Galway traffic

serfboard

Wombatman wrote: »

https://www.smartertransport.uk/smarter-cambridge-transport-urban-congestion-enquiry/

Great section in there on how to “improve the perception of buses” including this gem of a quote:

There is a perception (partly class-related) that trams are more attractive than buses

what_traffic

xckjoo wrote: »

You're more than welcome to spend your life in you car but a lot of us have no interest in doing that. I've had more free time since I got rid of the car, not less. I'm certainly less stressed. But as I said before, I'm lucky enough to live within walking distance of most things and near a busy bus route. Most people don't have that "luxury" but they deserve it.

This is something I hear a lot from colleagues at work, especially those who are rurban commuters - the cost of running two cars in a household can be a killer for them. Those who do not need a second car or a car at all in my office have more disposable income as a result. Housing close to work is the key to that choice.

what_traffic

what_traffic wrote: »

This is something I hear a lot from colleagues at work, especially those who are rurban commuters - the cost of running two's in a household can be a killer for them. Those who do not need a second car or a car at all in my office have more disposable income as a result. Housing close to work is the key to that choice.

I’m into cars on top of needing them so not having a car is never something I’d ever consider even if it was possible which it isn’t. Two cars minimum will always be needed and to be honest I’ll likely have 2 or 3 cars of my own in time excluding my wife’s car (I’ll be keeping my current car when I but my next car for example)

Even living in a city I’d find not having a car each as just torture, it would just create so much hassle and hardship all the time.

what_traffic

Jazmin Harsh Gold wrote: »

Even living in a city I’d find not having a car each as just torture, it would just create so much hassle and hardship all the time.

Your idea of torture and hardship is carrying a shopping in a backpack and not having a car.
Are you really a farmer? If you are - do you do any manual work at all or is just driving around in a tractor in fields?
Unless you are driving Classic Cars they are depreciating assets. That would be torture for me; literally watching your money going up in smoke.

xckjoo

what_traffic wrote: »

This is something I hear a lot from colleagues at work, especially those who are rurban commuters - the cost of running two cars in a household can be a killer for them. Those who do not need a second car or a car at all in my office have more disposable income as a result. Housing close to work is the key to that choice.

Ya realistically a lot of people will probably always need (or at least want) one car but having good public transport would alleviate the need for two or more. Even if you needed to take the occasional taxi to fill the gap, you'd need to take a lot of them before they'd cost as much as a years tax, insurance and depreciation on a car.

what_traffic

what_traffic wrote: »

Your idea of torture and hardship is carrying a shopping in a backpack and not having a car.
Are you really a farmer? If you are - do you do any manual work at all or is just driving around in a tractor in fields?
Unless you are driving Classic Cars they are depreciating assets. That would be torture for me; literally watching your money going up in smoke.

Obviously there is a lot more to it than that. Weekends we would both be off doing stuff and trying to go different places with only one car would just mean serious additional hassle if even preventing things being done completely.

That’s leaving aside getting to work etc which relying on public transport will always limit your choices.

No not classic cars, one maybe a future classic alright though and my next car has potential to be one too. Not the reason for keeping them though, two fast cars for fun, a jeep as a workhorse and a family estate/large suv would be my ideal setup.

AndrewJRenko

Jazmin Harsh Gold wrote: »

Let’s say someone who works in parkmore, wants to pick up some shopping from tesco and then go for a swim in leisureland before heading home, this would never be doable in any comfort or time without a car (leaving wise the load of shopping, how will you carry it). I just picked a fairly random scenario but you will find 1000’s of different but similar ones. Another example is dropping off kids at at school, picking them up, bringing them to after school things in different corners of the city or suburbs etc etc

If only there was some way that people could build a bit of exercise into their daily activities without driving to the exercise place, exercising and driving back again? Let me think now, what could it be?


There's lots of ways to transport kids on bikes too, or support them to use their own bikes when they're old enough.

John_Rambo

I love cars too, but we cycle or walk by them most of the time!

My idea of enjoying a car isn't sitting in traffic staring at someone else's bumper.

