Main requests

Pedestrianising & better cyclist access
To Conclude We passionately support the listed objectives of the project and we commend the local authority and the design team for identifying those objectives. 2.1 Vision and Objectives Environment Minimise transport-related impacts on the environment. Moderate unnecessary vehicular traffic in the city centre and on O’Connell Street in particular. Economy Create an attractive public realm to facilitate increased footfall on O’Connell Street. Provide improved access to the city centre for all, through an efficient and reliable transport network. Safety and Physical Activity Promotion of walking and cycling in the city centre. Provide a safer environment for users of the city centre. Accessibility and Social Inclusion Improve ease of movement in the city centre, particularly for vulnerable road users. Increase public transport accessibility in the city centre. Integration Support Limerick’s strategic economic and sustainable planning aims. Promote low-carbon strategies in accordance with the European Regional Development Fund funding conditions. In fact, the hope of achieving these objectives is the very reason the cycle bus exists. We see cycling and the facilitation and promotion of cycling as a key factor in providing many of the solutions to the problems that led to these objectives. If we design our city core infrastructure for 8-year-olds and 80-year-olds it will be accessible to everyone. Unfortunately sharing a lane of traffic with a 20-tonne bus is not palatable for an 8-year-old or an 80-year-old. The children on the cycle bus don’t want to be responsible for unnecessary CO2 emissions, noise pollution or back to school traffic congestion. They just want to get to school to be active and engage with their city. It is important that their city engages and listens to them. The current proposal for O’Connell street, unfortunately, does not serve our community of young and old active commuters that choose the bike an economical environmentally mode of transport.
It is noted that there are 188 bollards on the proposed design. While these bollards are in no doubt an attempt to deal with the high level of illegal parking that currently is facilitated in Limerick city we believe that bollards present an unnecessary threat to cyclists and pedestrians, particularly those with a disability. In addition to this bollards regularly receive knocks and bumps, and over time become unsightly. We believe that consistent enforcement strategy of the law with strict penalties would serve as a deterrent and would deliver a less cluttered public realm.
The ‘Limerick Metropolitan Cycle Network Study’ carried out by Arup on behalf of Limerick City and County Council identifies one-way multi-lane streets as a disincentive to cyclists and pedestrians 2.4 Limerick City Centre contains a number of one-way, multilane streets which are also considered to be a barrier to cycling due to the requirement of cyclists to utilise indirect routes whilst mixing with vehicular traffic. These junctions, combined with a network that is not considered to be permeable for pedestrians and cyclists in some locations, act as a disincentive to cyclists and can potentially restrict modal shift to cycling The provision of dual lane one-directional motor traffic without the provision of a contraflow cycle lane serves to exacerbate this identified disincentive for people to access the city by bike. One directional traffic in cities is also identified in the national Design Manual for Urban Roads and Streets (DMURS) document as a method that ‘should be approached with caution as they promote faster speeds as drivers are likely to drive faster when no risk is perceived from oncoming traffic’. A contra-flow cycle lane would serve the purpose of increasing permeability to the city by bike, therefore, meeting many of the project objectives including Minimising transport-related impacts on the environment. Promotion of walking and cycling in the city centre. Provide a safer environment for users of the city centre.
Young and old citizens should have the right to navigate their city on their own energy in a safe manner. Segregated tracks have been proven to deliver results in encouraging these more cautious citizens to use the bike instead of the car for shorter journeys (an objective of this project). The Cycle Bus represents and caters for cautious commuters every day. It is also worth noting is how the emergence of E-bike technology is revolutionising city mobility particularly in the areas of access to cities for the elderly and individuals with a disability. The O’Connell Street proposal promotes that 4.1 the inclusion of the bus lane on the eastern side provides a less heavily-trafficked lane for use by cyclists, improving ease of movement southbound. Sharing road space with a bus in a dual one-directional system is not a solution for an eight-year-old or the more cautious cyclist. The proposal also promotes that 4.1 Due to the existing one-way system within the city centre, and the limited cycle network, it was not proposed to include cycle lanes on Phase 1 of the O'Connell Street Revitalisation The fact that Limerick City and County has failed to deliver a ratified cycling strategy or cycle network of any significance despite it being a requirement from the Department of Transport and listed as a deliverable for 2015 in the ‘Limerick Movement Framework’ seems like an unreasonable reason to offer such a poor level of service to those that choose to cycle. We note that the transport strategy is to be delivered in the second quarter of 2019. In the comprehensive ‘Limerick Metropolitan, Cycle Network Study’ carried out by Arup in 2015, O’Connell Street was identified as a primary cycle route. We have no evidence to state that this has changed. The cost of retrofitting O'Connell street along with all the junctions and potentially removing trees will serve as a deterrent to providing infrastructure for cyclists in this space in the future. It is also worth noting that for the section between Denmark Street and William Street the ‘less heavily-trafficked’ bus lane will not be in play. It will consist of two lanes of private motor vehicles in one direction with no facilitation for bike users. This facilitation of left-turning (William Street) through motor traffic over the requirements of vulnerable road users seems at odds with the project objectives of ‘Promotion of walking and cycling in the city centre’ and ‘Improve ease of movement in the city centre, particularly for vulnerable road users’
Access Officers with Limerick County Council should be working in partnership with engineers, planners, businesses to ensure that the city centre is safe for everyone to use.
Create segregated cycling routes. Give priority to centre-city cycling and bicycle parking. Reduce car parking. Improve public transport options. Increase car parking charges and reduce car parking spaces. Replace one car parking space per street with five bicycle parking hoops, creating ten bike parking spaces.
Please Pedestrianise O'Connell Street Fully
Fully pedestrianise O'Connell street.
Make O'Connell Street fully pedestrian and bike friendly
A segregated bike lane alongside the whole development