Dublin has a mixed record in changing to become more cycling friendly, but the Irish capital has just taken a major step forward.
By Brian Canty
Dublin City Council has approved speed limits of 30kph on residential streets in the capital with the first phase of its implementation commencing in March next year.
The move comes despite opposition from motorist lobby group, the AA, who deem the new measures inappropriate.
In the vote that decided the issue last night, 37 councillors were in favour, eight were against and two abstained.
Currently, there are speed limits of 30kph in shopping and central business areas of the city but the new proposals involve reducing speed limits on roads in areas including Crumlin, Rathmines, Finglas and Clontarf.
Speaking on Morning Ireland today, Green Party councillor Ciarán Cuffe said the new by-laws will simply save lives.
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“The reason for it is that it’ll save lives. There is a lot of strong academic evidence saying that if people are driving slower, less people will be killed or injured,” he said.
The AA have fervently fought the planned implementation and labelled the new move as “absurd” while also suggesting the new move could even lead to less safer roads.
They had sought to increase limits on larger access routes to the city, including parts of the city centre which have had a 30km/h limit since 2011.
In contrast, council engineers rejected those notions and said the lower limits were conducive to better driver behaviour.
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“It’s in the interest of road safety we would be recommending these new speed limits,” said the council’s head of traffic and transport Dick Brady.
“We are talking about setting speed limits adjacent to residential areas and school in order to try to ensure the safety of residents and children.”
Under the first phase, the limit will be extended west of the current city centre 30km/h zone to cover most of the streets between the Royal and Grand canals.
The next phase, scheduled for introduction in May, will cover suburbs such as Sandymount, Crumlin, Drimnagh, Raheny and parts of Cabra, Phibsborough, Coolock, Glasnevin and Drumcondra.
Under the final phase, the implementation date of which has yet to be confirmed, the limit will be extended to the remaining suburbs from the city council border.
Conor Faughnan from the AA has always maintained he was for safer roads but only where appropriate.
“You don’t make roads safer by writing a lower number on a pole,” he said.
“Imposing a 30km/h limit on wide areas is unwise and tends not to work.
“These limits have to be introduced in sympathy with the engineering of the road,” he said. “Putting up polls with ‘30km’ on them will not make roads safer.
“If you put up a number that compels drivers to drive in a way that would fail the driving test, it undermines confidence in speed limits generally.”
News of the blanket speed limit will be met with relief by cycling advocacy groups such as Dublin Cycling Campaign who have been campaigning for the expanded restrictions for years.
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