand is already exceeding that. It was provided to Cllr Fiona Connelly(Labour), who asked Dublin City Councils chief executive a written question looking for an update on the rollout of the lockers.Spaces in the BikeBunkers cost 100 to rent, and the planned rollout includes 300 locker units, each with 6 spaces. The lockers are shared with fellow residents, and only those who are renting a space can unlock the doors using an app. Users are also recommended to lock their bicycles within the lockers. Council officials said that Bleeper, the company managing the system for the council, is currently installing 2-4 lockers per inner-city neighbourhood before revisiting areas where demand remains high. Beyond the canals, the rollout of BikeBunkers to suburbs is expected in 3-4 months, with the Kimmage Rathmines Electoral Area being one of the first areas to get the lockers.Cllr Connelly asked: Could the Council please provide an update on the provision of bike bunkers in the area (Kimmage-Rathmines), including how many have been allocated, how many applications have been received, and how many have been installed to date?An official Dublin City Council reply said: The programme for the BikeBunkers project operates on a demand-led basis, with installations being the response of a cluster of expressions of interest submitted by residents through the BikeBunkers website bikebunkers.ie. All expressions of interest are geographically mapped and used to inform delivery planning. Bike Bunkers are being installed in neighbourhoods on a weekly basis and are almost immediately filled by local residents. Installations continue on an alternating northside/ southside basis, subject to demand and site suitability, the council said.As of 24.02.2026, a total of 1463 residents have registered their interest and applied for a total of 2633 spaces. Approximately 20 BikeBunkers have been installed.Installations within the canals are ongoing. Following the initial provision of 24 BikeBunkers per neighbourhood, these areas are being revisited to install additional units where demand remains high. We plan to move to the suburbs in 3-4 months and will begin in the Kimmage Rathmines Electoral Area, the council said. The responses said that there would be a prioritisation of locations based on the number and concentration of expressions of interest received, alongside assessment of available kerbside space, local constraints and suitability for installation.It added that BikeBunkers are only installed where expressions of interest have been received from residents.

Funding affects all road users, including those cycling and using public transport. Dublin subsidises other areas while it is left to fund their own road resurfacing.Ministers for Transport announce over 1.5 billion for national,regionaland localroads, said a recent Department of Transport headline, and youd be forgiven for thinking Dublin would get a chunk of it. But the total received by the four Dublin councils was just over 3 million, or 0.2% of the total funding. Its an issue that affects not just motorists but also bus users as they get bounced around on a double-decker, and people cycling as they try to keep away from the bouncing bus and taxi drivers, and private motorists illegally in bus lanes, and on junctions, missing a pothole can do all sorts of damage from putting your bike out of action to leaving you out of action. Maybe one of the worst examples of road surfaces was Castle Street in the heart of the city, right beside Dublin Castle. For years, it remained in the state shown in the picture above, and it was only resurfaced last year. Its surely only a coincidence that it was fixed ahead of the castle hosting most of the event for Irelands Presidency of the Council of the European Union this year. The recently announced road spending includes new roads and the maintenance of existing roads and streets; it includes, for example, a massive amount of resurfacing around the country. While there were some relatively small amounts of funding for national roads, there was almost no funding forregional and local roads in Dublin.Funding for national roads in Co Dublin accounted for most of the 3 million, and of that, street lighting on motorways received the bulk of the funding, with over 1,731,307 over half of the allocation for Dublin. Other higher amounts include the N3 Clonee to M50 Bus Priority Project and Active Project, which was given 500k and the N11/R827 Junction Improvements, which was given 350k.When a North County Dublin TD, Grace Boland (Fine Gael), used her time at the Oireachtas transport committee to raise the funding of an long-planned upgrade of the Naul Road in Dublin from a rural road to an urban one with footpaths, cycle paths and other provision to service develoment the Minister for Transport said it was out of the remit of national funding.Similar roads are funded nationally. The main condition is that they are outside Co Dublin. But its different for the four Dublin councils.Deputy Boland said: The town has expanded by over 200% in 30 years, and theres the Fingal County Council Stevenson industrial site, and, as you know, theres a huge amount of housing planned for Balbriggan, we badly need [M1] junctions five and six, and on the Naul Road, to be upgraded. Yet, we are making no progress. Could you shed any light on a free Minister?Minister for Transport, Darragh OBrien, said: This matter has been raised with me as well. The Naul Road itself, which I know very well, is off the main M1. So the