FINGAL COCO "Stakeholder communication" 4/11/2020
To Whom it May Concern,
Further to the meeting between stakeholder representatives and Fingal County Council on 9th October 2020, please find enclosed letter which outlines the response and rationale to submissions received in relation to the one-way trial proposal, and corresponding layout.
Please also find attached minutes of the meeting on 9th October for your information.
Questions and Answers
4 th November 2020 Re: Walk, Bike, Fingal – Plan for Social Distancing in the Public Realm Dear All, At the meeting between Fingal Co. Council and stakeholder group representatives on 9th October 2020, it was requested by the Chief Executive that submissions be made on the trial one-way proposal presented. Further to the meeting, 16 No. of submissions were received. Following consideration of all submissions and keeping in line with national and local policies and the Living with Covid National plan, the following report outlines the response and rationale to items raised. General Principals The introduction of the pedestrianisation on New Street was implemented to respond to the global pandemic of Covid 19. In order to maximise space for people to walk, cue outside premises and cycle in a safe socially distant manner, providing people with the opportunity to get exercise and provide a place to be, with a social outlet in a safe manner. Fundamentally, this is good for businesses, good for the village of Malahide, and ultimately good for the residents of Malahide and their wellbeing. New St has an excellent array of retail and food service establishments and both the pedestrianisation and the proposed one-way system endeavour to provide space for business to operate in when severe restrictions would otherwise have prevented many of the businesses from functioning. Two-way traffic on New street severely restricts the available space for members of the public to socially distance, restricts any improvements to safety for vulnerable road users such as pedestrians while restricting safe segregated cycle facilities and opportunities for public realm space within the available road width on New Street. Following various submissions received from stakeholders, and a joint submission received from the key stakeholder groups, requesting that a one-way system be trialled; this one-way system was developed on that basis and forms the current proposal for implementation. It is not feasible to achieve the above goals and to retain two-way traffic on New St. Various graphics shown in the Malahide Pubic Realm strategy indicate different arrangements of vehicular and pedestrian/cycling traffic. When analysed, the space provided, is being utilised to its capacity to ensure the above goals are achieved, to support local businesses and the residents of Malahide. The proposal underpins the International, National and Local policies as outlined in the Climate Action requirements to achieve targets set out by EU policy; the Programme for Government, , Fingal 2 of 9 fingal.ie County Councils principals for climate action, and the fundamental principles of Fingal CC, to support local businesses and communities and to provide a place to live, work, visit and do business. Walking and cycling form key elements of the Malahide Public Realm Strategy. Pedestrianisation and the proposed one-way carriageway and cycle lane is fundamentally in keeping with the “Concept Plan” in “Section 5 – Movement” of the Public Realm Strategy, both generally and more specifically in item M2-M5 and M12 to prioritise pedestrian movement and cycling in the village of Malahide, provided below. Further to the above, the hierarchy of design in the Design Manual for Urban Streets takes precedence for the use of public space, which provides for, in the following order: pedestrians, cyclists, public transport followed by the private car. Therefore, space in the heart of the village is being given back to people rather than to cars. In addition, the network of roads around Malahide and in particular in this area, lend themselves exceptionally well to the use of the network, over individual roads. Extracts from the National Policy Objective 27: ‘Ensure the integration of safe and convenient alternatives to the car into the design of our communities, by prioritising walking and cycling accessibility to both existing and proposed developments and integrating physical activity facilities for all ages’. 1. Specific Issues raised: Access to Health Centre A a set down area adjacent to HSE building and disabled parking bay will be provided at this location. 2. Return to 2 Way Traffic Two-way traffic on New street severely restricts the available space for members of the public to socially distance, restricts any improvements to safety for vulnerable road users such as pedestrians while restricting safe segregated cycle facilities and opportunities for public realm space within the available road width on New Street. 