Construction of the “missing link” of the Dublin Bay cycle path is to start in six weeks time, more than a decade since planning of the route began.
Dublin City Council plans to spend in the region of €5 million to fill in the missing 2km section of its flagship cycle route from the Wooden Bridge to Causeway Road in Clontarf.
Work is due to begin on April 1st and will take 18 months to complete, with construction taking place in phases to comply with bird habitat conservation regulations.
Cyclist.ie – The Irish Cycling Advocacy Network – strongly endorses Roseanne Brennan (Jake’s Legacy campaign) to force road authorities to introduce lower speed limits in residential areas and estates.
We want to see a quantum increase in the use of the bike for commuting to study, work and for utility purposes, recognising that a ‘critical mass’ of cyclists in traffic leads inevitably to safer streets. Safer streets for cyclists are also safer streets for pedestrians.
The urban default speed limit of 50 km/h means that any vehicle going at this speed has far too much kinetic energy so that a pedestrian or cyclist impacted by a car driven at this speed will have only a 50% chance of surviving the collision (see Road Safety Authority chart below).
Cyclist.ie remains far from impressed with the data revealed by the Road Safety Authority’s (RSA) annual free-speed surveys which show typically that some drivers actually exceed the 50 km/h speed limit with fully 9% detected breaking that limit in urban areas in 20111. We are disappointed that no data is available for each of the years 2012, 2013 and 2014.
We campaign for 30 km/h to become the default speed limit on residential and urban streets and in all areas of high pedestrian and cycle use. It is enabled by existing traffic law, so road authorities have no excuse for not implementing the reduction.
We accept that on some streets it may be appropriate to have a higher limit based on the road characteristics – good provision for vulnerable road users and risk assessment by use of road safety audits, etc. Retaining any limit above 30 km/h in residential areas and at the approaches to schools should be a considered and formal decision based on local circumstances.
We believe there is a need for a paradigm shift in how road authorities manage traffic, and plan urban change, so as to enable pedestrians to use our roads and streets safely and to cater for the safety of the 8-80 age cohort while cycling. This is directly in line with the latest Departmental guidelines as outlined in the Design Manual for Urban Roads & Streets (DMURS,2013), and will also encourage an increase in active travel by foot and on bikes. Road traffic planning and provision in recent years has been for the benefit of the private motorist to the detriment of other road users such as public transport, pedestrians and cyclists
In addition to improving safety, lower speed limits in residential estates would encourage young people to move about independently and would encourage parents to permit their children to do so. This would have consequential benefits for their fitness and general health and would contribute to combating the rising levels of obesity in our society. The improved safety and perception of safety, provided by lower speed limits would transform residential estates into more vibrant living spaces, with consequential benefits for the quality of life of residents and visitors.
We recognise that reduction of the speed limit alone will not be successful in reducing speed and improving safety unless it is accompanied by improved Garda detection and enforcement and appropriate road design. We support the recommendations of DMURS, the official guidance policy for local authorities in relation to street design, that insofar as possible lower speed limits should be accompanied by psychological and physical measures to encourage observance.
Throughout Europe, 30 km/h is fast becoming the default urban speed limit. In some cities, speed limits as low as 10 km/h are in place in ‘home zones’. Even in the United States, where the car is king, 25 mph (40 km/h) limits are common in urban areas and 15 mph (24 km/h) limits are rigorously enforced at schools. In an effort to curb traffic fatalities, New York City lowered its default speed limit to 25 mph (40 km/h) from the 7th November 2014.
In the UK the “20’s Plenty” Campaign has been successful in securing reduced speed limits in many urban locations and has produced a Briefings page with many documents showing the benefits of 20 mph (30 km/h) limits.
Lower speeds result in less noise and pollution and greater fuel efficiency (high fuel consumption is associated with stop-start traffic, not slow traffic). On residential roads and shopping streets, people simply don’t want to be exposed to the noise, fumes and dangers from higher speed traffic.
The Minister for Transport called on road authorities to review their urban speed limits in a Directive issued on 15 October last
As a cyclist, I was concerned when I heard of a Perth incident in which a young bike rider was run down after a car allegedly crossed to the wrong side of the road with the express intention of hitting him (pictured).
