Dublin City Council has been warned that its already controversial cycleway is designed in such a way that it poses the very significant risk of cyclists using it being hit by cars.
Cyclists could be crushed by cars on Dublin cycleway
Dublin City Council has been warned that the current lay-out of a new cycleway in the city meant cyclists could be crushed by vehicles.
The new route will take cyclists from Clontarf in north Dublin to the city centre. The route, which has been approve, runs for 2.5km and is set to cost over €7 million.
Under their current form, the plans have been approved subject to some additions. This includes a redesign of junctions in include separate signals for cyclists and drivers.
And there is also a plan to segregate cyclists at bus stops, where possible.
However, according to a report in The Times Ireland, an international expert has now warned the council its plans are a danger to cyclists.
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Transport planned Richard Lewis, who works with Dutch consultants Witteveen+Bos, has circulated an opinion document to the council and told the council his company would not sign off on the plans in their current form.
He has suggested the wide turns on corners would encourage faster turning left and into the path of cyclists.
If corners were made squarer, motorists would need to slow down to negotiate them. And he believed this would reduce the chances of cyclists being hit by vehicles.
The council has already agreed to examine how buses can pull into the cyclepath to pick up passengers.
However, Richard Lewis has taken issue with plans to allow vehicles parking or loading to pull in across the cycle path.
He believed on-street parking should be re-arranged so a line of parked cars would segregate cyclists from moving traffic.
“Cars should protect cyclists, cyclists shouldn’t have to protect cars,” he told The Times Ireland.
And he warned of cyclists were segregated from traffic and junctions were not made harder for vehicles to turn into, there were real dangers for the cyclists.
“If it’s not well designed, they could be leading vulnerable cyclists such as older people or children, or anyone who is riding a bicycle, into an area where they are significantly at risk,” he said.
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