A Green Party TD has called Sinn Féin objections to a protected cycle lane “populist, anti-cycling, anti-road safety, anti-climate action bolloxology”.
The comments were made following an article covering complaints from a Sinn Féin TD and councilor about the bollards on the cycle lane on Bray’s Main Street.
It is understood that one of the main issues with traffic congestion is with a loading bay which intersects the cycle lane close to its starting point at one end of the street. The loading bay pre-dates bollards being installed late last year and is often used illegally by drivers of cars.
Steven Matthews, a Green Party TD for Wicklow, said: “This is the type of populist, anti-cycling, anti-road safety, anti-climate action bolloxology you can expect from this lot.”
“I see school kids/cyclists/scooters struggling every day on Main Street and this short section has given them safety. Imagine denying their safety for votes,” said Deputy Matthews.
He was referring to a Bray People article in which Wicklow Sinn Féin TD John Brady and his party colleague Councillor Mick Ryan called for a review of the plastic bollards protecting cycle lanes on Main Street.
Deputy Brady told the Bray People that: “The focus of apprehension lies particularly on Bray Main Street, where these bollards have become a source of significant traffic congestion, creating a bottleneck effect due to the insufficient width of the road in sections. The road’s constrained dimensions hinder the smooth passage of buses and vans, resulting in a gridlock that obstructs the entire street.”
The Sinn Féin TD said that “in principle” they support segregated cycle tracks but had concerns around the congestion, safety, lack of public consultation, and access for the emergency services and deliveries.
The complaints somewhat mirror some of the reasoning for the Sinn Féin opposition of the pedestrianisation of New Street in Malahide and planned and recently installed cycle paths in Tallaght.
Bray Sinn Féin Councillor Mick Ryan also told the Bray People: “Our concern extends beyond Bray Main Street to other areas within the town where these plastic bollards have suffered damage” which is a “clear and immediate risk to cyclists and pedestrians alike”.
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Are we surprised, SF are a populist party. They will say anything to get into power and when they do there is only one thing on the agenda, a border poll. We support immigration, are are against immigration, we support segregated cycle tracks, we object to cycling infrastructure, we want to build houses, we object to planning permission……………..
The incredibly poor urban planning with regards to integrating loading bays into main streets is truly terrible though- has been for years- it just seems to be ignored as an planning issue and vans and cars still consistently park up across entire footpaths or in cycle lanes crushing bollards, no matter how many times you inform the CC about it. And main street supermarkets consistently get planning permission despite no plan for loading bays at all.
Rathmines has a bollarded loading bay space in front of the Swan that still says ‘loading bay’ on it, and yet it not a loading bay anymore technically- but vans everyday break across the bollards to park on it or around it. Either fill in the space back to a footpath or designate it a loading bay again- but to have it as it is makes no sense.
High time councils hired some actual urban planners to assess Irish towns- they’d have no shortage or work…