road itself is the responsibility of the local authority.They are a well-resourced, local authority, he said, thanking all the councils for the work that they do, especially after the extra rainfall and flooding in recent months.But added: Theres no funding that we [the Department/national Government] would deploy for the Naul Road upgrades because that sits outside of my own remit because its within one of the four Dublin local authorities.A spokesperson for the Department of Transport confirmed this situation to IrishCycle.com (see their full response at the end of this article).How Dublin subsidises the rest of the country, and the lack of transparency around it, is a source of anything from annoyance for some politicians in the capital. Not only does Dublin not get much funding from the national Government for roads, even when a good chunk of the funding was raised in Dublin, but a section of the Local Property Tax raised in Dublin is also reallocated around the country. At this months South East Area Committee of Dublin City Council, the issue was raised, with road resurfacing among the largest complaints, according to some local councillors. While housing is more often the largest issue in other parts of the city, transport issues take up a large share of attention in the affluent area, which includes Dublin 4. Local councillors acknowledge this difference from time to time.Cllr David Coffey (Fine Gael) said: I just want to clarify some numbers. I think you said that there was a 750,000 increase that came as a result of the Local Property Tax increase that we got out of that this year. So my understanding is that we made about 16 million odd extra out of the Local Property Tax, and I was led to believe that we would have more of that going into the roads programme.Speaking to an official, Cllr Coffey said: The roads program is excellent on the roads that you do. Its just a very disappointing outcome every year, and because its the number one issue I have I know, there are bigger issues across the city, and I appreciate that. But, especially after all the bad weather weve had in recent weeks, its roads, roads [in the messages] to me every week from local residents.Cllr Dermot Lacey (Labour) said: The Government, a couple of weeks ago, announced a 781 million roads programme and Dublin City was allocated 41k. So out of the 781 million allocated nationally, Dublin City got 41,000. [The 781 million figure is only a section of the total funding of the 1.5 billion funding]And the excuse the Government makes is that we are able to self-fund the road program from the Local Property Tax (LPT). Now, if the Government view is born out, we must be collecting hundreds of millions in LPT, because every time we raise an issue of funding, the Government says fund it through the LPT, he saidCllr Lacey has been vocal about this issue for years. He said that he supports Local Property Tax but accused the national Government of stealing funding from Dublin to reallocate elsewhere. This is known as the equalisation fund, where the Government takes funding from Dublin areas and reallocates it to other counties.Its not just Dublin councils; in total, 10 councils were deemed to have a surplus of LPT funding, which was relocated. The ten councils are Cork City Council, Cork County Council, Dn Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council, Dublin City Council, Fingal County Council, Galway City Council, Kildare County Council, Meath County Council, South Dublin County Council and Wicklow County CouncilMany counties without cities, where property taxes are lower, gain more from LPT funding. Many counties are receiving more funding from cities than they raise locally; these are Cavan, Carlow, Donegal, Leitrim, Longford, Mayo, Monaghan, Offaly, Roscommon, Sligo, and Tipperary. Other counties also get substantial funding from the equalisation fund (you can check yours at localauthorityfinances.com/income). Based on the 2025 and 2026 estimates, Donegal was to raise 9-10 million locally but gain over 17 million from cities and their hinterlands. And in each year, both Longford and Leitrim were to take in around 2 million locally, but both were to receive over 8 million from other counties. Its important to highlight that LPT is not just used for roads it also funds other council services throughout the country. At the South East Area Committee meeting in Dublin, an official explained that resurfacing is prioritised depending on the category of the road (everything from a regional road to a purely residential street), the condition as ranked by surveying, and feedback from councillors and the public.The official said that out of the 16m increase in funding gained by councillors agreeing a higher rate of LPT in Dublin City for 2026, roads were allocated 3m, and that was divided up with 700k to each area, like the South East Area.Dn Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council is another of the four Dublin councils where councillors see road funding as lacking, but a large chunk of local property tax raised locally is being used to balance the books elsewhere. Another councillor who raised the issue before and talked to IrishCycle.com about it for this article said they expect some level of equalisation, but fairness comes into it.I support the redistribution of central government funds around the country, and there will always be a world where Dublin councils need to self-fund road and path maintenance more than other councils, explains Oisn OConnor (Green