3. Direction of Carriageway and Direction of Cycle Lane Significant consideration was given to the direction of the carriageway and directional flow of traffic on New Street during the design phase. Multiple factors were included in the decision-making process, including road safety; the bus route; the efficiency and operation of the junctions; and the overall cost and impact of reconfiguration of the carriageways to accommodate the above or an alternative to the above such as reversing the proposed direction of New St, James Terrace or Townyard Lane. Detail on each of these issues is provided below. Bus Route: In order to facilitate the current bus route, the direction of traffic must remain northbound on New Street as the alternative would require a directional change of traffic flow on St. James Terrace, and consequently require significant civil 3 of 9 fingal.ie engineering interventions to reconfigure the parking to the opposite side of road to allow passengers to alight onto the footpath. As the footpath is quite narrow on the west side of the road, and to facilitate alighting passengers, queing for the bus, and pedestrians passing safely, it would be necessary to widen the footpath which in turn would result in moving various services, chamber lids, and potentially affecting the crossfall of the carriageway and footpath, and in turn altering existing drainage runs, moving gully’s and various other street furniture such as lamp standards, poles and signs, EV charging points and pay and display machines. In addition, there is insufficient space for a right turning pocket to be provided at the Mall/James Terrace junction to facilitate bus or HGV right turning movements on to St. James’ Terrace. This in turn will result in traffic stacking behind buses or other right turning vehicles at this location, without the ability to safely pass on the nearside. Fingal County Council is not aware of any changes to the No. 34 bus route at this location in the current Bus Connects plan. However, should New Street become pedestrianised, an alternative bus route will be discussed with the NTA on a permanent basis. One-Way contra Flow Cycle Lane To maximise public realm space; rather than providing 2 segregated cycle tracks and a single trafficable lane it is possible to have an inline cyclist proceeding with the flow of traffic downhill as they can keep pace with moving traffic due to the downhill gradient leading towards the Marina. This enables cyclist to comfortably travel at the same speed as motorists while having control of the lane. Cyclists travelling uphill tend meander and require “wobble room” to balance and in order to gain momentum. Cyclists travelling uphill are moving at a slower pace than they would if travelling downhill and thereby potentially frustrating drivers travelling uphill, this is of particular importance for the safety of young children cycling, or those that are less confident. The Diamond The Diamond operates more efficiently as a three-arm junction, with access only permitted for Public Service Vehicles, local access and emergency vehicles. Southbound directional traffic would lead to increased waiting time at the Church Street / Malahide Road / New Street Junction, compared to the one-way Northbound option. Eastbound and westbound traffic accessing Strand Street/The Green area from Dublin Rd/the Mall, have the option to access the area via, Old St and Townyard lane respectively. This keeps westbound and eastbound traffic away from the Diamond junction ensuring the efficient throughput through the Diamond and permits pedestrian priority by reducing junction cycle times. Vessel Delivery/Removal to/from the Marina. The proposal for a one-way northbound permits the access of HGV’s carrying large vessels down New Street to the Marina, while egress is maintained via James’s Terrace. Both streets are capable of taking any size of vessel that would otherwise be 4 of 9 fingal.ie permitted on the road to/from the marina, this mitigates the need to provide special arrangements for larger vessels to be delivered to the Marina. Townyard Lane Maintaining northbound flow on Townyard Lane allows those approaching from the east to turn right ahead of the Diamond. Similarly, coming in from the west allows the left turn from Dublin Rd to Old Street. This will facilitate local access, discouraging vehicles visiting Malahide from entering The Green area, and moving them towards available parking in Seabanks or Bridgefield car parks, this will assist in keeping traffic out of the Strand Street/Green area to provide a cleaner area with reduced traffic volumes, therefore minimising the potential for cues forming on James’s Terrace. In addition, retaining the northbound direction of travel on Townyard lane ensures that deliveries to Supervalu and other business on Townyard Lane do not then have to proceed down Old St, around Strand St to come up Townyard Lane. This minimises the through traffic to Old St, the Green, and James Terrace. This arrangement also provides a relief valve for New St, discouraging illegal access to New Street, which is maintained for local access, PSV’s, and emergency access and to facilitate large vessels to the Marina. It is envisaged that between the Green and New Street, this will provide a place to be for people as opposed to a place for vehicles and overall, declutter the area from vehicular traffic. 