Congestion charges in Dublin may be preferable to traffic restrictions

The best, most liveable cities are characterised by good public transport. This means a network that is frequent, reliable, relatively fast, safe and affordable.

While the frequency of public transport in Dublin is improving, it scores poorly against cities like Paris or London in terms of speed and easy inter-connectivity.

While a journey of 10 kilometres across Paris, in any direction, might take at most 45 minutes, a similar length journey across Dublin could take 1¼ hours. So while Dublin is a fraction of Paris’s size, it is slower to cross by public transport.

It can be quicker to cross Dublin by bike than taking the bus. The welcome improvements in cycling infrastructure are producing an increase in cycling traffic – though much of that may be diverted from other planet-friendly modes like walking or the bus, rather than from cars.

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Most commuters won’t switch to bikes, so decent public transport will be the key factor in creating a more liveable city.

Two weeks ago, city manager Owen Keegan set out his vision to manage Dublin city traffic. This involves restricting road space for cars in the city centre, by reallocating it to cyclists. Effectively this means that road space will be rationed by misery – increasing congestion of car traffic to make it steadily less attractive to drive into or through the city.

A traffic restriction strategy of 50 years ago hastened my own early nuptials. When I used leave my girlfriend’s home to Glasnevin by car from Donnybrook, there were 13 sets of traffic lights on the route.

When the city council announced another five sets of lights, we decided it was high time to get married and move in together. Today the obstacle course for motorists between our old homes totals 35 sets of traffic lights.

A policy of squeezing motorists out of the city by congestion is unpopular among drivers but also unattractive for other people using city streets. Cars stuck in traffic jams waste energy and add to air pollution, making city streets unpleasant and unhealthy for pedestrians and cyclists.

Owen Keegan, however, has acknowledged that rather than reducing road space for cars, congestion charging could offer a better solution. That would mean charging cars for using city streets, with the charge varying by the time of day.

There could be a heavy toll for driving at rush hour, with the charge set high enough to ensure only a manageable level of traffic in the day time, resulting in quicker and more reliable bus transport on less cluttered roads. Late at night, with fewer cars on the road, it could be free to drive.

Congestion charging

Singapore led on congestion charging, then London followed from 2003. It now costs almost €20 to drive a car between 7am and 6pm in the extensive restricted zone in London. The result has been a success, with buses, and those cars that choose to pay the charge, experiencing speedier travel times than when congestion was rife.

Technology today could enable much more sophisticated road use pricing, where the price could vary depending on the time of day or the number of cars already within the charging zone. But it would take investment and public support to install that technology.

A major advantage of congestion charging is that it reduces traffic levels, speeds up bus journeys, and makes a city more liveable. People who need their cars for a particular journey can do so – provided they pay the going price – and would find emptier streets.

Other ways of speeding up public transport travel times, like linked sets of traffic lights, and bus priority, could complement congestion charging and enhance the impact.

With congestion charging, the allocation of scarce street space in the city takes on a different dimension. Buses carrying up to 80 people at a time need enough space to manoeuvre successfully.

Segregated cycle corridors are important for safety – safety fears are cited time and again as to why people don’t switch to the bike. Marked cycle routes using side roads rather than main arteries have been adopted in London, making for more pleasant journeys.

More earmarked space for pedestrians, with wider footpaths, dedicated pedestrian routes, and more pedestrianised zones would also greatly enhance the livability of the city.

We widened footpaths during lockdown to provide for outdoor dining, and could bring that urgency to this task. Motorists and cyclists have well-organised lobbies, a living city also needs to promote pedestrian rights.