A different way to do grocery shopping, this one's for you nox

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYHTzqHIngk

Discodog

Jazmin Harsh Gold wrote: »

That wasn’t my point obviously. Something that has its own track and a free run at it should be covering the ground faster.

In fairness the name “Luas” is often joked about for this very reason.

Contrary to what some appear to think I’ve no issue with people using public transport, I even use it myself on occasion and I’ve no issue encouraging people to use it but it shouldn’t be pushed to the detriment of car users and many suggestions on this thread would do just that.

You're not alone. There are plenty of people who don't live in the City but have to travel through it, because they have no choice.

Rather than provide an alternative some here simply want to punish people for driving. Their proposals will cause traffic jams & in their dreams, force people out of their cars. Only it won't work because there isn't an alternative.

So more jams, more cars that don't want to be here, more pollution etc.

ChewyLouie

Jazmin Harsh Gold wrote: »

Contrary to what some appear to think I’ve no issue with people using public transport, I even use it myself on occasion and I’ve no issue encouraging people to use it but it shouldn’t be pushed to the detriment of car users and many suggestions on this thread would do just that.

It absolutely should because cars are the least efficient use of the limited space through city roads and have been given the lion's share of both the space and the prioritisation for too long.

Giving that space to cars wasn't an issue when the city could handle it through the bottle necks but now that we're grinding to a stop we need to re-evaluate.

Below gives a clear visualisation of the space required for 200 people across 5 modes of transport. If you have a challenge of routing 200 people through a series of narrow passages over and back every day... I know which mode I wouldn't choose to prioritise the design for.

beardybrewer

Anyone remember the talk of "cross-town" busses the last local election? This brainy idea of perhaps avoiding the congested city centre might encourage people to use buses to the industrial estates? Whatever happened with that?

I would use public transport if it was available and useful but for my purposes in Knocknacarra options are laughable. Useless to go to work.
Useless to go to town for a night out.

Throwing buses and bus lanes is probably the most effective and immediate solution for Galway but even if gifted the buses and budget they'd somehow make a hames of it.

pure.conya

Jazmin Harsh Gold wrote: »

, two fast cars for fun, a jeep as a workhorse and a family estate/large suv would be my ideal setup.

i never thought I'd hear myself saying this but the quicker the greens get into power the better

John_Rambo

pure.conya wrote: »

i never thought I'd hear myself saying this but the quicker the greens get into power the better

Look, he's just boasting & doing the motoring enthusiast no favours. The fact of the matter is that most enthusiasts with multiple cars don't actually drive them much and they can't drive them all at the one time. I have friends with sports cars, muscle cars and one has a supercar. They all get the Dart and the bus in to work.

Car ownership isn't the problem, it's people insisting or being forced to drive in to cities because there's no alternative.

It is funny how people like nox can sway other people to a green vote though!

what_traffic

John_Rambo wrote: »

The fact of the matter is that most enthusiasts with multiple cars don't actually drive them much and they can't drive them all at the one time. I have friends with sports cars, muscle cars and one has a supercar. They all get the Dart and the bus in to work.

Car ownership isn't the problem, it's people insisting or being forced to drive in to cities because there's no alternative.

True, car ownership is high across Northern Europe, but its the way they are used in various Country's is the difference.
When it comes to Classic Cars etc the lower the mileage they have, in general it means the more valuable they actually are.

Ruhanna

cooperguy wrote: »

Driving a car is massively better than getting the bus. I can get in my car when I am ready to go. If I try to make a bus there is no guarantee it will turn up (and the next one mightn't either). Even in traffic it is way better to be in your car, firstly because you are sitting in a car as opposed to standing waiting for a bus which may never come. But more importantly, you can go the route that has less traffic. First thing I do when I sit in the car is check the traffic on my phone and go the quickest way. I went home a different way today compared to yesterday.

Love cars, hate traffic. The car dependant's mantra.

cooperguy wrote: »

A second car is potentially on the cards in the next year or so. I can say categorically that would not happen if I could rely on the bus service.