5 of 9 fingal.ie 4. Public Realm Strategy Cycling and Pedestrian Improvements Walking and cycling form key elements of the Malahide Public Realm Strategy. Pedestrianisation and the proposed one-way carriageway and cycle lane is fundamentally in keeping with the “Concept Plan” in “Section 5 – Movement” of the Public Realm Strategy, generally and more specifically in item M2-M5 and M12 to prioritise pedestrian movement and cycling in the village of Malahide. Extracts from the Public Realm strategy are provided below for ease of reference. Section 5 – Movement Movement (M) The key aim of the projects noted hereunder relate to an agreed need to improve the pedestrian and cyclist environment (incl. footpaths, crossing points and awareness of the cyclist as a legitimate road user) and to address concerns and adverse impact of traffic congestion, lack of vehicular traffic free flow at key pinch points and to provide a co-ordinated and comprehensive review of car parking provision (ease of access and use) within the Malahide. While some proposals require relocation of existing car parking places it is not the intention to reduce the overall number of spaces available to those travelling by car to the village but to redress the imbalance between parking spaces and traffic free flow and pedestrian/cyclist safety and enjoyment. It should be noted that the issue of pedestrian and cycle movement was a priority for all school children involved in the project and for the associated school bodies. Images from section 4 of the report show the desire to provide space for pedestrians and a weekend market on New Street. 6 of 9 fingal.ie In accrodance with the Public Realm strategy item D1 “Make it Malahide” branding was developed in tandem with the pedestrianisation of New St. in association with FCC’s EETD Department to promote local shops and facilities and to shop local again this is in accordacne with the Public Realm Strategy. New Street will be at the heart of the Fingal Coastal Route which will see cycling infrastructure extended from the Portmarnock cycle scheme across the Broadmeadow estuary. Furthermore, the School Streets initiative and other similar initiatives around Malahide are being pursued to enhance the permeability and connectivity across Malahide for pedestrians and cyclists, to give people the opportunity to walk or cycle rather than use a car for short journeys, which again is fundamental aspect of Movement in the Public Realm Strategy. 5. Traffic Congestion Reports relating to Traffic congestion in Malahide Village have pre-existed prior to the trial pedestrianisation of New Street. Creating a three-arm junction at the Diamond a has improved the overall efficiency of the operation of the junction resulting in a 21% increase in throughput. The report of traffic queuing on Coast Road has been a long term, persistent occurrence over time. Following monitoring of the Diamond and approaches on all arms, it is evident that the activity approaching the Diamond from The Mall is a function of several factors, including the location of bus stops and driver behaviour. A reduced cycle time at the junction has also facilitated improvements for pedestrian wait times and is again in line with Section 5 of the public Realm strategy Item M2: Further to this, as a 3-arm junction, this significantly improves pedestrian crossing movements on the north side of the Diamond from the Mall to Dublin Rd as set out as a priority in the Public Realm Strategy. 7 of 9 fingal.ie 6. James Terrace Further to data collected over the duration of the trial pedestrianisation, it is evident that the volume increase in traffic is minimal on St. James Terrace. On the issue of queuing, southbound traffic coming from James Terrace to the Mall, reaches, but doesn’t exceed 40m at certain times of the day (peaks at afternoon). To put this in context, if you were walking north down James Terrace passing the tennis courts, the longest queue of traffic you would find would tail back to the mid-court line of the tennis courts approximately. The proposed one-way system is not envisaged to encourage more traffic into The Green/Strand St/James’s Terrace area, and therefore, the one-way system will have little if any change in this