Dun Laoghaire Traffic & Commuting Chat

First car registered in Ireland, 1898.

Number of cars in Ireland in 1914, 20,000.

Now, it won't be too much of a leap, even for you, to imagine that not many average houses built before that had driveways to accommodate such cars. In fact the most of older parts of Dun Laoghaire would be an excellent example of that.

So yes, that real world.

20,000 cars with a population of 4.3Million.

are you really trying to suggest that 1914 and 2021 are comparable?

Nope, simply that cars have been parked on the public road in this Country since there have been cars. People like Burt and yourself seem determined to deny this easily verified fact.

Where's the public consultation on the impacts of the huge increases in car ownership?

Where's the public consultation on the impacts of the huge increases in mobile phones, or outdoor jacuzzis?

Like cigarettes, cars remain perfectly legal. And like cigarettes, they are a personal choice that does impact on others. So, its for the Government ,elected by the people, to come up with balanced policies to moderate that reality. And they are.

Theres no point creating or citing daft platitudes like this Mr Noonan has there, because its not grounded in realism. In fact, I would say be careful what you wish for, because its a safe enough bet that in this Country,if some sort of citizens assembly, for example, was held about the future of car ownership and the limitation of personal choice in that regard, you wouldn't be thrilled with the outcome Andrew.

People don't store their phones or their jacuzzis on public space.

It was accepted practice that people smoked in pubs, on buses, trains, in offices and more. That reality was overturned.

Yeah, so come back to me when you have succeeded. I won't hold my breath.

You're like a dog with a bone. Go and do it, campaign for it, make it happen by 2041 and I promise I'll be impressed.

Jesus I hope not. In her crusade she has divided and infuriated Parisians, as well as DOUBLING the city's debt level in just 7 years!!

Shes a socialist zealot, a dreamer with a total lack of realism and economic savvy and her vanity exercise of a Presidential run is destined to end in a fourth or even fifth place finish.

Unfortunately, without a more cohesive public transport network and the necessary infrastructure to make it run quickly and efficiently, all statements against car use and parking hither and tither is just virtue signalling. Moreover, many of these statements reek of begrudgery or those with a chip on their sholder.

There are loads of gaps in the public transport network that need to be filled in. This coupled with the varying and often narrow width of many of our main arterial roads make this car free paradise very difficult to pull off without serious inconvenience and a near violation of motorists civil liberties.

Buses need to be able to traverse far more of the suburban fabric and with greater comfort than at present. The same goes for cyclists but with safety. The current state of our infrastructure makes this idea impossible with members of each road user group forced to encroach on each other which is what gives way to dangers, perceived and actual. The reality is that proper segregation is needed to safe guard the different road user groups from one another.

Then, there are the entitled road users who feel marginalised at the mere thought of (god forbid) keeping to themselves. Next, there are the sanctimonious types who think that because they are using greener and more sustainable modes of transport, it exempts them from being observant and even gives them a right to be an inconvenience.

A uniform and continuous layout to all arterial roads would be a start. In architecurally sensitive areas, a mixture of this and one way roads would suffice. Look at the relatively recent job on Pottery Road as a benchmark. It is spacious and smooth for all road users. Next, install cameras to identify and penalise motorists who park in bike lanes or cyclists breaking red lights.

Introduce new bus routes along the roads and/or improve existing ones. Make sure that these routes go to destinations which currently generate high car use. Once these conditions have been met, then we can start talking about this car free paradise. Until that time comes, this car free paradise is like the cart before the horse.

@AndrewJRenko We need more of a Georges-Eugène Haussmann and not an Anne Hidalgo.

Funny how she keeps getting relected though. It's almost as if most people who live there have a different view or something.

Em, that's just a bizarre comment. He's responsible for what is widely regarded as one of the most beautiful - and architecturally admired - cities in the world. Of course, there's a small number of critics (which you obviously side with), but the consensus view wouldn't be with them. And I think, unlike the French revolution, we have had enough time to judge it.

I think few people would regard Paris as a theme park - if so, it's a fantastically developed one. Also showing your age if you preferred the original version given it's been gone since the mid-1850s ;)

Seriously, I don't think this is the hill you want to die on.