Funding for a new €31.5m walking, cycling and public transport bridge across the mouth of the River Dodder was approved yesterday by the Government.
Although there’s no confirmed route for the S2S Dublin Bay walking and cycling route in this area, the location of the bridge is part of a past outline proposal for the S2S route.
The bridge will link the south Docklands area directly with Ringsend by linking Britain
Quay on the south quays with York Street in Ringsend. The long-planned bridge is aimed to serve as part of a bus route between the city centre and a new residential area at the former Irish Glass Bottle site.
The Irish Glass Bottle — which is under 3km from College Green — is expected to be redeveloped as part of the Poolbeg Special Development Zone (SDZ), which is planned to include 3,000 new homes as well as office space.
The funding announced yesterday is part of the €226 million Local Infrastructure Housing Activation Fund, aimed at building strategic infrastructure which will enable house building (full list of projects here).
The Local Infrastructure Housing Activation Fund description of the River Dodder bridge states: “The purpose of the bridge is to improve the accessibility of the Poolbeg Peninsula to and from the rest of the city. The area is relatively inaccessible from the rest of the city and as a result, the land is lightly developed for an area so close to the city centre. There are large undeveloped sites which have to potential to provide significant additional housing and the process of designating the area as an SDZ is underway.”
It added: “It is clear that it will not be possible to develop the area to its potential without the provision of high capacity, effective public transport. The projected development it will allow for is in the order of 3,000 units with 1500 units envisaged by 2021. The total funding cost is €31.5m but LIHAF funding will be provided for half of that amount (€15.75m), with the other half to be funded by the National Transport Authority.”
It’s York Road in Ringsend and not York Street.