The NTA has published revised proposals for the CBC12 Rathfarnham to City Centre route. Dublin Cycling Campaign will be making a submission on the full route. The proposed route for cyclists on the Grange Road to Rathfarnham Road section involve an off-road alternative cycle route along St Mary’s Avenue, Owendoher Crescent, Woodview Cottages and a new bridge across the Dodder. This has proved unpopular with cyclists, local residents and ecological groups. Below we outline our concerns about the proposals, and offer some alternative suggestions.

Grange Road to Rathfarnham Road section

Overall, we support this scheme as it provides improved sustainable transit options including improved facilities for people making trips by bike. In particular, we strongly endorse:

• Improved design of Grange Road junction
• Inclusion of some islanded bus stops
• The addition of some parking protected cycle lanes

However, we share the concerns of local residents and ecological groups regarding lack of any safe infrastructure for people cycling on Rathfarnham Road.

The NTA has proposed a cycling diversion via residential streets, bridges and green areas. This would require the construction of structures through important wildlife habitats on the Owendoher and Dodder Rivers and would result in an indirect and isolated cycling route, which many people may not feel comfortable using due to personal security concerns and lack of alignment to desire lines.

Rathfarnham Road is primarily a residential street and is bordered to the east by a residential area of over 150 households. The NTA’s current proposals provide no safe cycling infrastructure to people living in these homes despite plans to widen the only carriageway they use to enter/exit their estate, and where through bus traffic will increase with BusConnects implementation. We do not feel this is a fair option.

A number of constructive conversations with local groups has generated the following three alternative proposals that we hope the NTA will consider, listed here in order of preference:

• Implementation of a bus gate from the petrol station north of the junction with Rathfarnham Village to the Rathfarnham Road/Rathdown Park junction. This would allow space for bidirectional bus and cycle lanes and would require a road width of 9m only- which is narrower than the current road width so should avoid the need to widen the road. Local access for residential motor traffic should be maintained.
• Implementation of a one-way system (which would require road widening in line with the NTA’s current proposal). Re-distribute the space currently proposed for a motor traffic lane to provide two 1.5m width segregated cycle lanes.
• Use road space as currently proposed but provide two traffic lanes and two cycle paths in both directions at both narrow sections between (i) petrol station and Brookvale Road and (ii) where the road passes over the Dodder until Rathdown Park. Use of bus priority signaling could ensure motor traffic does not cause congestion for bus users.

Have your say by 16th December 2020. Email cbc@busconnects.ie or post your submission to National Transport Authority, Dún Scéine, Harcourt Lane, Dublin 2, D02 WT20. Feel free to use these points in your submission, and thank you for engaging with our proposal.