Galway Cycling Campaign News

The Galway Cycling Campaign have described the recent Bord Pleanala decision on the Seamus Quirke Road as a "partial victory". The Cyclists have welcomed the board's rejection of the proposed roundabouts at the Circular Road/Rahoon Rd (Gleann Dara) and Old Seamus Quirke Rd. (Aldi) junctions which has been hailed as a victory for the pedestrians, cyclists and public transport users of the city. However, disappointment is also felt that the Board did not order the removal of the roundabouts at Fort Lorenzo and Corrib park. At the oral hearing it had been argued that if the scheme went ahead, the opportunity should be used to provide pedestrian and cyclist access to the city from the Newcastle and Knocknacarra districts by removing these roundabouts.

The Cycling Campaign have also expressed disappointment that the opportunity to provide a transport corridor using combined bus/cycle lanes on the route has also been neglected in the board's decision. The use of combined bus and cycle lanes is widely viewed as the ideal way to provide for increased cyclist and public transport access. The cyclists are also concerned that the proposed right-turn bans at the staggered T-junction at the Glen Oaks hotel will go ahead. This will mean that cyclists living in Friars Hill, Rockfield, Ros Geal and Cruachan will no longer be able to turn into Rahoon road on their way home from work or college. Instead they will be required go up the hill to Fort Lorenzo, go around the roundabout come back down the hill and turn left into Rahoon Rd. The inclusion of these restrictions also raises concerns that some cyclists will feel encouraged to use footpaths or cycle paths to cycle against the normal flow of traffic. Internationally, such "wrongway" cycling on footpaths/cycle tracks is associated with huge increases in collisions between cars and bicycles. In their submission to An Bord Pleanala, the Cycling Campaign had argued that the two junctions at the Glenn Oaks Hotel should be realigned into one signalised intersection with pedestrian phases, this proposal could also have incorporated a new entrance to Gleann Dara. The board have rejected this and have stipulated instead that the traffic signals at Glean Dara/Circular Rd. should have provision for U-turns in the signal phasing.

The board's stipulation that "on-road cycle lanes" be used at the junctions on the route has been greeted with mixed emotions among the cycle campaigners. The use of such devices at junctions is associated with increased risk of collisions between cars and bicycles. However, the cyclists have also pointed out that this aspect of the decision also represents a defeat for Galway City Council. In the original scheme, cyclists were to be expected to use footpath type structures and it was the stated expectation of the city council that cyclists would "dismount and walk" at every junction on the finished route. The Cycle Campaign concluded their statement with an appeal to the public; "According to the 1996 census 60% of Galway's population lived within a 15-20 minute cycle of their place of work or education. We would ask the public to take special note that this "dismount and walk at every junction" attitude strongly suggests that Galway City Council is actually trying to use public money to suppress and discourage cycling as a form of transport in Galway City."

2/12/02 Cork, Galway Cycle Campaigns call for state embargo on cycle track funds.

In a joint prebudget submission the Cork and Galway Cycle Campaigns called on the minister for Finance Mr. Charlie McCreevy to block the use of state funds for "cycle tracks" and other "cycle facilities". The GCC and CCC have pointed out that the use of roadside "cycle tracks" and "cycle lanes" is inherently alien to Irish Traffic Law and is alien to Ireland's native cycling culture. The use of such devices in other countries is associated with significant increases in the rate and severity of car/bicycle collisions with reports of up to 12 fold (x12) increases in the rate of collisions between cars and bicycles. It is now over 25 years since an Irish report found that the use of roadside cycle tracks was inherently self defeating because of "the very real risk of collisions in the merging phase" at intersections. At a European conference in 1991 the use of roadside cycleways was described as being equivalent to "Russian roulette".

The cycle campaigners are concerned that the use of dangerous cycle track/cycle lane designs has served to compound the problems which Irish cyclists were already facing as a result of long criticised road designs. This has resulted in the ludicrous situation in which, in many cases, it is the cycle facilities themselves, which are the biggest obstacles to that Irish cyclists face on their journey to work or college. The issue of the state being liable for the injuries being caused by the use of inappropriate devices was also raised. The cyclists are concerned that significant state funds are being expended for no public benefit and the expense of public safety. It is also felt that the use of cycle tracks is actually acting to increase traffic congestion by driving cyclists off the roads and into their cars. The GCC and CCC have called on the Minister for Finance to take urgent action and block the use of state funds for "cycle tracks" and "cycle lanes".