I was also worried about the reported angry and destructive actions of that cyclist towards the driver moments earlier.
A view from the US (Washington Post)
In full disclosure, I have scoffed the law while cycling. In my neighborhood at night, when there’s no one around, I have rolled through a stop sign. I have paused at an intersection, “no turn on red,” and then done exactly that on a bike. I do these things … occasionally.
“I do, too,” says Wesley Marshall, now that we’re confessing. “If I’m sitting at a red light next to a bunch of cars, and there are no cars crossing, I’ll go through the red light to establish myself in the street in the next block, because I feel like I’m safer doing that.”
On Wed 14th January at 11:00 h, Dublin City Council will open a new contra-flow bus/cycle lane on Camden Street Upper – Richmond Street, which will run past the ‘Bleeding Horse’ pub (i.e. south towards Rathmines).
Dublin Cycling Campaign has been working hard behind the scenes for many years to persuade Dublin City Council to provide a southbound contra-flow cycling facility on this corridor. The new traffic management arrangement also comes into being in the context of the Luas Cross City works on Dawson Street and, Suffolk Street. Dublin Cycling Campaign sits on the City’s ‘Cycle Forum’, where projects like this get progressed.
The now-soon-to-be-reconfigured “Bleeding Horse gyratory” was voted (among members) as one of Dublin’s 10 worst junctions in Dublin Cycling Campaign’s survey in recent years. The new contra-flow bus/cycle lane enables cyclists, heading south towards Rathmines, to avoid taking the annoying and very cycling-unfriendly and unsafe detour around by the Odeon pub and back onto Harcourt Road; instead they can now travel outbound directly (and legally) past the ‘Bleeding Horse’ pub towards Rathmines bridge. This represents important progress in making Dublin more cycle-able.
NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL BEST PRACTICE
The conversion of cyclist-unfriendly, multi-lane one-way streets and gyratories to streets with contra-flow cycling facilities and cycling friendly junctions is one policy objective of the National Cycle Policy Framework, the government’s overarching plan to increase the modal share for everyday cycling from its current national figure of approx 2% to 10% (which essentially means bringing the modal share of cycling in Dublin City from approx. 8% to 20-25% of trips). The provision of high quality contra-flow facilities for cyclists – and exemptions for cyclists on one-way streets with safer 30km/h speed limits – is also recognized internationally as a key intervention in making streets more attractive for urban cyclists.
However … while Dublin Cycling Campaign broadly welcomes the new traffic arrangements, we also think that the City Council did not go far enough in terms of providing for cyclists: the street network is still remarkably impermeable for cycling. For example, for cyclists traveling along the South Circular Road (Harrington Street section) towards Camden Street, they will still be required to turn left towards the city centre; the new traffic management arrangements:
Furthermore, Dublin Cycling Campaign has some concern about mixing so many buses with so many bikes on the corridor: it is essential that the drivers of the buses pay special attention to cyclists on this route – and, of course, essential that cyclists ride assertively and sensibly (by, for example, adopting the control road position while using the contra-flow lane). Overall though, we are optimistic that after everyone gets used to the new road layout, the new direct route out of town will improve life for those cycling in the city.
Finally, Dublin Cycling Campaign welcomes the provision of additional cycle parking along the newly configured route and a new special ‘right turn pocket’ to enable dublinbikes users to turn right onto Grantham Street to their docking station.
FAST CYCLING ROUTES, WHAT ARE THEY?
Fast cycling routes are “high standard bicycle paths reserved for cyclists for fast and direct commuting over long distances.”
The 5 widely agreed criteria for high-quality cycling infrastructure can be applied to fast cycle routes. These are: 1. Safety, 2. Coherence, 3. Directness, 4. Comfort, 5. Attractiveness.
Beyond that, additional commonly agreed criteria and characteristics do not exist yet as the concept of fast cycling routes is relatively new.
