Make section of Dodder Greenway segregated not shared, says cycle campaigners

— Road is to be made one-way, but council plans to mix walking and cycling by design.

A section of the Dodder Greenway, which is currently subject to public consultation, should be segregated not shared says cycling campaigners.

South Dublin Cycling — a branch of the Dublin Cycling Campaign — said that they welcome the plan to redevelop the section of the greenway route, but have asked South Dublin County Council to make the section on Lower Dodder Road segregated not shared.

“We question the wisdom of deciding not to segregate bicycle and pedestrian traffic on this path. As well as being a leisure facility, this is a commuting cycling route for those travelling to the city centre, and for students travelling to UCD. Shared paths do not serve either pedestrians or cyclists well and invariably lead to conflict and the potential for collisions,” said South Dublin Cycling.

The group has highlighted that the deadline for submissions is on April 26 and said that they “encourage anyone who uses this stretch of the Dodder for leisure activities to make a submission”.

“Another concern is that the shared path will be used for short-term parking for drop offs and deliveries along the whole route. So it should be protected with a narrow, low height vegetated verge along its length where possible,” the group said.

In its submission, South Dublin Cycling said: “Increased sales of electric-assisted bikes (or e-bikes) in the locality will mean that average speeds of cyclists (especially those commuting) could be higher than observed previously. Furthermore, the flat, off-road route would be ideal for use by those on electric scooters, which will likely continue to increase in popularity with the introduction of legislation to regulate their use which is being drafted presently, so this is an additional variable that should be considered.”

The group added: “Ultimately, we feel that providing a clear straight path is a better, more equal solution – it isn’t easy for some people on cycles to keep stopping and turning, and also it isn’t easy for some pedestrians (such as small children) to stay fully aware of others around them on a shared path.”

Existing and planned cross-section drawings: 






 

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