A contractor for Dublin City Council will start construction on the Beatty’s Avenue to Herbert Park section of the Dodder Greenway project this Monday.
Cllr Dermot Lacey (Labour) said: “I’m delighted to confirm that works on the Beatty’s Avenue to Anglesea Road Bridge for Dodder Greenway will commence on 13th January. Another important milestone.”
The 0.5km section from Beatty’s Avenue to Herbert Park was part of a plan to fast-track the building of the Dodder Greenway announced in 2023.
Once construction, which is due to run until Q3 of 2025, is finished, it will link up to existing sections of the route to add up to a continuous section of 2.3km from the Anglesea Bridge at the Donnybrook Road to Londonbridge Road in Irishtown. Further quicker build sections are planned at both ends.
The Ballsbridge project includes shared marking with already limited motoring access along Beatty’s Ave, a shared footpath section outside Life Pharmacy Ballsbridge/Spar etc to access a shared crossing to cross the Merrion Road, this shared crossing will bring people over to a new two-way cycle path on Anglesea Road to link in with the existing path along the canal in Herbert Park.
Where shared space is used, the road is between 24-27 metres wide with five general traffic lanes and parking bays.
The public consultation report covered the issue of using shared space. It noted that submissions “expressed concerns over the use of shared space mainly in the vicinity of [the] proposed toucan crossing at Merrion Road.”
The response to the concerns said: “The current proposal at Merrion Road has been designed to align with the Dublin BusConnects Belfield/Blackrock to City Centre proposal, which has been granted approval by An Bord Pleanála in March 2024. It is worth highlighting that the shared space at the Merrion Road Toucan Crossing is proposed to be reduced when the full Bus Connects scheme is implemented.”
The council added: “In general, this scheme has kept shared space to a minimum. As part of detailed design process, the extent of shared space has been reduced near Herbert Park Bridge. However, shared space has been included where segregation would result in facilities too narrow for cyclists and pedestrians or where a short length of the shared route is the only practical way of achieving a continuous cycle route.”
Key sections of drawings:
MORE: Dodder Greenway: From Beatty’s Avenue to Herbert Park webpage on DublinCity.ie