Paris is surging toward the front of the peloton of European cities racing for more bike- and pedestrian-friendly streets. Mayor Anne Hidalgo recently announced an ambitious plan to transform the historic city center into a “semi-pedestrianized” zone, where walking and biking will be encouraged, and automobile access will be limited to emergency vehicles, residents’ cars, and delivery trucks. Read article
Europe: The European Cyclists’ Federation (ECF) has put out a growth plan detailing how the cycling community can contribute to economic growth in Europe.
The ECF’s Kevin Mayne said: “We can create more jobs for Europeans through investment in cycling, not only because it has a proven record for creation of green and sustainable jobs, but because of the huge contributions it makes to the EU’s wider objectives. Our partners, our businesses and policy makers are ready to build on cycling’s current 650,000 jobs and €217bn per year contribution to the EU economy.”
There are three main focus points for the ECF: great investment in cycling through provision of EU subsidies; integration of cycling into growth plans; and provision of fiscal benefits for cyclists.
The report stresses that 650,000 full time jobs are linked to cycling in Europe today. It argues that this figure could increase to up to one million by 2020, should cycling’s modal share double.
According to the ECF, over €2bn can be utilised from the EU up to 2020 to invest into cycling resources.
The cycling organisation argues that its plan fits into the European Commission’s pushing of a €300bn investment strategy, saying that cycling can play an important role in the future of Europe and should receive adequate investment.
From the UK
It’s fair to say that, for all the government promises of a “cycling revolution”, not a vast amount has happened in recent years to improve the lot of cyclists on British roads. Campaigns, pestering MPs, direct action – nothing seems to have worked.
So how about just taking legal action under equalities legislation, forcing local authorities to provide proper cycle infrastructure?
OK, it’s probably not going to happen soon, even if you could find somebody rich and patient enough to fund a fairly speculative test case.
But the idea, floated by Rachel Aldred, a sociologist and transport expert at the University of Westminster, is nonetheless fascinating as it highlights one of the lesser-aired arguments for a more cycle- and walking-friendly world: the issue of social justice.
A disgraceful and retrograde decision was made yesterday in Brussels regarding modification to HGV cab design to make these dangerous vehicles safer for cyclists and pedestrians in urban areas.
Last night’s negotiations between the Council, Parliament and Commission concluded that safety and environmental design changes to the front of the lorry cab will not be possible before 2022.
Cyclist.ie has been calling for major changes to cab design for decades so as to eliminate the extensive blind-zones around the driver’s field of view from the cab . These are not ‘blind-spots’ as they are euphemistically called by those who should know better. Our colleagues in the European Cyclists’ Federation (ECF) did their best in Brussels to compel truck manufacturers to begin making the necessary cab visibility modifications with no more prevarication.
The box/brick like shape that we currently see at the moment with a driver perched high on top of an engine is the result of the current regulations that restricts the size of the lorry, this gives around 2.35m to the cabs. The restriction of space means that engine, cooling system, driver living space, and safety considerations have all been competing for limited space. ECF has argued that driver direct vision, and a more forgiving impact shape have lost out in these competing areas, meaning that lorries are the most dangerous vehicles on the roads, particularly in urban areas[1].
The European Transport Safety Council[2] estimate that around 4,200 deaths each year are as a result of collisions with lorries, and that almost a quarter of cycling fatalities are as a result of collision with larger freight vehicles; this despite only constituting around 3% of the EU vehicle fleet. ECF Road safety policy officer Ceri Woolsgrove said that “This was an excellent opportunity for the industry to show commitment to improving their product safety record in urban areas. An immediate change in lorry design could prevent around 900 deaths per year; unfortunately the delay in safer lorry design will cost lives.”
Knowing that these rigs are the main maimers and killers of cyclists we call on local authorities in Ireland to introduce HGV movement control by means of permits just like Dublin City has been operating for years. These recalcitrant local authorities need to reflect on the Road Act, 1993 and the requirement that road authorities consider the needs of ALL road users. Cyclists and pedestrians are vulnerable road users who need this protection.
The HSA needs to do more to compel operators and drivers of these vehicles to undertake the mandatory risk assessments required under safety legislation when these vehicles are being driven for work.
The RSA’s CPC system for drivers of these rigs needs to ensure that there is a mandatory module dealing with vulnerable road user interaction as part of what ADIs are teaching these drivers.
