Kilmainham Residents’ Annoyance At Traffic Flow Changes – Aidan Crowley interviews local resident’s association chairperson and local Counsellor
*Please note all elected local representatives were contacted to comment on the above issue only Mr Moriarty responded hence his sole inclusion
Residents of the Kilmainham Lane and Rowserstown Lane areas of Kilmainham have been left frustrated at traffic flow changes that have been implemented due to the ongoing major works at Kearns Place Bridge. These works commenced in August and according to Dublin City Council (DCC) should take three to four months to complete.
The Fountain Resource Group – Dublin 8 Newswire posed five pivotal questions pertaining to this current state of affairs to Maurice Coen, the Chairperson of the High Road & Kilmainham Lane Residents Association and to Darragh Moriarty, the local Labour Party Counsellor.
FRG: “There are currently five parking spaces allocated for ‘Go Cars’ within the vicinity of Kilmainham Lane/Rowserstown Lane. In your opinion, should these parking spaces be moved elsewhere in the vicinity, to alleviate traffic congestion in this area?”.
MC: “This is the first time that I have heard of five spaces being allocated by DCC to these club cars. My understanding is that three club cars (Go Car, Yuko Club Car and Enterprise Club Car Rental) are allowed to park on the entire stretch of Kilmainham Lane, at any one time. In my opinion, this situation has been abused and nothing has been done about it”.
DM: “It is a policy of the Dublin City Council Development Plan 2022-2028 to promote ‘Shared Mobility’ within the city. ‘Shared Mobility’ is the communal use of a device or vehicle (bike, scooter, car, van) on a rental basis by commuters for transportation purposes, without owning the vehicle and creates a means of transportation mode that lies between private device or vehicle ownership and traditional public transport.
Policy SMT24 of the Dublin City Council Development Plan states: ‘It is a policy of Dublin City Council to promote the use and expansion of shared mobility to all areas of the city and facilitate adaptive infrastructure for the changing modal transport environment, including other micro-mobility and shared mobility, as part of an integrated transport network in the city.
My own view is that ‘Shared Mobility’ transport options such as Go Car, Dublin Bikes etc., are going to be central to encouraging people who don’t need a car for city living to move away from car ownership. Of course, this won’t apply to everybody and there will always be people who want to or need to own a car, but we have to recognise the need to shift people towards other forms of sustainable transport, as well. Promoting Go Car and other ‘Shared Mobility’ initiatives is a key part of this and therefore, no, I do not think it would be a positive step to move the Go Car spaces you referred to – this disruption is temporary and will only last a few months”.
FRG: “There is currently a proposal to remove a set of concrete bollards at the junction of Kilmainham Lane and Rowserstown Lane, as part of the ongoing major works at Kearns Place Bridge. This will have the effect of transforming Rowserstown Lane into a through-way for traffic. In your opinion, should this idea be abandoned in order to allay the fears of the local residents?”.
MC: “The bollards at the top of Rowserstown Lane are being temporarily removed to facilitate works at Kearns Place Bridge. They will be re-instated as soon as the works are completed. It will not become a two-way or a way through from Old Kilmainham”.
DM: “I have checked this with DCC staff and they have informed me that there will be no through-way traffic once these works are completed. They may not return the concrete bollards exactly as they were, but a road block will be installed at this location and no ‘rat-run’ will be possible, I’m told”.
FRG: “Some local residents of the South Circular Road (Kilmainham) have recently received parking permits, enabling them to park on Kilmainham Lane. This has had a detrimental effect on traffic flow in the area. In your opinion, should this decision to grant these parking permits be rescinded in order to streamline the traffic flow in the area?”.
MC: “This issue of dual permits, we are not happy with. People with driveways that are not in use were given permits for Emmet Road and Kilmainham Lane. We have few enough spaces without this happening, but, yet again, we are helpless to stop this practice. There are no spaces on the South Circular Road for parking. The road is currently choke by the Orca road units for bikes.”
DM: “The policy governing the issuing of Residential Parking Permits is outlined in the Dublin City Council Parking Control Bye-Laws 2020 and as is stated in section 16(3), residents can apply for permits for residential parking on adjacent roads, if there aren’t sufficient paid parking spaces on their road”.
FRG: “In your opinion, should these local resident’s parking permits, as currently granted, be returned to their original spaces on the South Circular Road (Kilmainham)?”.
MC: “The area has become a laughing stock because of the amount of cycle tracks restricting ambulances and emergency vehicles. The double-yellow lines at 28 High Road were intended as a loading bay when the plaza was designed”.
DM: “As I mentioned above, if there was sufficient space on the South Circular Road, the residents wouldn’t have been granted permits for Kilmainham Lane”.
FRG: “There is a possibility of freeing-up a loading bay space outside The Patriots Inn, Kilmainham, to use as a car parking space. In your opinion, would this alleviate traffic congestion in the area?”.
MC: “It would be welcomed as residential parking space, as the pub is the only place taking orders in and they can park at the side of the South Circular Road, as they do now. The Orcas were installed to facilitate that. All of the above points in relation to car parking in the area have been submitted to DCC, without any reply or anything happening”.
DM: “Given that the disruption is only to last for three to four months, I don’t think it would be warranted to cause further disruption to local businesses in the area who need access to a loading bay for deliveries etc.”.
https://www.dublincity.ie/residential/transportation/current-roadworks/kearns-bridge-dublin-8
