Dublin Port’s Tolka-Estuary Greenway — with safer and more continuous cycle route access to ferries to Holyhead — is expected to open in the Summer of 2024.
The route runs along the north edge of the port facing Clontarf, with phase one starting at East Point Business Park and ending at access to the ferry terminal area. Phase 2, which is dependent on further sea defence works, will continue onto the eastern edge of the port.
The shared walking and cycling route includes low-level public lighting to be sensitive to wildlife.
Dublin Port staff gave the details in an update to councillors on the North Central Area Committee of Dublin City Council. They said that the greenway would “optimistically” be opened in May, or possibly early June.
The port told councillors that it had also obtained planning permission for the Liffey Tolka Project which links the quays to the Tolka-Estuary Greenway. This project is expected to start in September 2024 and be in operation in 2026.
The Liffey Tolka Project starts at the Eastlink Bridge and starts by running along the port side of East Wall Road inside the current footpath. It will include an extra wide footpath, a two-way cycle path and greenery. The current port boundary will be in part removed and a new wall constructed inside the new cycle path.
It will include a walking and cycling bridge over Promenade Road, which is a dual carriageway that acts as the main truck and car access to the port.
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They’ll have to seriously improve the area around the East link bridge to make it safe given the volume of trucks you encounter to reach the path via the Ringsend route, and the bridge itself could do with being safer to cycle. There are still no cycle lanes on the Ringsend side despite very wide roads to and from the toll bridge.
It would be kinda nicer to see if they could plan on improving the sandymount-Irishtown park-Poolbeg-south wall route, with better cycle / footpaths on the poolbeg side of the park (just a stony narrow dirt track) and including better bike parking at the South Wall, and a cycle path linking around to East Link Bridge to the Quays.
As described above, I’ve looked at the drawings and the cycle path will be mostly inside the existing footpath, a new footpath and a line of greenery. In some locations it will only be buffered by a single footpath and at other locations it will be buffered by even more greenery.
The bridge is a larger issues.
The south side of the bridge includes low traffic street and cycle paths from the bridge to where the Strand Road route was supposed to start. The low traffic is in desperate need of replacing.
Is there some kind of policy that states that active travel at junctions must NOT use underpasses? They are widespread in other countries around Europe and work well at improving traffic flow for both motorists and active travellers. I pass over the N11 numerous times daily and have to use pedestrian lights that are breached by motorists. Rather than building ultra-expensive bridges why not a wide, well-lit underpass system at junctions? It adds relatively little to the build cost.
Do we base it on some perspective that they encourage anti-social behaviour? With constant footfall and well-lit wide (3-4 metres width) underpasses that do not overly rely on steps, it is a much better option than traffic lights and bridges.
Good to see progress on both the Tolka Estuary Greenway and the Liffey-Tolka Route. One element that has largely been forgotten about is the section marked green on the map running through Eastpoint Business Park. This already exists as an attractive path along the edge of the Park with great views across to Clontarf but would need to be widened to safely function as a combined cycling/walking route. It would give safe access from Alfie Byrne Road to both the Estuary Greenway and the Liffey-Tolka Route and would fill in one of the remaining gaps in the S2S Greenway. Does anyone know if public access to the Eastpoint path was a planning condition back in the 90’s?
On a related note (cycle access to Dubln Airport). It would be nice if there was a cycle route to the Airport from Clayton Airport Hotel roundabout (at the end of the R139: the straight road that comes from Malahide Rd – left at Clarehall down towards the M50). The existing option makes us cycle to the right around Portmarnock & Malahide and then come back in from the convention centre. Better if it instead went on straight across to the Swords Road (at the city-side entrance to the Aiport).