— Scheme still limited to weekend evenings
— Extension comes after strong public reaction.
Dublin City Council had said it will extend what it calls the “traffic-free streets initiative” on Capel St and Parliament St until the end of September.
The scheme will now be extended to September 26, but it will remain restricted to having Capel Street, Parliament Street and some surrounding streets, traffic-free only from 18:30 – 23:30 on Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights.
Ok… re Capel Street and Parliament Street pedestrianisation trial:
— IrishCycle.com (@IrishCycle) August 24, 2021
Should @DubCityCouncil extend the timeframe for the trial and expand the trial to the daytime and weekdays?
A statement from the council said: “Dublin City Council would like to announce a 4 week extension to the Capel St/Parliament St weekend traffic-free streets initiative. The initiative, which was due to finish this weekend, will now conclude on September 26th.”
The council said: “The decision to extend the traffic-free weekends was made by Dublin City Council management following representations by the Lord Mayor of Dublin, Alison Gilliland, and her fellow Councillors.”
A tweet last night announcing the ending of the scheme resulted in a huge backlash:
Over the last 11 weeks, more than 300,000 people have experienced the traffic-free streets of Capel St & Parliament St. This weekend is the final scheduled weekend so be sure to check it out! #Dublin #CityRecovery #Pedestrianisation pic.twitter.com/SxRtCYXr2E
— Dublin City Council (@DubCityCouncil) August 23, 2021
In the council’s statement issued this afternoon, Lord Mayor Cllr Alison Gilliland said: “This trial has been hugely successful so far. It makes perfect sense for it to continue until the end of September. I am delighted that, with the support of cross-party colleagues, we have been able to secure this extension. I would encourage anyone who hasn’t already done so to come in and see for yourself what a fabulous outdoor initiative this is.”
Dublin City Council said: “A period of public consultation to ascertain people’s views on all perspectives of the traffic-free streets scheme will commence on Monday 30th August. This was originally planned as part of the initiative. Dublin City Council will also engage specifically with residents and businesses in the immediate area.”
It added: “DCC would like to thank An Garda Siochana and the residents of the area for their cooperation and assistance during the weekend closures. Following public consultation DCC, in a manner similar to the Grafton Street trials in the summer of 2020, will prepare a report for Elected Members.”
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Perhaps they have to show that they’re ending it in some respect, or at least reviewing it before making it permanent, in order to preempt objections such as those that came up in the Strand Road case where the judge said he didn’t believe it was temporary.