‘The idea is good, the execution is terrible’ - pedestrianised Parliament Street plan doesn’t go far enough, say business owners

Paul Keville has been advocating for Parliament Street in Dublin’s city centre to become traffic free for years. The owner of Stoned, a pizza place and hemp store, thinks this trial is at least a start.

On Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings between 6.30pm and 11pm until the end of August, cars are banned from Parliament Street between Essex Quay and Dame Street. Although temporary, councillors plan to consider a more permanent measure in September.

“The idea is good. The execution is terrible,” said Keville. “Dublin City Council need to review it and add Sunday and then review it again and add the whole weekend. They need to start their statutory review now as that could take weeks or months, instead of starting it in September, losing the winter and getting it approved in January. That’s no good for anyone; the people of Dublin or the businesses.”

[ Capel Street becomes Dublin’s longest traffic-free street ]

For several months in 2021 during Covid-19, both Parliament and Capel Street were closed to traffic on weekends. In May 2022, Capel Street became a permanent pedestrian zone while Parliament Street remained open to traffic.

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Keville thinks both streets should have been deemed pedestrian zones at the same time. Since Capel Street has become car-free, Keville points to the dramatic drop in traffic on Parliament Street, something he calls “pedestrianisation by default.”

At nearby Porterhouse Temple Bar, assistant manager Gareth Banks is happy about Parliament Street’s temporary pedestrian and cycle-only status. His only gripe is trying to get people and tables off the street by 11pm, when traffic is once again permitted on the street.

Many business owners wonder why the street reopens to traffic so early. Besides a lack of cars needing to access the street, most bars don’t close until an hour or two later, necessitating a scramble to hurry along customers at outdoor tables.

Mary Slator is a tattoo artist at Reinkarnated on Parliament Street. “We feel that the time change from last year (at 11.30pm) is shooting the local businesses a little bit in the foot.”

She points across the way to Street 66, a bar that attracts a large late-night crowd. “Most weekends they have a queue halfway up the road and this street benefits from the road closure because otherwise people are spilling on to the roads. As it gets later, they get more intoxicated,” said Slator.

[ Dublin’s South William Street to be fully pedestrianised ]

Due to the Parliament Street closure, the 69 bus will travel its normal route to Ormond Quay, divert via Bachelors Walk, O’Connell Bridge and Townsend Street before returning to its normal route. The 79/a will travel its normal route to Ormond Quay, divert via Eden Quay, Rosie Hackett Bridge, Burgh Quay, and terminate at Aston Quay.

As gardaí erected barriers and diverted traffic away from Parliament Street earlier on Friday evening, many onlookers seemed unaware that the street was soon to become a pedestrian zone.

Patrick Thompson of Shankill, having some drinks with friends outside at The Beer Temple, said he believed that it improved the area.

“I thought Parliament Street was pedestrianised all the time,” said Thompson. “It’s good. Dublin can use a bit more pedestrianised streets.”

Most agreed that on weekends, at least, Parliament Street should be car free. David Vargas of Dublin was enjoying drinks with friends and thinks it brings life to the streets.

Vargas’ friend David Wood concurs. “People like to sit outside and its good for the economy. There’s less pollution and it leads to cleaner air.”

Friends gathered at outdoor tables, enjoying the warm summer evening. A tourist stopped in the middle of the street to snap a few photos of Dublin city Hall without worrying about oncoming traffic.

Diego Acosta and Max Celentanto, from Uruguay, have been in Dublin for the past eight months studying English and working. “I think it’s a great idea when pedestrians can use the streets and not have to worry about cars,” said Acosta. “In Uruguay, there’s several car-free places and people enjoy them.”

As the evening progressed, more people, seeing the car-free street, began venturing on to Parliament Street.

Paul Keville hopes the Dublin City Council review will see the advantages of making Parliament Street a pedestrian zone.

“This isn’t a trial. They did the trial last year and it was successful,” he said. “Either way, we’ll just keep pushing.”