regard. Again, the proposal being to limit unnecessary access to the Green/Strand Street area for vehicles, but rather, to promote pedestrian and cycle movement and to permit the reestablishment of the bus to New St from Old St. This ensures the bus is still available to passengers in the village, journey times and services on the bus route are not affected and removes the issue of the bus travelling down Old St. 7. Proposed Alignment of the Street The alignment of the street as proposed, is being provided to ensure that traffic speeds remain low, and therefore provides a safer environment. Favour has not been given to any premises on the street. The alignment of the road as described above is being provided for a slow speed environment. Those premises that expressed their desire for additional public realm space and those that want minimal public realm provided outside of their premises have been facilitated as far as reasonably possible, while maintaining the safe movement of pedestrians, cyclists and vehicles through the street The alignment uses the width of the existing carriageway only, therefore there is no adverse impact to existing buildings. Vehicles will not be any closer to any building than they were in the pre-existing arrangement with 2-way traffic and parking on both sides of the street. 8. Access to Ross Terrace Access and egress to and from Ross Terrace will be maintained for residents and for motorists accessing the private car park. Access arrangements in place from the Mall prior to the trial pedestrianisation will resume, with egress from Ross Terrace via Strand St and James Terrace as they were during the pedestrian trial. Fingal are providing a dedicated cycling facility that will have road markings and signage to indicate the potential presence of cyclists on the cycle lane. This is a safer arrangement than was present prior to the pedestrianisation of New Street with vehicles moving in both directions and cars parked at or immediately adjacent to the entrance of Ross Terrace. 8 of 9 fingal.ie 9. Loading Bay / Taxis Consideration has been given to additional loading space on New Street following the Stakeholder meeting and this is provided opposite the entrance to Ross Cottages The current taxi rank on James Terrace will be relocated to the loading bays (07:00 – 19:00) on the Mall (Eastbound) and the Dublin Road (Westbound) and Church Road (Northbound) from 19.00hrs to 07.00am. 10. Residential Access and Private Off-street Parking Reconfiguration of the location of planters will be considered to facilitate access and egress from private residential dwelling and off-street car parking on New Street to ensure that residents can reverse into a space adjacent to the carriageway rather than in the carriageway to lock gates and the likes 11. Public Realm Space The location of bike racks will be reconsidered; however, the bike racks were located as shown in order to alleviate previous concerns raised in relation to members of the public congregating outside residential premises. The presentation slides titled “Opportunities and constraints” and the area marked “Footpath Buildout” is an area being considered to widen the footpath at the pedestrian crossing. However due to concerns raised by members of the public this will not be proceeding as part of the current design. 12. KPI's and measurements As part of the trial one-way, the following KPI’s will be monitored, along with continued engagement with stakeholder group representatives: • Traffic, pedestrian & cycling surveys • Air quality monitoring • Bleeperbike Bike Sharing data analysis • MOVA junction data analysis • Local authority car parking occupancy data • Local authority traffic warden data (e.g. parking fines) • Qualitative surveys 13. Outdoor dining Fingal County Council will continue to process applications for Street Furniture Licenses. Applications are subject to terms and conditions which can be viewed at the following link: https://www.fingal.ie/council/service/street-furniture-license 9 of 9 fingal.ie It is now proposed that necessary works outlined at the meeting between Fingal. Co. Council and stakeholder group representatives on 9th October 2020 in relation to the one-way system will be scheduled to commence on Wednesday 11th November 2020, subject to confirmation. The works are estimated to take approximately two weeks for completion, subject to weather conditions. Many thanks again for your participation and engagement in the process thus far, and we look forward to working constructively with you in the weeks and months ahead. Yours Sincerely, _______________________________ Andrew Nolan BA, BAI, MSc, CEng, MIEI Senior Executive Engineer | Fingal County Council | Civic Offices, Grove Road, Blanchardstown, Dublin 15, Rep of Ireland
Minutes of Meeting
WALK BIKE FINGAL – ONE WAY PROPOSAL, NEW STREET,
MALAHIDE
