Strand Road Cycle Track

Thursday 9th September - Sandymount Coastal Cycleway - The Way Forward (Press release 30th July, 2021)

PRESS STATEMENT

Sandymount Coastal Cycleway - The Way Forward

The STC Residents Group will present a detailed new proposal to Dublin City Council and the National Transport Authority

Dublin, 9 September 2021 The STC (Serpentine Ave, Tritonville and Claremont Roads) Residents Group are calling on Dublin City Council and the National Transport Authority to engage with a new proposal they have designed for the Sandymount Coastal Cycleway – The Way Forward, which has the support of the overwhelming majority of the communities in Sandymount, Merrion Road, Ringsend and Irishtown.

The Way Forward outlines a long-term equitable solution for the Sandymount Coastal Cycleway which highlights a feasible option for the provision of an off-road cycleway by combining it with the DCC’s planned flood protection project as well as the new water main. The preferred scheme will create a two-way segregated cycleway, largely off-road except for a very small section which will require an on road one-way cycleway in each direction.

The STC Group designed the plan with input from experts in the areas of Architecture, Flood Risk Engineering, Traffic Engineering, Biodiversity Engineering and Computer-Generated Modelling. The current proposal has broad support within the community, but needs further design, development and consultation from Dublin City Council, with residents stating that it is the role of DCC and not the local community to move this project to Planning Application stage.

The Way Forward is a genuine effort from the STC Group to bring an end to the ongoing unnecessary and costly litigation, while at the same time providing a first-class off-road cycling facility along the length of Strand Road linking to Blackrock and Sandycove.

STC Spokesperson Audrey Hanley stated, “We wish to re-iterate that our group is very much Pro-Cycling; the vast majority of local residents are committed active cyclists, fully supportive of an off road cycle track of the type envisaged by the original S2S (Sutton to Sandycove) cycleway proposal which has been in existence for many years. Our collective opposition to the proposed-on road proposal advanced by Dublin City Council is based on the negative effects of the huge volume of displaced traffic, and consequent pollution, on Sandymount and adjoining areas arising from the closure of the northbound lane of Strand Road.”

She continued, “The small, narrow residential roads of Sandymount, Ringsend and Irishtown were not designed to accomodate this much traffic and such closure would have a significant adverse effect on the surrounding areas. We have designed this proposal to try and work with the National Transport Authority and Dublin City Council to resolve these issues together. This is not a definitive proposal and we would welcome their engagement and expertise to modify the proposal as they see fit in order to reach a satisfactory outcome for all. We hope that DCC and the NTA will engage with us constructively and employ their resources to finalise this ‘Way Forward’.”

The Way Forward is available to view here:

ENDS

For further information please contact:
STC at 089 267 2214

Sign the petitions

(1) Please sign the Uplift petition to oppose a trial during a lockdown being used to permanently close the northbound lane of Strand Road.

(2) You can also sign our own petition for an off road cycle track and choose to be contacted about any major announcements

Can this section of the S2S cycle track be delivered without diverting 3 million vehicles per anum through the narrow side streets of our communities?

#Yes2safety4all

Absolutely. Strand Road is a key section of the overall S2S (Sutton to Sandycove) cycle track.

Our community fully supports this latest phase of the project once it is delivered on the sea-side of the wall on Strand Road, removing the need to divert the polluting traffic.

The Strand Road section would then be similar to the already delivered Clontarf section of the S2S.

This will require proper planning, appropriate investment. It should be delivered in tandem with a new cycle/pedestrian bridge across the Liffey, to connect the (already delivered) Clontarf section and the Sandymount Strand section of the S2S.

We would regard such investment as as a far better use of public funds than for example the 23m euro currently earmarked for "white water rafting" down the road in the George's Dock.

It should not, however, be forced through without planning permission under the ruse of "Covid Mobility". Our community sees the so called "trial" as pure optics and a trojan horse. The current version of the Strand Road section of the S2S is an ideologically driven attack on vehicles.

What is the impact of removing the northbound lane for motor vehicles on Strand Road?

Two months after the flawed online "consultation" closed, DCC revealed the startling figures that 7,668 vehicles per day would be diverted from Strand Road. They will have to find a different route to access the East Link bridge, post covid.

The first impact will be increased pollution (NOx) for the community living on the impacted side streets and an overall increase in pollution for Dublin, for the reasons clearly outlined in the "details section" below.

A second, citywide impact is the traffic chaos that will ensue from bluntly removing an arterial route in this manner. Post covid, this will increase the commute times on already hard pressed commuters on this route (with no public transport alternative available in the short to medium term).

#NOx7668

Details section

The detail of our opinion on the issue:

#NOx7668

"Our community says no to the incremental poisonous NOx (Nitrogen Oxides) that will be emitted on our narrow side streets from almost eight thousand vehicles per day that DCC is re-routing from the Strand Road."

why this NOx is a new threat

Strand Road is open on one side to Dublin Bay which disperses the current NOx pollution of the northbound lane away from our community.

Removing the wider northbound vehicle lane will divert 7,668* vehicles per day down our narrower side streets which have houses on both sides, trapping the NOx.

