‘Neighbourhoods will be given back to the people’
By Maurice Garvey
NEIGHBOURHOOD Transport Schemes are to be considered in the Dublin South Central and South East administrative areas of Dublin City Council.
Areas on the list for consideration on the scheme include Ballyfermot, Bulfin Road, Inchicore, and Terenure.
Ballyfermot Road is a major artery
The scheme will be carried out in phases, with DCC receiving service requests from councillors, liaising with area managers for feedback and reviewing RSA data.
The project is aimed at addressing problems such as rat-runs, speeding through residential areas, HGVs, cars mounting footpaths, etc.
“Effectively what we are trying to do, is give the neighbourhoods back to the people, so they can actually use footpaths safely, walk to school with their kids and just have a calmer neighbourhood which they can enjoy,” said Andrew Duff, Neighbourhood Transport Engineer with Dublin City Council.
Speaking at the South Central area meeting last week, Mr Duff was looking for ‘input’ from local area councillors rather than feedback.
“I have already formulated a list and I will be asking councillors for their input on what they think should be considered for this scheme,” he said.
Areas under consideration for the scheme will be ranked using criteria such as traffic issues, environmental issues, and complexity of potential solutions.
Cllr Hazel De Nortúin (PBP) noted a young resident who was recently knocked down on Cleggan Road due to speeding.
Cllr Daithí Doolan (SF) asked about budget details for the scheme, what powers it can utilise, noting the NTA role on Ballyfermot Road, “a major artery” for West Dublin.
Cllr Vincent Jackson (Ind) cited a traffic count he had done in September 2017, which showed there was “13,000 movements on Ballyfermot Road during a 24-hour period”.
He called on the NTA “to get their finger out”, referencing “huge bottlenecks of traffic” from Kennelsfort Road to the Chapelizod Bypass at rush hour, saying motorists going to Clondalkin, drive through Ballyfermot to avoid the bypass.
Mr Duff said he would be looking to start the scheme in early 2020, and said they hope to get funding from the NTA.
