The long delay faced by countless commuters across Kildare last Wednesday following the closure of the M50 clearly demonstrates that we have a growing problem with traffic in the Greater Dublin Area. I have been consistently raising transport issues for commuters over the last 10 years. The failure to invest in public transport will only compound the long delays that commuters are now experiencing on a daily basis. This is having an impact on people’s quality of life, and is also putting potential investors off doing business in the Dublin area. Unfortunately gridlock is going to become a persistent problem for Kildare commuters. The M50 is already over capacity despite the fact that it acts as the main route to north and south Dublin alongside the city centre itself. Any accident along the route has the potential to shut down all roads across the Greater Dublin Area.
Tag Archives: Public Transport
Additional Shelter Installed at Sallins Train Station
The long awaited installation of the second rain shelter at Sallins & Naas train station has finally gone ahead. I have campaigned for this since the station upgrade last year. With the numbers using the Dublin platform daily a single shelter was totally inadequate in any inclement weather.
Following repeated requests and recent media coverage Irish Rail contacted me last week to say they would finally put in place a second rain shelter at Sallins railway station. Before station upgrade we had two, but afterwards we were left with one, it didn’t make sense and people were getting wet daily, thankfully they are now remedying this.
Well, much better late than never and I thank Irish Rail for listening to my arguments and taking action.
Sallins Train Timetable
I recently made a submission to Irish Rail (IR) on the new timetable, on behalf of NASRUG and as part of a process of ongoing consultation with IR. The hope is this may be considered as part of the next issued timetable, which is due out in December, but an outside chance of coming onstream earlier due to the new line capacity offered by the Kildare Route Project.
My key timetable points below:
Naas & Sallins Rail Users Group – NASRUG
Timetable Feedback 2010.
Submitted: James Lawless
(Contact 086 834 8869, james@jameslawless.ie)
Morning ex Sallins
Problem: Too large a gap between 8.15 and 8.59
Solution: Restore 8.15 to 8.25 or add new train 8.30?
Evening ex Heuston
Problem: Gap between 18.50, 20.10, 21.10
Solution: Reschedule as 19.30, 20.22, 21.10?
Connecting Trains
Problem: Commuters charged extra for making connections e.g. via Newbridge
Solution: Allow season ticket holders this flexibility.
Capacity
Problem: Some trains now running as three carriages
Solution: Allow extra carriages on busier trains (e.g. 7.45 ex Sallins)
Sundays & Bank Holidays
Problem: No evening Sunday service home (last train departs 6.15pm)
Solution: Schedule later Sunday evening service, e.g. 7.30pm or 8pm
Problem: No bank holiday service at all
Solution: Run Sunday or other reduced service level on bank holidays.
(Later Sunday service especially important during championship summers!)
Operation Freeflow – Car Free Zones
I ended up on KFM (local radio) this morning debating congestion charges with Noel Shannon. I was listening to the programme at home yesterday morning (a rare treat, I was working from home) and they had some reaction from listeners to the idea of congestion charges and other transport proposals which the Minister had announced a day or two previously.
No-go zone: Congestion charges are working well in London
Now the traffic was pretty much one way (forgive the pun) and most callers were scathing in their criticism of the proposal although the cynics were out in force with one caller suggesting “Noel Dempsey only wants the money to give himself a new haircut”..
Anyhow I got my chance to respond this morning and went on the airwaves to defend the ideas. The point is, as I said in my interview, we have to move beyond the private car and onto more sustainable, environmental, safer, more efficient forms of transport. Fossil fuels will not be around forever and we have to embrace more sustainable forms. Even as an example of immediate local impact one has only to look around any modern estate and see the number of cars literally wedged up onto every kerbside to get an idea of how unhealthy our current rate of car dependency is. Although I acknowledge we cannot make the move overnight.
I do believe the government are pursuing a progressive approach and are quite correct to be flagging the possibilities at this stage. The Minister has clearly said such a charge would only be introduced when the various public transport infrastructure projects currently in progress are completed or at an advanced stage. The landscape and connectivity map of Dublin city and surrounds will be transformed over the next decade. It will be possible to board a LUAS at citywest or lucan, to travel from Sallins or Newbridge right onto Stephen’s green or Pearse, to travel to airport via Metro or onto north or southside DARTs all from the existing Kildare or Maynooth rail lines. (Ref here and here). And that’s before even looking at buses.
So a Kildare commuter would have multiple options to choose from, and if they don’t suit or if they aren’t close enough to a station, a combination of park and ride would allow drive the first leg, then board a LUAS or train at a convenient point to continue their journey into the city centre. Some of this can be done today (I often drive as far as the Red Cow LUAS park and ride), some of this will come over the next few years.
Noel gave me an example this morning of a pal of his who recently had to travel into Parnell street in the city and was cursing that the journey took him four hours to get in and out. This is a good example to examine how the congestion charge might work. Firstly you have to ask why did his friend need to drive to Parnell street in the first place. Of all locations, the city centre is particularly well served, even now, with public transport options. Any number of buses, trains, LUASs etc could have got him there with a minimum of fuss. Now it turns out the trip was a commercial one, the chap was on a job and needed a van with tools to come with him. Fair enough. Now if we go back to our congestion charge situation, and imagine the fully fledged network of transport in place our van driver who has a valid reason for driving into the charge area, should have a far easier run of it as the general public are using public transport instead. So his journey of four hours now becomes two hours or less. And lastly if he’s anything like any tradesmen of my acquaintance, he’ll keep the receipt and either bill the customer or the revenue for his 5 euro charge, so he won’t be out of pocket either way!