14th May 2021The Director of Transportation Services By email covidmobility@dublincity.ieJohn Flanagan, Assistant Chief Executive & City EngineerDublin City Council, Civic Offices, Wood Quay, Dublin 8, D08 RFRe. Public Consultation on Capel Street - Increasing Pedestrian SpaceDear Mr. Flanagan,I welcome the proposal to increase pedestrian space on Capel Street. Given the short consultation period I assume that these are temporary interventions and that there may be opportunity for a more holistic examination of Capel Street in the coming months. I regret that the plans do not envisage the complete removal of car traffic but hope that this may be considered later in the year. As COVID-19 restrictions ease it would be appropriate to engage with pedestrians to work out what travel modes they used to get to the street, and to link this to their retail spend as has been done previously with other surveys. I wish to make the following specific observations.It would be appropriate to remove one of the three traffic lanes in the section of roadway between Strand Street and Ormond Quay and widen the footpath substantially on the East side of the street. The number of vehicles turning left from Capel Street to Ormond Quay is relatively low. The eastern footpath in this section currently is under 2.5m in width, and even less on the North side of Ormond Quay at the Capel Street junction, resulting in pedestrians being forced to queue dangerously on the road carriageway.The plans show no provision of green infrastructure in the proposed changes for the street. It is a cause for concern that COVID-19 interventions to date have been heavy on plastic and light on planting. Given the wide range of professional advice available to the local authority including architecture, planning, urban design and landscaping it would be prudent 18 months into the pandemic to put in place multi-disciplinary teams with a strong input from experts in green infrastructure. Trees and plants are hugely beneficial to human health and happiness, and it would be beneficial to incorporate substantial amounts of tree planting into the proposals.The drawings indicate that a large bike park is proposed for the South side of mary street close to the junction with Capel Street. It would be more appropriate to split the cycle parking into several locations so that cyclists can travel by bike closer to their final destination. Some of these could be located on Capel Street itself. In addition I request that you consider providing a cycle lane on the left hand side of the street.Despite these concerns, I look forward to the implementation of these welcome changes.Sincerely,Ciarán CuffeCiarán CUFFE, MEP for DublinYou can view the submission here.