Additional Note

The use of cycle tracks has been prominent in the Dublin area where 320km of such cycle track devices have been built, so far the only established effect on cyclist numbers has been a decrease of 36% in the number of cyclists crossing the inner canal cordon. This suggests that the Dublin Transportation Office and Dublin Local Authorities have achieved a 1% drop in cycling levels for every 10km of cycle facilities constructed. An additional feature has been an increase in the proportion of cyclists being killed in collisions with Goods Vehicles, an established side effect of cycle track construction.

4/11/02 GCC calls for adoption of standard European speed limits

This week the Galway Cycling Campaign (GCC) has called for Ireland to adopt the standard northern European hierarchy of urban speed limits. The GCC was responding to an announcement by Transport Minister Mr. Seamus Brennan TD, that the current speed limits are to be reviewed as part of the move to metric signage. Ireland is thought to be unique among Northern European countries in not having speed limits of 20mph, 10mph or lower.

The use of 20mph zones is common in other northern European countries particularly in the vicinity of schools or colleges and around residential/shopping areas. As an example, Graz in Austria, has imposed 20mph limits on three-quarters of that city's streets. In 1992, the UK Minister for Roads and Traffic estimated that 20mph zones could take in eight out of every 10 urban roads. In the Netherlands, the national road safety strategy has set a target for 20mph limits on up to 75% of the urban network. The Galway City Community Forum has adopted a motion calling for 20mph to be made the standard speed limit in Galway City.

Lower speed limits are also needed around large urban intersections on arterial roads. Research has shown that cyclists are safest when they follow the same paths and manoeuvres as other vehicles. For this to happen successfully, both motorised and bicycle traffic at major junctions and roundabouts needs to be moving at similar speeds.

The GCC is also calling for the introduction of "home zones" in Irish towns and cities. A home zone is a residential area in which pedestrians and cyclists have priority over motorised traffic. A speed limit of 10mph or lower is applied, and car users are automatically responsible for any injuries they cause. Used in the Netherlands since the 1960s, there are now over 6,500 home zone schemes in place. Denmark introduced the concept in 1978, followed by Germany and Austria in the early 1980s. This system of home zones and 20mph roads then acts to create an alternative road network which children can use for school trips without having to cope with high speed traffic on arterial roads. It is estimated that during to school term up to 20% of rush hour traffic in Irish towns is caused by the "school run". The adoption of the standard European speed limits would also save money by allowing the reuse of the old 30mph signs, which would otherwise be scrapped. 20mph is equivalent to 30kph and "tempo 30" is the term used for 20mph zones in Germany.

16/9/02 Safety warning issued over "cycle lane" markings on Western Distributor Road

The Galway Cycle Campaign has issued a safety warning to cyclist and motorists over new red cycle lane markings that have been marked on the edge of the Western Distributor road in Galway. The GCC point out that there are serious safety problems associated with the use of such devices in other countries. The UK Cycle Campaign Network (CCN) estimates that in urban areas "well-implemented" cycle lanes will typically increase risk by 10%. The Danish Roads Directorate also cites three studies as showing a 10% increase in bicycle accidents where cycle lanes have been established on urban roads. A recent project in the English city of Gloucester included the introduction of 12 miles of cycle lanes. The cycle lanes have been very controversial among local cyclists, many of whom felt they had made the roads more dangerous. Adult cyclist casualties rose by 2% - 9%, child cyclist casualties rose by 16%, while the overall level of cycle use fell over the period of the project. Even in the Netherlands it is now conceded that major junctions are safer if the connecting roads do not have cycle lanes.

The devices that have been marked in Galway have also been found to be of a substandard width, substantially below the recommended minimum of two metres. The GCC would like to advise cyclists to be aware that on cycle lanes of substandard width they will receive less clearance from passing motorists than on unmarked roads as motorists are encouraged to drive along the lane stripe rather than react to cyclists using the same road space. The GCC also point out that on the Western Distributor road this problem has been further compounded by the presence of prominent drainage grates which reduce the road space still further. The standard advice for an adult cyclist who encounters a cycle lane is to "try not to let its presence affect your behaviour". It is recommended that cyclists should position themselves as if the lane were not there, although more caution is required because of the complicating factor of the cycle lane. Where narrow cycle lanes are encountered, the recommended defensive action is to ride along the lane stripe.

The Galway Cycling campaign have already lodged a formal complaint with the Garda commissioner who has been asked to exercise his powers under the roads acts and order these devices removed on grounds of traffic hazard. The GCC point out that cyclists have a primary duty to ensure their own safety and that of their own property and that they are under no legal obligation to use these devices. The GCC would further like to emphasise that the standard safe cycling advice is that cyclists should get our of narrow cycle lanes well before all junctions including those with side-roads.

