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17th Aug 2022

New car-free town with population of 85,000 set to be built in Dublin

Stephen Porzio

It is to comprise of five new neighbourhoods based around the “15-minute city principle”.

Plans have been announced for a new car-free town to be built at the western edge of Dublin city.

A joint initiative between Dublin City Council (DCC) and South Dublin County Council (SDCC), the City Edge Project is set to cover 700 hectares within the Naas Road, Ballymount and Park West areas.

Proposed with the aim of creating a “new liveable, sustainable and climate resilient urban quarter,” the councils said that the project has the potential to build 40,000 new homes which would accommodate up to 75,000 or 85,000 people.

On top of this, 75,000 jobs would be created, with €13 billion a year being contributed to the economy.

“Following on from detailed analysis of the area and public consultation between September and October of 2021, the City Edge Strategic Framework has been formulated and comprises a non-statutory plan that sets out a long-term, high-level vision and strategy for the regeneration of the area over a 50-year timescale,” their joint statement reads.

This means the project would be complete by 2070, though there are plans to build the first 3,500 homes by 2030.

Documents published on the City Edge website state that the new town is envisaged to be “a well-connected place” in which public transport is prioritised to support sustainable travel choices.

The area is already served by the Luas, a range of bus services and a rail station located in Park West.

Meanwhile, further infrastructural projects in the form of BusConnects, DART+ and a Lucan Luas line are also planned for the town in the coming decades.

The plans also say that the longer-term vision for the area is to create a “car-free residential development”.

“It is acknowledged that the full realisation of the City Edge vision will take a number of years to achieve as land use and infrastructure will be delivered on a phased basis,” it states.

“In this transition period, there will still be a level of demand for private transport as key services may not be available.”

As part of this, it is proposed that parking spaces would be available to be leased to residents on a short-term basis at first.

However, under the plans, the majority of these parking structures would eventually be removed or repurposed as public transport in the area improves.

That said, some parking will be retained to facilitate people with disabilities.

The documents also state that City Edge would comprise of five new neighbourhoods, which would be based around the “15-minute city principle”.

This means that residents would be able to accomplish most of their daily necessities by either walking or cycling from their homes.

More information about the City Edge project can be found here.

Main image via City Edge

Topics:

Dublin,Home News