The ensuing traffic gridlock on the narrower side streets (because they are stop-go in many places) will cause additional "engine idling".

"Engine idling" actually will produce more overall NOx for the exact same journeys but will not disperse as easily as when the traffic was bypassing our community via the Strand Road.

DCC counters with:

that the diverted 7,668 vehicles (post covid) will disappear due to "traffic evaporation"

that they will install pollution monitors (which will simply confirm how much NOx 7,668 idling vehicles exposes us and our children to)

that is is "only a trial", even though the key hurdle of the vague criteria is the "delivery of a safe cycle track" (on the Strand Road) with no reference to the pollution impact elsewhere as a direct result.

"filtered permeability" (which logically further increases the concentration of pollution on the streets not offered "filtered permeability")

that the Strand Road traffic will divert to the M50 (despite the fact that post covid the M50 will be as busy as it was pre covid)

that "Modal shifts" will reduce vehicle traffic despite the fact 90% of the journeys on Strand Road are not short local journeys and that proper public transport is a long way off yet

We say:

"The current DCC version of the Sandymount Cycle track (supported by the Green Party) will deliver an overall citywide increase in NOx levels of pollution in Dublin. This increased volume of pollution will not disperse as easily or as quickly as the the current lower volumes of NOx."

a D4 issue? .... should I care?

90% of Strand Road traffic is "through traffic". If you are in one of the six thousand or so vehicles that use the route on your commute or for your business activity, you will be facing a significant increase on that journey via narrower side streets.

Northbound traffic on Merrion Road traffic is set to double (113% increase). If you cycle or drive on this route, you will be clearly impacted.

DCC's traffic modelling figures are all based on vehicle numbers, they have not modelled journey times.

If you ever use the Tom Clarke (East Link) Bridge, you will soon become very familiar with Church Avenue with its on street parking (pictured below).

This is the route that the current DCC plan envisages diverting 7,668 vehicles per day through.

Sure, what could possibly go wrong?

speed read of a flawed process

Our genuinely held opinions are as follows:

the online "consultation" run by DCC purporting to show "56 per cent strongly in favour of proceeding with trial” simply can not be relied upon. Our firm view is that this online poll was skewed by significant outside vested interests "voting".

The basic, direct question "are you in favour or opposed to this trial?" was not asked. It is simply not logical to conclude approval based on the actual three questions asked.

The vast majority of locals are opposed to this closure. If DCC and external cycling lobby groups disagree on this point, why don't DCC carry out a plebiscite of the community affected by their proposal?

80% of our local five councillors support the construction of a cycle path on a boardwalk over the sea side of Strand Road, instead of on the road itself. This follows on from investigation of the issue and feedback from the majority of people who live in and actually commute from the area.

The "consultation" closed on the 14th of September but included no figures for normal (pre-covid) traffic levels. On Dec 3rd, DCC presented figures which showed that in Feb 2020 (pre covid) Strand Road Northbound carried an average of 7,668 vehicles.

We do not accept that DCC regard this as a "trial". Our view is that they are purely "going through the motions" of a "trial". It has been intimated to us at the highest levels that there will only be tweaks to the "trial".

The obvious question is "what meaningful results can you get from running a trial during a pandemic?"

what is NOx?

In atmospheric chemistry, NOx is a generic term for the nitrogen oxides that are most relevant for air pollution, namely nitric oxide (NO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2).

*7,668 ...... DCC's breakdown

The traffic count figures were presented by DCC on December 3rd 2020.

It shows a realistic average (that local people are familiar with) of 7,688 vehicles per day using the Strand Road (Pre Covid) back in Feb of 2020.

This means almost EIGHT THOUSAND vehicles per day (post covid) will need to find a new way to access the East Link (Tom Clarke) bridge.

"We have a number of serious issues with the 'online poll' which closed back on September 14th 2020, a key issue is the absence of these figures at the time"

Not to worry …….. DCC, the current minister for Transport and the current Lord Mayor of Dublin are claiming that …… "traffic evaporation", "traffic calming", "modal shifts", "filtered permeability", "going by the M50" etc. etc. will prevent any problem arising!

Modal shifts

DCC's assumption of "traffic evaporation" post covid simply makes no sense. Per their own figures, 90% of the journeys on this route do not commence or terminate in the local area.

The medium term required reduction in vehicle numbers needs to be delivered via all aspects of public transport, not simply the conversion of the full northbound section of an arterial route to a cycle lane.

A modal shift to cycling can not take place for trades people, most delivery services and PSV (taxis etc.). The proponents of the current version need to accept that there is more to a modern economy than connected devices, coffee and cycling.

Cycling is not an option for many people with disabilities. Likewise for many of carers who look after the vulnerable in our society. Our senior citizens are also absolutely entitled to visit their grandchildren by car if they happen to live in another part of the city.

"but I'm in favour of a cycle track along Strand Road"

So are we, it just needs to be on the "sea side" of the wall (for the main part).

So please sign our uplift petition but it must be a fit for purpose one, similar to the the solution delivered in Clontarf on the other side of the bay.

The uplift petition is for a cycle track on the "sea side" of the wall on Strand Road. This is referred to as the "off road" solution.

Sign the Uplift petition