To say that the new Luas line has had a few teething problems would be a bit of an understatement.
Bus journey times in Dublin city centre have more than doubled since the new Luas line was opened in early December 2017.
According to council chiefs at an Oireachtas Joint Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport, between the hours of 9am and 10am, on average it takes a bus 23 minutes to move from Dublin’s south to north via College Green.
By comparison, the same journey only took an average 10 minutes prior to the Luas extension.
Dublin City Council’s chief executive Owen Keegan also revealed that changes made to pedestrian crossings has resulted in waiting times at lights doubling.
“It was always recognised by the city council that College Green, which has only one lane in each direction, would not be able to accommodate the same number of buses and taxis following the introduction of the Luas cross city”, Mr. Keegan said.
One of the main issues for congestion is the “slow jogging pace”, which the trams are required to travel at, said Cormac O’Rourke, head of Transport Infrastructure Ireland. This issue, he attributed to the Commission for Railway Regulation, which put in place a 10km/h speed limit on trams in the days before the line was opened.
Dublin Bus’ Chief Executive Ray Coyne told the committee that 17 of its routes have been realigned to ease College Green congestion.
He went on to say that a further 10 would be moved out of the area on 5 March.
The 55-metre Luas trams will also be travelling through College Green by late March, and they will receive priority at lights as to avoid blocking traffic on the quays.
Peter Lunden-Welden, Cheif Executive of Transdev said seven new long trams would become active in the first week of May, while the Luas operator is also seeking to extend 26 trams and purchase a further eight.
“Whatever we put in place for Luas it seems that will not meet demand”, Lunden-Welden said. “My prediction is that will not solve the congestion. There will be higher demand.”
Lunden-Welden informed the committee that since the extension opened, College Green journey times improved by three to four minutes.
Raising the ongoing concern for the safety and well-being of cyclists, Eamon Ryan, Green Party leader said he was “terrified” while attempting to navigate the lines around College Green.
“It’s incredible that anyone deigned that facility with cyclists in mind.”
Speaking about a possible solution for easing congestion Conor Faughnan, AA Consumer Affairs Director, said the only way forward is to remove buses.
“There’s no room for both buses and trams. The trams can’t move so the buses will have to,” he said.
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