Attendees to the Velo-city international cycling conference in the Dublin Docklands this week are being treated to a welcome with Dubliners tweeting images using #TheGoodRoom hastag on Twitter.
People not happy with Irish approach to provision of safe cycle infrastructure. In the old days #TheGoodRoom was the room in the house where important visitors (such as clergy) were shown to in order to maintain an outward appearance of respectability and avoid shame. https://t.co/0CiTSWBsVx
— Limerick Cycle Design (@LkCycleDesign) June 26, 2019
Although most of the residents seem to see the issues themselves — as this website reported yesterday, Klaus Bondam, the CEO of the Danish Cyclists’ Federation, described how he walked along the River Liffey and said that sharing with cars and buses might suit some people who cycle but not many, he told Dublin to “Get its act together”.
So glad the local authority put down fresh paint here, and removed half a footpath further back down the street, just in time for #VC19.
*chef's kiss* #TheGoodRoom https://t.co/UnwUnLhevr
— Joan // Mask up, Stay apart (@clicky_here) June 24, 2019
"I have seen a lot of fit young men on bikes, in lycra and fluo and wearing helmets. I have not seen the infrastructure that makes other people, like me, feel safe in Dublin. So get your things done #dublin" says @KlausBondam during #VC19@dublincycling @DublinCity pic.twitter.com/ym7aD9GH5X
— Mikaël Van Eeckhoudt (@mikaelvaneeck) June 25, 2019
In Dublin, we're calling all these sudden lick-of-paint jobs #TheGoodRoom – it's like when the pastor is coming to visit, you get the parlour painted!
— Petrichor (@Sinabhfuil) June 25, 2019
this pothole has been a "feature" of the @S2Sdublin for as long as i can remember.
it got "targeted" in February and its not finally been filled.our visitors next week are going to so impressed when they see how great the place looks!#TheGoodRoom #VeloCity pic.twitter.com/9J5NLOSddE
— Alan D (@AlanDub13) June 20, 2019
Maybe, just maybe something might happen about the state of the cycling infrastructure in this city now the visiting dignitaries from abroad get to witness the shambles in person.#Velocity #TheGoodRoom https://t.co/9SmQkLe9tv
— Phil (@rothairisbeoir) June 24, 2019
Eden quay. Old cycle lane repainted. #Allocate4Cycling few orcas would be nice. Very dangerous for left hooks here. pic.twitter.com/GbKcwD3edh
— Paul corcoran (@Paulcorcoran10) June 20, 2019
Is this Dublin City Council admitting that their recent paint jobs are just about impressing the visitors? #TheGoodRoom #Potemkin https://t.co/yHnFiJwv00
— Ciarán Ferrie (@ccferrie) June 14, 2019
In case this photo isn't real enough for people, how about this video. I call it "Let's find the bike lane" #VC19 #cycledublin pic.twitter.com/JeThzQDnzr
— alan (@r0thar) June 26, 2019
A different perspective:
Translation: “Yesterday we arrived at a 30-minute taxi ride from the hotel, 3 km from the conference building, and today we are 10 minutes by bike in the morning. Biking in Dunbin isn’t bad, it just feels a bit weird to go to the left of the road #vc19”
Dün otelden konferans binasına 3 kmlik mesafeyi taksi ile 30 dakikada geldik, bugün sabah ise bisikletle 10 dakikada. Dunbin’de bisiklete sürmek fena değil, sadece yolun solundan gitmek biraz tuhaf hissettiriyor #vc19 pic.twitter.com/GS6oWHVk7P
— bisikletiZm (@bisiklet_izm) June 26, 2019
Officials here already know the score, so come next week, all of this will have died down and we’ll be back to business as usual. And of course, in Ireland business as usual means cars, car, cars.
Notable was the tripe fed to delegates by the NTA about the wonderful 200km of “segregated” cycle tracks that will be provided with Bus Connects. The Bus Connects proposed treatment of cyclists at (signalised) junctions puts cyclists from a minimal level of segregation (vertical segregation and no horizontal segregation) to a situation of no segregation through junctions: LOCATIONS WHERE RISK OF COLLISIONS are greater. The NTA’s approach to design does not allow for cycling for all: it only caters to the male Lycra clad high vis with plastic hat type. If the NTA were paying attention at Velo City then they would have heard that they should be designing for “all” and providing fully protected facilities i.e. Dutch standard and not a continuation of the half-arsed BS that it looks like we getting for Bus Connects.
Oh and see all that lovely red surfacing on the scheme drawings? Unlikely to happen: against Dublin City Council policy. Too much hassle to maintain. FFS.