College Green New Deal

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Dublin’s College Green is set to be pedestrianised – and cars restricted throughout the city – under plans to reopen the city centre as Covid-19 restrictions are lifted.

A joint report from Dublin City Council chief executive Owen Keegan and Brendan O’Brien of its traffic department said “the same level of vehicular traffic cannot be accommodated in the city as before”, and in a number of locations “motorised vehicles” would have to banned after 11am each day….

JEH writes:

If Covid can produce a few more of these miracles it might have to get a vote for canonisation.

Car bans and pedestrianised College Green part of radical Covid-19 plan to re-open Dublin (Irish Times)

Graphic: Dublin City Council

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32 thoughts on “College Green New Deal

  1. Type0Negative

    Perhaps they might get rid of those utility boxes that look like a line of headstones while they’re at it, although I see they’re still in the render.

      1. The Dude

        Utility cabinets can and should be built into the ground, as occurs in most European cities, and done at the expense of the utility company.

        In other European cities, bottle banks are also put into the ground – which greatly reduces noise and antisocial behaviour.

        Yet here, they’ve been removing bottle banks from around the city, eg Mespil, and St Michan’s Street.

        But yes, it would be great to get rid of the ghastly utility boxes that multiplied with the Luas scheme.

        1. Cian

          What city does this?
          Name a city, and we can use Google Maps to see what they look like.

          1. The Dude

            Florence in Italy is one example, where the bottle banks are also incorporated under the ground. London, Paris, and Amsterdam also come to mind.

            Alas, as noted by another poster, as the units are underground, you can’t actually see them. However, what you can notice in Oxford Street and elsewhere is the absence of ugly boxes belonging to commercial companies. They do it differently.

            Finally, I see you made a point further down about potential for flooding. From what I understand the units are made waterproof – while access is by way of a manhole cover, which generally these days is made look like the rest of the footpath, eg. paved stone in a rectangular shape, but bordered by metal rims. Hence it is possible for the units to be identified upon closer inspection – and yes you are quite right to use Google Maps and Streetview – so actually, you should be able to view if you want to.

            It’s easy if they try.

          2. Cian

            Oxford St, London has boxes running the length of it.

            3 boxes in this image (2 this side, 1 on the far side). I found this in about 30 seconds.
            https://www.google.com/maps/@51.5150513,-0.1432207,3a,75y,286.49h,83t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sR0RPdE1xYKL9sb00AZo2zQ!2e0!5s20190701T000000!7i16384!8i8192

            and if you travel up (or down) you’ll see more boxes at each junction with traffic lights (and a few more in-between junctions).

            These boxes (in Dublin and all cities around the world) control traffic lights and/or tram lines.

      2. Type0Negative

        How snarky a response. Whatever it is other cities manage to do. Hide them underground like the ones at Stephens Green Luas stop.

        1. Cian

          But other cities don’t do this.
          They need to be accessible. If you put them underground they will flood.

          1. The Dude

            Inserting boxes underground is practice elsewhere – Paris, Florence, London etc – and the boxes are waterproof. Access is by way of a lid that is concealed so as to blend in with pavement, as described above.

        2. Clampers Outside

          Commenter says remove x.

          Following response commenter asks how.

          First commenter calls following response ‘snarky’.

          Wtf?

          Pffft.

  2. Janet, I ate my avatar

    great but how does one get a bus to merrion square in the morning without having to get off and hike after an hour’s commute…

  3. Jake38

    Great.
    It’s amazing what can be done when a public “service” bureaucracy stops its usual function of preventing anything useful happening.

  4. Skeptik

    Canonisation? 1,403 deaths in Ireland, 271,031 worldwide and no end in sight.
    Sure what’s a few deaths here and there as long as we get pedestrianised streets?

    1. mexican

      Funnily enough, pedestrianised streets will lead to a reduction in air pollution which in turn will lead to a reduction in deaths related to air pollution. So why wouldn’t you do it?

      1. GiggidyGoo

        Aye, and a good wind from across the atlantic (or the UK/europe) will fill the air once again with pollution. On the other hand, our cows farts are minuscule in comparison to the likes of the Ruhr, or Detroit, etc.
        Ireland is the guinea pig to test how far governments can go with taxes.

    2. Nigel

      The other way of looking at it is that it took a bloody pandemic to bring about fairly obvious beneficial changes like this one.

  5. Matt Pilates

    Good news for once. Here come the Dublin Business Associaton to whinge about lost footfall, profits, etc.

    Ban cars and buses permanently.

    1. Col

      I’d love to see a breakdown of footfall by mode of transport into the city. I presume people driving into town for a day are the minority, but i could be wrong.
      Better and cheaper park and ride facilities could help this initiative too.

    2. Andrew

      I think the business association are very short-sighted wit their objections to pedestrianisation. I think long term it would encourage more people to come in to town by public transport if that was improved. I never bring a car in t town because (a) traffic is just terrible and (b) it’s too expensive to park.

    3. The Dude

      The Dublin City Business Association – which I think you’re referring to – actually led the campaign to pedestrianise Grafton and Henry Streets.

      They also pushed for Luas when few were interested.

      Unfortunately, they closed down about 5 years ago – and the city centre is now largely controlled by British pension funds, retailers, and the likes of Johnny Ronan. Not one department store is Irish owned anymore.

      It is very regrettable that there is no coherent voice for Irish merchant interests in the city centre anymore.

      Consequently it is going to sh1t.

      1. Andrew

        I believe there is a group calling themselves Dublin Town that purport to be a representative body now.
        Richard Guiney is their spokesperson.
        .

  6. Joe

    Excellent! just what is needed! Get commuters out of their cars so they can pack the already packed Luas and fill up the already filled buses … These new moving Covid ridden death traps of Luas and bus will ensure a new surge. Maybe even a bigger death toll when the damned Corona virus returns in autumn or winter.
    But who cares when the streets can be vacant of cars by the idiots in Dublin City council who are hell bent on destroying the city and its citizens!

  7. theo kretschmar schuldorff

    Whatever cover is chosen for the pedestrianisation of College Green (Covid19 will do) is 100% fine by me.
    There are lots of welcome ped & cycle-friendly changes appearing about the place, good on them for seizing the opportunity.

  8. Zaccone

    Great news. Theres absolutely no need for so much traffic through the center of Dublin.

    A congestion charge between the canals 7am-7pm should be next. Raise some badly needed revenue for the state, and further cut down on traffic & pollution in town.

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