NEW STREET STAKEHOLDERS AND FINGAL CO. COUNCIL
MS TEAMS– 9
th October 2020
In Attendance:
- Ann Marie Farrelly, Chief Executive, FCC
- David Storey, Director of Services, Operations Dept, FCC
- Karen Gallagher, Senior Engineer, FCC
- Andrew Nolan, Senior Executive Engineer, Operations Department, FCC
- Gerry McDermott, Communications Officer, FCC
- Niamh Russell, Senior Staff Officer, Operations Department, FCC
- Cllr Anthony Lavin
- Cllr Aoibhinn Tormey
- Cllr David Healy
- Cllr Jimmy Guerin
- Cllr Joan Hopkins
- Cllr Eoghan O’Brien
- Cllr Brian McDonagh
- Derek Fowler, Malahide Chamber of Commerce
- Trish Murtagh, Shop Malahide
- Majella Dunne, New Street resident’s representative
- Claire Jepson, Old Street resident’s representative
- Frank Walsh, Railway Ave. resident’s representative
- Ken O’Connor, Malahide Community Forum
- Damien Offer, Malahide Marina
- Paulo, Al Fresco and New Street Licenced Premises representative
- John Butterly, Malahide Sea Scouts
- Patrick McNamara, Malahide Tidy Towns
Cllr. Brian McDonagh chaired the meeting
Meeting commenced at 3pm
__________________________________________________________________________________
Opening statement from Ann Marie Farrelly, CE, Fingal Co. Council. Ms. Farrelly acknowledged how
all citizens and businesses are adapting to the ever changing and challenging scenario of living with
Covid 19 at present, and is assured that together, stakeholders can agree a good plan to move
forward with proposals which will encourage walking and cycling where possible, to help stop the
spread of Covid 19 in the communities around Fingal.
Andrew Nolan (AN) then gave a presentation on the one-way design proposal, which included:
• Opportunities and Constraints
• Existing Layout V Potential Layout
• Options Considered and most suitable option
• Schedule of Works
• Considerations
Slides will be circulated to Stakeholders for reference.
__________________________________________________________________________________
Questions and Answers:
John Butterly (Malahide Sea Scouts) expressed his thanks to the Council for recent engagement and
commitment to carrying out improvements as requested.
Mr Buttery also outlined his concerns regarding road safety on St. James Terrace and requested
further consideration be given to the directional flow of traffic on New Street.
Mr Andrew Nolan explained that significant consideration was given to the direction of the
carriageway and directional flow of traffic on New Street during the design phase. Multiple factors
were included in the decision-making process, including road safety; the bus route; the efficiency and
operation of the Diamond junction; and the overall cost and impact of reconfiguration of the
carriageways to accommodate the above or an alternative to the above such as reversing the
proposed direction of New St, James Terrace or Townyard Lane
Mr Nolan also explained the rationale behind the one-Way contra Flow Cycle Lane. In order to
maximise available space; rather than providing 2 segregated cycle tracks and a single trafficable lane
it is possible to have an inline cyclist proceeding with the flow of traffic downhill as they can keep pace
with moving traffic due to the downhill gradient leading towards the Marina. This enables cyclist to
comfortably travel at the same speed as motorists while having control of the lane. Cyclists travelling
uphill tend meander and require “wobble room” to balance and in order to gain momentum. Cyclists
travelling uphill are moving at a slower pace than they would if travelling downhill and thereby
potentially frustrating drivers travelling uphill - this is of importance for the safety of young children
cycling, or those that are less confident.
Paulo (Al Fresco) stated that as a representative of the hospitality sector on New Street,
pedestrianisation has allowed businesses to operate under Covid restrictions, resulting in 230
employees remaining in work during this period in the vicinity of New St. He requested that the Council
review the location of outdoor seating, from the P&D bays to the footpaths adjacent to the business
premises and requested an additional loading bay on the northern end of New Street.
Mr Nolan explained that the NCBI had been consulted, and they advised that it is important to
individuals with visual impairment that they can find the building line (“Shoreline”) easily, and
footpaths should remain clear of street furniture or signage particularly along the building line, and
therefore it is appropriate for sandwich boards, signage, tables and chairs to remain .on or adjacent
to the kerb line and in the P&D spaces.
Trish Murtagh (Shop Malahide) supported the comments of Mr Butterly regarding the directional flow
of traffic and requested an additional loading bay.
Mr Nolan stated that an additional loading bay will be considered at the northern end of New Street.