Party). I just dont think that 0.3% of funding for Dublin and 99.7% for the rest of the country is the right balance.He said: This lack of financial support doesnt just affect drivers. It affects anybody who walks, cycles or takes public transport in our capital, because the money that should be on local footpath improvements is stretched to cover main road maintenance too.He said the situation puts pressure on Dublin councils to balance the needs of road maintenance vs footpath or cycle path maintenance.Anyone whos ever wondered why a footpath or pothole takes years to repair in our capital city, one of the reasons is that central government sends 99.8% of the maintenance funding to the other 25 counties, said Cllr OConnor.He said: Of course, we would expect Dublin to get less roads funding than other councils, for reasons everyone would see as obvious. But investment from central government in road maintenance is 3 per resident per year in Dublin, and 300 per resident per year across the other 25 counties. This just means the 4 Dublin councils have to spread funds thinly across road maintenance, footpath maintenance, etc.Cllr OConnor said: If we compare Dn Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council to Kerry County Council. In 2026, the Minister for Transport announced Transport Infrastructure Ireland granted Kerry County Council 62m for maintaining existing national, regional and local roads, and DLR received 0.9m. DLR has 50% more people living here than Kerry, and significantly more people commuting in from surrounding counties.To keep comparing DLR and Kerry, DLR put 37m of their own funds into transport in 2026 compared to Kerrys 25m of their own money. To put this another way, Kerry fund 29% of their road maintenance needs themselves, while councils like DLR fund 98%, he said.Cllr OConnor adds that he thinks that this funding disparity will grow even wider over the coming years because of the binge planned by the current Government on road-building alongside cuts to public transport.The Department of Transport said that Dublin councils are self-funding for regional and local roads.A spokesperson for the Department of Transport said: The improvement and maintenance of regional and local roads is the statutory responsibility of each local authority, in accordance with the provisions of Section 13 of the Roads Act 1993. Works on those roads are funded from Councils own resources supplemented by State road grants, where applicable.Arising from the arrangements in place in relation to Local Property Tax receipts, the four Dublin councils are self-funding for regional and local roads under the main road grant categories and are required to self-fund their normal road works programmes.Accordingly, these Councils do not feature in most of the grant programmes but are eligible for certain grants such as the training, speed limit signage and road condition survey grants and may apply for monies under the Strategic Grant programme (improvement schemes costing over 6m), the spokesperson said.The spokesperson said: Any road improvement projects proposed by local authorities for consideration for funding under the Strategic Grant Programme are assessed by the Department on a case-by-case basis. All projects put forward by local authorities for consideration must comply with the requirements of the Infrastructure Guidelines and the Departments Transport Appraisal Framework.The department said that it should be noted that there is a limited budget available for projects under the Regional and Local Road Strategic Grant Programme.It provided the following table, which sets out the 2026 regional and local road grant allocations to the four Dublin local authorities: CouncilPSCI: Survey SupportTraining GrantTotalDn Laoghaire-Rathdown5,00033,00038,000Fingal10,00023,00033,000South Dublin8,00025,00033,000Dublin City8,00033,00041,000The full details of the 2026 regional and local road grant allocations by local authority are available atGov.ie.A Department of Transport spokesperson said: In relation to national roads, the Minister for Transport has responsibility for overall policy and exchequer funding in relation to the National Roads Programme. Under the Roads Acts 1993-2015 and in line with the National Development Plan (NDP), the operation and management of individual national roads is a matter for Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII), in conjunction with the local authorities concerned. This is also subject to the Infrastructure Guidelines and the necessary statutory approvals.The spokesperson added: As part of the national roads allocations for 2026, which were announced on February 17th, funding was provided for Fingal, South Dublin, and Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County Councils. With the exception of the Dublin Tunnel and short sections of the M50, which are operated by TII, there are no national road routes in the Dublin City Council area.The following table compiled by IrishCycle.com using Department figures shows national road funding for Dublin: CouncilCapitalInvestment Protection &RenewalMaintenance Protection & RenewalTotalDn Laoghaire-Rathdown350,000591,069941,069Fingal500,000617,0811,117,081South Dublin170,000795,183965,183Dublin City000NOTE: Dublin City was given no national funding, as all roads were detrunked (reclassified as regional roads) after the M50 was built, except for the M50 between the start of the Port Tunnel and the junction with the M1, which is under direct control of TII.