So if we can generalise from that, the benefit of a new ring road would be that fewer commuters will be tempted to buy a second car, opting instead for the bus? And this will definitely happen, even though "driving a car is massively better than getting the bus"? OK, got it.

cooperguy wrote: »

In the case of the Quincentennial Bridge Bus Eireann have said its unworkable because of the traffic.

A bus service over the Quincentenary Bridge is currently unworkable because there are no bus lanes.

ChewyLouie

Ruhanna wrote: »

A bus service over the Quincentenary Bridge is currently unworkable because there are no bus lanes.

The frustrating thing is that could be sorted overnight with some line painting.

Discodog

cooperguy wrote: »

Driving a car is massively better than getting the bus. I can get in my car when I am ready to go. If I try to make a bus there is no guarantee it will turn up (and the next one mightn't either). Even in traffic it is way better to be in your car, firstly because you are sitting in a car as opposed to standing waiting for a bus which may never come. But more importantly, you can go the route that has less traffic. First thing I do when I sit in the car is check the traffic on my phone and go the quickest way. I went home a different way today compared to yesterday.

Add a reliable bus service and my family will absolutely use them more. I wont have to travel across town to pick up my partner for example. A second car is potentially on the cards in the next year or so. I can say categorically that would not happen if I could rely on the bus service.



Well in the case of the Quincentennial Bridge Bus Eireann have said its unworkable because of the traffic.




From here: https://www.gov.ie/en/publication/09343007-busconnects-galway/

What do you use to check the traffic ?

zell12

Discodog wrote: »

What do you use to check the traffic ?

"My phone"

Discodog

zell12 wrote: »

"My phone"

Very good but you know I meant which site, apps etc

zell12

*takes a bow*

Google Traffic
Waze

JCX BXC

Ruhanna wrote: »

A bus service over the Quincentenary Bridge is currently unworkable because there are no bus lanes.

Utter crap, at least the traffic moves on the Quincentenary bridge, have you ever been stuck on a 405 going out the Tuam road? Utter nightmare, you barely move.

Ashleigh1986

People will ONLY abandon their cars if...
There's a very realiable bus service .
There's proper bus shelters .
There's correct time at every bus stop letting people know when bus is arriving .
There's bus lanes along the whole route for example knocknacarra to parkmore and same return .
If you don't / can't provide these ..people won't abandon their cars !!!

Discodog

zell12 wrote: »

*takes a bow*

Google Traffic
Waze

I find both of those to be pretty useless

JCX BXC

Discodog wrote: »

I find both of those to be pretty useless

I use the Google one all the time, find it to be fairly accurate.

Discodog

JCX BXC wrote: »

I use the Google one all the time, find it to be fairly accurate.

How often does it update & where does it get the information ?

JCX BXC

Discodog wrote: »

How often does it update & where does it get the information ?

Couldn't tell you, think it collects information from users of Google but it doesn't really matter as it works well for me.

Ruhanna

JCX BXC wrote: »

Utter crap, at least the traffic moves on the Quincentenary bridge, have you ever been stuck on a 405 going out the Tuam road? Utter nightmare, you barely move.

The bridge has been there for quite a while. The council has had literally decades to put bus lanes on it. Even longer for the Tuam Road. They didn't bother their arse. Now the solution absolutely has to be another bridge. Idiots.

Ruhanna

grbear wrote: »

Imagine having a go at someone for having a backpack and implying that grown adults wouldn't use one before going on to cry about how tap water tastes bad and that carrying bags of shopping is real hardship.

Still water is hardship. Sticking to the speed limit is hardship. Driving in low speed zones is hardship. Waiting at traffic lights is hardship. Not having a mobile phone to play with while sitting in traffic is hardship.

The list of first world problems is as long as it is harrowing.

Ruhanna

Ludikrus wrote: »

Galway tap water tastes disgusting. A workmate moved to Galway and his dogs wouldn’t drink it until they were desperate.

Back on topic: Build the bypass!

Get on your bike and go buy a water filter.