After close calls between cycle path users and motorists turning into a side street in Fairview were recorded, Dublin City Council has suspended two car parking spots to improve visibility at the junction along the Clontarf to City Centre route.
The council has run an information campaign urging motorists to yield to pedestrians and cycle path users at junctions with continuous footpaths and cycle paths. The council’s video (posted at the end of this article) notes: “…whether exiting from or turning into the side road vehicles, must yield to pedestrians and cyclists before proceeding safely on their journey.”
But some junctions have proven to be problematic, such as at the junction of Fairview and Fairview Avenue. Photojournalist Padraig O’Reilly documented the issue before the car park spaces were closed off.
His video shows a motorist turning onto the side road as an electric scooter user in bright orange high-vis approaches on the cycle path. To avoid a collision, the scooter user then turns onto the side road and hops off their scooter.
The council’s removal of the car parking spaces at this junction aims to address the apparent blind spot between motorists turning across a cycle path. Temporary signs have also been posted with the text “Caution: Cyclists and pedestrians crossing”.
When O’Reilly posted his video clip on X a number of local politicians replied, saying that they had or would log the issue at the junction.
Denise Mitchell, a Sinn Féin TD for Dublin Bay North, said that when she logged the issue that the council told her it was related to visibility issues caused by the parking bays, two of which have now been closed off.
She said: “I have raised the safety concerns at this junction with Dublin City Council and their Active Travel Department last week and they have informed me that they are reviewing this section including the visibility issues caused by the positioning of the parking bay at Gaffney’s.”

Deputy Lord Mayor Cllr Donna Cooney (Green), said: “I don’t know if it’s a blind spot from where the driver is? The camera view is behind the lamppost.”
She added: “A safety audit was done on the whole route last Thursday. Met the team doing it on my way to Fairview. So will request results and check that location, there’s a few junctions that need reviews.”
Cllr Alison Field said: “I have been onto our Active Travel DCC group in relation to these issues even before the work was completed. Last month, I asked them to let the public know exactly what plan is going in place to sort these very dangerous issues.”

Per the video with the scooter, removing car spaces was never going to mitigate driver impatience. The driver basically had enough of waiting for multiple bike and scooter users and just went.
Have to say that the positioning of giant thick light poles do not help here. But, hey they are our heritage and very important to keep something designed for a horse-drawn cart era rather than strung overhead wire-based lights that remove sight-line obstacles.
Firstly, it must be pointed out that the car parking spaces had been closed by DCC well before the video by Padraig O’Reilly was taken, not as a result it. The problem still exists.
I am primarily a cyclist but also a pedestrian & driver in this area, and this junction is incredibly dangerous even with the 2 parking spaces closed. There is a bend in the cycle lane which means that there is a massive blind spot for motorists. If Donna Cooney really doesn’t believe it I would like to invite her to accompany me in my car trying to turn left there! It is a really frightening turn for all concerned. Speeding delivery and commuter cyclists are particularly worrying as even when a motorist takes extreme caution the driver will only have a second or 2 after checking, to get across. They also need to recheck that there are no pedestrians also crossing from either right of left.
The root of this problem was the decision to stop cars from turning left at Edges corner while allowing them to instead turn into Fairview Ave (and thus the residental streets of Marino!). While not ideal either, the turn at Edges Corner was much safer because of better visibility of traffic on the straight cyclepath.
Personally, when driving I have stopped taking the turn into Fairview Ave, it is just too dangerous. If cycling, I proceed slowly with caution. I would strongly advise other cyclists do likewise.
Thanks for the clear explanation of the problem, Finzini.
As an irregular user, I will be extra cautious at this location.
I personally think some areas have too much going on and this would be one area along with the junction at Ballymun road and the end of Griffith Avenue, when these areas are busy with people, traffic , cyclists , bad weather and the pressure is on its very easy to make a mistake or poor call. No motorist wants to hit and harm anyone or damage property.
Be that as it may, there is a special duty of care that motorists in Ireland used to be familiar with at junctions, and has in the last 20 years is becoming increasingly rare to see. From the rules of the road, for example:
” Take special care if you intend to turn left or right and give way to pedestrians who are crossing. A
green light is not a right of way, it is a licence to proceed with caution.”
So, while you say that no motorist wants to hit or harm anyone, then why would they put other people in danger by speeding, breaking lights, accelerating at junctions, going around blind junctions at a speed that does not allow them to stop if there is a person on the road crossing etc? If you are not proceeding with caution then it is your fault if you hit someone, it is your fault if you crash into another car. Let’s just cop on and stop giving every motorist a pass and make it a cultural taboo to break an amber or red light not a hero reward.
It seems that many motorists are increasingly seeing green as carry on regardless, amber as accelerate, and red as meh… if it just changed – so what. Turning at junctions, again, appears to be focused on speed to the next red light.
This is what I see every day, all day long as a motorist, as a bike user and as a pedestrian. I’m just sick of the excuses being trotted out when this just boils down to a culture of unchecked might is right. That there are no red light cameras, indifference from gardai on red light breaking is so disheartening. That the RSA adverts do not vilify poor driving behaviour rather than issuing pleas to slow down (while car adverts focus on freedom to drive at pace, focusing on acceleration, road-handling, 21″ infotainment screens etc.).
I part with the absolute gem in the Rules of the Road, that 95% of motorists ignore:
” An amber light means that you not go beyond the stop line or, if there is no stop line, beyond the light. However, you may go on if you are so close to the line or the light when the amber light first appears that stopping would be dangerous”.
Many motorists interpret this in Ireland as meaning we must accelerate – the exact opposite of the Rule.
This is a huge change and requires far more than removal of parking. Heavy signage plus reminders that pedestrians and cyclists have priority are going to be necessary otherwise motorists will continue to believe they have priority