Lands on University College Dublins campus and between there and Sandyford, which have long been reserved for the Dublin Eastern Bypass, should be designated for a potential Luas line, greenway beside it, and a mix of residential development and parkland, according to details of a study presented to councillors. The proposed Luas line would link Dublin City Centre at St Stephens Green to Bray via UCD and Sandyford. The new study examines the preferred option for what to do with the land previously reserved for the Dublin Eastern Bypass. Cllr Conor Dowling (Green Party) said: For years, this corridor was tied to plans for a motorway into Dublin Bay, a proposal that simply doesnt stand up in a climate crisis, and it wouldnt solve the congestion it was designed to address.He said: This study shows a Luas via UCD could cut journey times by up to 52%. With the land already protected, this is a project we can actually deliver.The Luas route to Bray via UCD and Sandyford was chosen as the preferred option after a number of different options were looked at, including a shorter tram route from St Stephens Green to Sandyford, and Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) from the city centre and then along the Eastern Bypass corridor, and other bus options. No orbital route that continued westwards around the M50 was considered. Motorway already abandoned in transport strategy After decades of work and studies on the motorway, the bypass plan was officially abandoned in the National Transport Authoritys Greater Dublin Area Transport Strategy 2022-2042. The same strategy outlined the need for the new assessment to be carried out, and what to do with the Dublin Eastern Bypass Corridor between Booterstown and Sandyford. The southern section of the Eastern Bypass motorway was to run through part of Dublin Port and the edge of the Docklands before crossing the Liffey on a new bridge, and being routed along the side of the Glass Bottle site development to Sandymount Strand. The motorway would be bridged across part of Dublin Bay from Sandymount to Booterstown. At the coast, just before Booterstown marsh, the road would be tunnelled under the marsh and under residential areas before surfacing north of the R138 (N11) at the south-east corner of the UCD Campus.It would then run through the south end of the UCD campus to Roebuck Road, then along a reservation area to Drummartin Road, where it would continue along that route to Sandyford and then link to the M50 at its existing junction beside the business park. The lands between the R138 (N11) and Sandyford are covered by the new study.IMAGE: An artists impression of the bridge over the Liffecy and and then over Dublin Bay from Sandymount to Booterstown Marsh.The new study, the Dublin Eastern Bypass (DEBP) Sustainable Transport Options Assessment, was carried out by sustainable transport consultants Systra for Dn Laoghaire Rathdown County Council.The report said that the Reservation lands could support a light rail solution including the potential for supporting Active Travel facilities from the city centre to Bray via Sandyford.IMAGE: An indicative route map for a Luas route via the old Eastern Bypass reserved lands. The phase one recommendation is to retain a portion of the DEBP reservation lands for future potential light rail use, in accordance with Measure ROAD4 and in broad alignment with the objectives of the GDA TransportStrategy 2022-2042 and as may be required as part of its review and update.ROAD4 is a measure in the NTAs Greater Dublin Area Transport Strategy 2022-2042, which outlines that: The NTA will collaborate with Dn Laoghaire Rathdown County Council in undertaking an assessment of the potential for the southern section of the former Eastern Bypass corridor reservation as provided for in the County Development Plan to accommodate a sustainable transport link. Pending completion of this assessment, the existing reservation should be retained.IMAGE: Map showing the corridor in the 2011 Dublin Eastern Bypass Corridor Protection Study report. In a press release, Cllr Dowling added: A Luas line serving UCD, Sandyford and Bray would provide the level of capacity and reliability needed for a growing city. The priority now is to move this forward.Cllr Feljin Jose, transport spokesperson for the Green Party, said the findings underline the need to prioritise public transport over additional road capacity.You cant solve congestion by building more roads. The evidence here is clear: expanding road space does not resolve congestion in the long term. You solve it by giving people a fast, reliable alternative and thats exactly what this Luas line will deliver, he said.IMAGE: A map from the new study showing the Study Area Lands and an indicative Luas/Active Travel routeThe presentation to councillors outlines that the next steps are to gather feedback from councillors and include it in the DEBP Study, develop assessments for land use along the corridor, and then publish the final study. From the presentation to councillors:Characteristics of preferred option, Option 5b: Luas St Stephens Green to Bray + Greenway:The proposed Luas line begins at St Stephens Green.It runs along Leeson Street and the N11 corridor up to UCD.Near the Stillorgan Road/Foster Road junction, the Luas line joins the DEBP corridor.It follows the DEBP corridor to Kilmacud Luas Stop.At Kilmacud, the line connects with the existing Green Luas line and continues up to Sandyford.From Sandyford, the Luas continues towards Bray after the planned Green Luas extension from Brides Glen to Bray.UCD: two stops: UCD & UCD Nova.Fulfils post-2042 objective to deliver a second Luas line to Sandyford via N11 corridor as per the GDA Transport Strategy 2022-2042. It also aligns with the extension of the Green Line to Bray.This option is supported by incorporating Active Travel along the route within the DEBP lands by combining options 1b and 5.Potential cross-sections: