Conor Faughnan's idiotic opinion on 30kmph limit

LostinBlanch

kevo1 wrote: »

I live in Dublin city. I love driving. I love cars and I love been able to drive through Dublin. However there are loads of roads in the Dublin region to drive above 30kph. What we don’t have is a central core in our capital city where the car is not allowed to dominate -a city centre which is not primarily set out to facilitate the movement of vehicles at the expense of pedestrians and bicycles. That makes sense on most of the road network but not all of the network.

If the council decided tomorrow to allow cars to drive through temple bar at 50kph we would all be appalled. We all love to meander along streets like Eustace street and seldom feel threatened by the cars we share the road with. It feels liberating. And the cars still get to where they need to. So why is it so hard to believe the same atmosphere can’t apply to big wide roads such as Dame Street or Eden Quay?

As it is, the city centre is a great place to be and return tourist numbers confirm this. But think just how much more fantastic a place it could be – a collection of calm, slower moving quieter wide and narrow streets and spaces and riverside walks to enjoy and relax and meander through - An experience more like walking down Grafton street only having to share the experience with cars and bicycles.

What this 30kph is trying to achieve is fundamental and visionary and shows a high level of understanding and care about what actually improves the quality of an urban CORE environment. And remember there were many detractors when it was proposed that Grafton street would become car free. And what a success that has turned out to be. I do wonder could the 30kph have been introduced with better communication and explanation. Also could the physical upgrade of this zone (eg paving, kerbs marking) have been upgraded before 30kph became the rule. But then again when Grafton street was first pedestrianised it was just blocked off at first and still had it’s tarmac surface.

Because of the new 30kph rule, I’m going to go out of my way to do as much of my socialising and shopping in Dublin city centre as possible.

Andrew Montague, is that you? :rolleyes: C & P ing the same post within four minutes on three threads. Yawn, you'll have to try a bit harder than that to fool people.

Jip

He already posts under his own name.

LostinBlanch

IrishSpeedTraps wrote: »

I'd like to see some stats on how many pedestrians have been killed by cars doing more than 30kmh in the affected areas. Does anyone have any links? Apologies if this has been answered but I haven't read the whole thread.

They don't have them, or if they have they haven't produced them to back up their argument.

Instead they keep on repeating the same mantra to create an echo effect, as well as showing the same graph from 20 years ago. When they are called on the safety argument they then dishonestly try and imply that anyone against this ludicrous and arbitrary limit is against the pedestrianisation of Grafton St, the smoking ban in pubs etc.

And if that doesn't work then they wheel out the old wouldn't the city be a better place if it was more like Copenhagen? Knowing full well that Copenhagen has a properly functioning public transport system, unlike Dublin. Remember the Greens have been party to the cutting of busses from Dublin Bus!

Or they could also roll out posters like Kev01 above who purports to be someone who loves cars and Dublin, and really, really, really loves the super new wonderful, amazing 30kph limit. Gosh wouldn't it be super if everyone felt exactly the same way? All the while spouting out the same shtick and propaganda that the zealots in the DCC do ad nauseam. BTW, Kev01 :rolleyes: only has three posts, and posted the same message in the other thread about this here, and in the one in the commuting forum, all within four minutes. Not very subtle.

Seth Brundle

kevo1 wrote: »

Because of the new 30kph rule, I’m going to go out of my way to do as much of my socialising and shopping in Dublin city centre as possible.

I'm not! I will now avoid going shopping in the city centre as it will now be too much hassle to drive in and then pay the extortionate parking charges (and forget about suggesting getting a bus into town so that I can stand and wait for ages for one then try and get a buggy and shopping on and then have the bus drive through Lucan and Chapelizod adding to the journey time).
Lets see what happens to the area over the next few weeks given that opening a bus corridor seemed to feck up the retail sector!

BostonB

A few people will get caught out for a few weeks then they'll forget about it, and then won't be enforced, just like the current limits.

Mucco

Someone here calculated that the new speed limit will mean it takes an extra 60 seconds to traverse the city centre. Why don't people get those 60s of their lives back by not bothering coming on here and moaning about it?

malcolmtucker

Another issue which we all seem to forget here is that the city centre is not just a commuter rat run. large numbers of families live in the areas of the north inner city which are covered by this new limit. The children who live in some of the high density social housing complexes in this area have few resources. Safe roads with slow moving traffic makes for a more pleasent and safe environment for these children.

Other streets included in the new lower limit area are streets like south william street and are packed with bars and restaraunts. Surely these areas where traffic is calmed will become far more pleasant and will attract more business to the area

Cookie_Monster

kevo1 wrote: »

Because of the new 30kph rule, I’m going to go out of my way to do as much of my socialising and shopping in Dublin city centre as possible.

HAHAHA
:pac: :pac:

BostonB

Mucco wrote: »

Someone here calculated that the new speed limit will mean it takes an extra 60 seconds to traverse the city centre. Why don't people get those 60s of their lives back by not bothering coming on here and moaning about it?

Well it must true if "someone" said it is...

BostonB

malcolmtucker wrote: »

Another issue which we all seem to forget here is that the city centre is not just a commuter rat run. large numbers of families live in the areas of the north inner city which are covered by this new limit. The children who live in some of the high density social housing complexes in this area have few resources. Safe roads with slow moving traffic makes for a more pleasent and safe environment for these children.

Other streets included in the new lower limit area are streets like south william street and are packed with bars and restaraunts. Surely these areas where traffic is calmed will become far more pleasant and will attract more business to the area

Perhaps not playing on the roads would be a good idea?

Is there a problem with traffic doing 50kph on South William Street? Its narrow, cobbled, and a pedestrian crossing in the middle of it, lots of pedestrians, and lots of trucks, cars doing deliveries and drop off/pickups. Usually you have to crawl up it, and get stopped a few times.

You'd be doing well to do 20kph on it.

malcolmtucker

They dont play on the road yhey do need to be able to cross the road and move around the place.

BostonB

malcolmtucker wrote: »

They dont play on the road yhey do need to be able to cross the road and move around the place.

Which roads can't they cross?

LostinBlanch

Mucco wrote: »

Someone here calculated that the new speed limit will mean it takes an extra 60 seconds to traverse the city centre.

"Someone" else rebutted that facetious argument. If true about the 60 seconds which I seriously doubt then it would only be true if all the roads were clear and only one car was travelling on them. It doesn't take into account other cars having to proceed slower in order to have a safe stopping for the car ahead. This has led to reports of traffic jams last week all the way out as far as Palmerstown.

60 seconds indeed! :rolleyes:

Mucco

I've decided to do the maths:

From the beginning of Burgh Quay to end of Merchant's Quay is 1.4km according to google maps.
1.4km at 50kph = 1.4/50*60 = 1.68mins
1.4km at 30kph = 1.4/30*60 = 2.8min
The difference is 1.12min = 1min 7 seconds.

It's taken me longer than 1min 7 seconds to type this post.

LostinBlanch wrote: »

If true about the 60 seconds which I seriously doubt then it would only be true if all the roads were clear and only one car was travelling on them.

So all the traffic magically disappears and lights are magically green when driving at 50kph?

BostonB

Mucco wrote: »

...
So all the traffic magically disappears and lights are magically green when driving at 50kph?

Does it magically disappear for you that you can drive at constant speed in traffic and through multiple traffic lights.

Zubeneschamali

malcolmtucker wrote: »

The children who live in some of the high density social housing complexes in this area have few resources. Safe roads with slow moving traffic makes for a more pleasent and safe environment football pitch for these children.

Fixed that for you.

mcwhirter

Slideshowbob wrote: »

All the points he has made about the new 30kmph limit in Dublin city on RTE news could be argued about

1. Environment - less speed would mean less fuel comsumed! he argued the opposite!
2. Safety - piece on news said European statistics show such limits are safer - he said it won't help safety!
3. Traffic management - he said it won't help it but surely it will!

He is an opinionated ill-considering self-serving idiot in my opinion

That guy just seems to offer an opinion like anyone else, he isn't very well informed though.
Anyone could do what he does, what else does he actually do?