Sir, – I am surprised and greatly disappointed about the attitude of Dublin business organisations to the restriction of traffic on the quays ("Business criticises Liffey quays ban", February 24th).
I question how the Irish Parking Association can say that the effect on residential areas would be “horrendous”.
I suggest that the said organisations sponsor some of the members to travel to say, Bordeaux, Murcia or Cartagena (in Spain), as I have recently done, to assess and experience the enormous pleasure it is for visitors and shoppers thronging the streets to have large tracts of the central city almost totally traffic-free. Many European cities considered this to be the right approach, so why does Dublin still seem so attached to the old-fashioned and surely outmoded rights of the private car? Surely we can all see that the days of parking in town are long gone.
Anyone who has had to walk from Stephen’s Green to Parnell Street will attest how unpleasant and slow it can be because of cross-city traffic. Make the streets traffic-free and far more people will come in to enjoy the city. I seem to remember similar arguments being made against the Luas and bus lanes that seem ridiculous now.
:fill(white):background_color(white)/static.themebuilder.aws.arc.pub/irishtimes/1647534191476.png)
I say good for Dublin City Council and shame on the outdated and shortsighted thinking by those who should have the imagination at least to know better. – Yours, etc,
ELLEN MacCAFFERTY,
Ranelagh,
Dublin 6.