Ken O’Connor (Malahide Community Forum) requested an indication of associated costs of proposed
works.
Mr Nolan stated that the works would result in a cost of approximately €50k, which would include the
reuse of existing materials, signs, planters etc.
Cllr. David Healy suggested the reversal of directional flow of traffic on Townyard Lane.
Mr. Nolan stated that maintaining northbound flow on Townyard Lane allows those approaching from
the east to turn right ahead of the Diamond. Similarly, coming in from the west allows the left turn
from Dublin Rd to Old Street. This will facilitate local access, discouraging vehicles visiting Malahide
from entering The Green area, and moving them towards available parking in Seabanks or Bridgefield
car parks, this will assist in keeping traffic out of the Strand Street/Green area to provide a cleaner
area with reduced traffic volumes, therefore minimising the potential for cues forming on James’s
Terrace.
In addition, retaining the northbound direction of travel on Townyard lane ensures that deliveries to
Supervalu and other business on Townyard Lane do not then have to proceed down Old St, around
Strand St to come up Townyard Lane. This minimises the through traffic to Old St, the Green, and
James Terrace.
Mr Nolan explained that the current arrangement also provides a relief valve for New St, discouraging
illegal access to New Street, which is maintained for local access, PSV’s, and emergency access and to
facilitate large vessels to the Marina. It is envisaged that between the Green and New Street, this will
provide a place to be for people as opposed to a place for vehicles and overall declutter the area from
vehicular traffic.
Cllr. Aoibhinn Tormey expressed support of Mr. Butterly’s comments.
Cllr. Joan Hopkins stated that the Council and stakeholders need to work together on this proposal.
Cllr. Anthony Lavin queried the current bus route on the Mall and the proposed one-way on New
Street facilitating the right turning movement.
Mr Nolan confirmed that the No. 32 bus route will remain unchanged and the right turn will be
facilitated.
Ms. Majella Dunne (resident) requested that footpaths be kept clear for pedestrians, and the space
adjacent to her property be kept clear from business use.
Ms Dunne also queried access to Ross Cottages for residents, and the car parking space currently used
by carers attending her premises.
Niamh Russell confirmed that any businesses wishing to obtain a Street Furniture License must apply
via the Licensing Section, Fingal Co. Council, and are subject to inspection and a number of terms and
conditions apply. The council will not permit the use of the public space directly in front of Ms. Dunnes
premises for the purpose of street furniture.
Ms Russell also confirmed that the parking space allocated for carers parking on Ross Terrace will
remain for use.
Mr Patrick McNamara suggested the traffic should flow in the opposite direction from the Marina
towards the Diamond.
Cllr. Eoghan O’Brien stated that reverse directional flow of traffic on New Street (from north to south)
would impact on the Diamond junction efficiency. Cllr O’Brien requested that the traffic be monitored
and evaluated over the coming months.
Ms. Claire Jepson requested a third option of reverting to two-way traffic for public consultation and
confirmation of timeline for works.
Mr Nolan confirmed that the lining works are weather dependant, and in favourable weather
conditions will take approximately 5 days to complete. Following the lining works, there will be a
further 5 days for infrastructural works required. In total, two weeks.
Mr. Derek Fowler stated that he is fully supportive of the proposal presented. Mr Fowler stated that
as a result, it will encourage more businesses to establish in Malahide, which is positive for the
economy and the community. He stated that extended parking for the village, and an additional
loading bay on New Street is required.
Cllr. Jimmy Guerin expressed his thanks to stakeholders for their participation and hugely encouraging
response at today’s meeting.
Ms. Ann Marie Farrelly concluded the meeting by thanking the council staff for the detailed
engineering examination and presentation, and all participants for their constructive contributions.
Ms Farrelly requested that any submissions on the proposed one-way system be submitted via the Operational Area by close of business on Tuesday 13th October, and the contact email was provided.
Meeting Concluded
Kind Regards,
Senior Staff Officer | Howth Malahide Operational Area | Fingal County Council | Grove Road | Dublin 15