10/9/02 Oral hearing held into Eyre Square Scheme

In early September, An Bord Pleanala held a two-day hearing into Galway City Councils controversial plans for Eyre Square. Objectors included local hotels, bus operators, taxi operators, An Taisce, concerned community activists and the Galway Cycling Campaign. There is widespread public perception that although the scheme has been claimed as a "pedestrian scheme" that it is actually intended to increase the volume and speed of private motor traffic in the city centre and that this is being done at the direct expense of safety and convenience of pedestrians, cyclists and public transport users. The Galway Cycling Campaign concerns centered on the proposed removal of the zebra crossings and the closure of Rosemary Lane and the Western side of Eyre Square to cycle traffic. The Western side of the square shows the second highest levels of cycle traffic in the city in the morning rush hour.

At the hearing on Eyre Square the consultants were forced, in the face of overwhelming evidence, to withdraw the claims of safety they had made for pelican (traffic light) crossings over zebra crossings. The same consultants also conceded that Eyre Square currently has the character of a "traffic calmed area". One consultant then attempted to make a claim that there was a "warrant" for pelican crossing at one corner of the square. It was pointed out that these "warrants" are based on a system in which the object is to reduce delays for motor car users and impose delays on pedestrians instead. It was pointed out that the Galway Community Forum has adopted motions explicitly rejecting the use of such warrants in our city and has held a protest march/day of action to reject this system (story here). At the hearing it transpired that although the Eyre square proposals are claimed as the City Council's flagship "pedestrian scheme" no analysis of pedestrian movement in the square had been carried out. No surveys of the number of pedestrians crossing the roads or of the main pedestrian flows through the square had ever been undertaken until a small one-hour survey on the first day of the hearing itself. In contrast, detailed counts, analysis and computer modelling of the flow of motor traffic through both the square and adjacent streets had been carried out.

At the hearing, it was revealed that Burkes Buses, one of the public transport operators being forced out of the Square already brings 1,000 passengers per day into the city. At the same time it also transpired that Galway City Council has contrived to create a situation in which the provision of city centre car parking stock significantly exceeds demand. It is unheard of in modern transport planning for a local authority to seek to claim a desire to promote walking, cycling, or public transport, and at the same time provide car parking in excess of demand. Long time watchers of the Galway situtation will also be aware that there is a total absence of secure bicycle parking in the Eyre Square area.

July 2002 Cyclists told to get off and walk at oral hearing on Seamus Quirke Rd.

In July, An Bord Pleanala held a two-day hearing into Galway City Council's scheme for the Seamus Quirke road, which proposes two more roundabouts and footpath-style "cycle lanes" for this location, a road layout which is already causing a safety nightmare for cyclists at other locations in the city. At the hearing, the city council "consultant" Mr. Frank Harewood stuck to his position that cyclists using this route will have to dismount and become "pedestrians" at every single junction.

The Galway Cycling Campaign presented evidence rejecting the suggestion that the scheme will accommodate the needs of cyclists. The proposed scheme incorporates so-called "cycle lanes" of a design that that was described as "self defeating" in an official report over 25 years ago and results in a massive increases in the rate and severity of most common types of car/bicycle collision. Since its formation the Galway Cycling Campaign has been seeking the removal or modification of similar devices elsewhere in the city. These are then to be used in conjunction with roundabouts of design on which cyclists have an injury accident rate that is 14-16 times that of motorists and whose safety was first queried in an official report over 22 years ago. Evidence was also presented regarding the incompatibility of roundabouts with pedestrian access and with bus priority schemes.

At the hearing the use of slip roads on the route was raised by one of the participants, this is something that has occured elsewhere in the city and is in direct conflict with both available road design guidance and with adopted Galway Community Forum policy. When questioned on this point the city council's consultant declined to indicate the design guidance on which this practice is based in the city. During the city councils second presentation the assurance was given that cyclists would be under no legal obligation to use any cycle lane devices. It was also acknowldged that at other locations many cyclists are already ignoring such devices.

The Galway Cycling Campaign presented an alternative set of proposals which involved the elimination of the cycle paths and central reservation, this would then free up resources to allow all the junctions on this route to be upgraded to traffic signals. The GCC proposals also included the provision of shared bus/cycle lanes and changes to the road alignment designed to reduce/discourage excessive traffic speeds. The city development plan actually proposes bus lanes for this route but the city council has deleted these in favour of providing increased capacity for private motor traffic