New figures show city access choked

The number of vehicles using the M50 has risen by 11 per cent in just two years, according to the latest Dublin traffic survey by the Dublin Transport Authority (DTO).

In its Road User Monitoring Report (2006) the DTO also found that average daily traffic flows on other key national roads into the capital, the M4 and N7, increased significantly over the period 2003 to 2005, by 8.4 per cent and 10.7 per cent respectively.

According to the report, a copy of which has been seen by The Irish Times, the number of vehicles on each of these routes is growing by between 3 to 4 per cent a year. The number of vehicles crossing the M50 to access the city was also measured and this too revealed significant increases.

The report found that between 8.30am and 9am the number of vehicles trying to squeeze into the city over the M50 was more than 16 per cent higher in 2005 than in 2003.

During the peak morning rush between 6am and 10am in 2005 more than 126,000 vehicles crossed the M50 to get into the city. During the same period 68,693 vehicles travelled in the opposite direction.

The busiest junctions over the M50 during this peak period are those carrying traffic from the commuter towns using the N7/Naas Rd with 12,732 vehicles, and the N4 with 12,444 vehicles and the N81 with 11,566.

Clear seasonal variations also emerged in the study with January the quietest month for traffic on the M50, N7 and M4. September is the busiest month for traffic on the M50 (with traffic volumes up 5.5 per cent) while August is the busiest month for the radial routes approaching Dublin, the M4 and N7.

Buses remain a tiny minority of vehicles entering the city, making up just 2.3 per cent of all vehicles crossing the canals in 2004. Cars and vans accounted for 83.4 per cent with HGVs and motorcycles accounting for roughly 3 per cent each.

Average morning inbound travel times along the 11 quality bus corridors slowed by 2 per cent last year, while outgoing travel speeds increased by 8.7 per cent. The biggest difficulties were on the Clontarf QBC where average speeds fell from 15.9km/h to 9.7 km/h.

The number of bus passengers crossing the canal between 7am and 10am also fell slightly, dropping 4.2 per cent to 59,810 per day, compared with 2004.

Unsurprisingly, the car remains the dominant form of transport in the city for work or shopping. Up to 56 per cent of people in the greater Dublin area rely on their car to get to work, with pedestrians (16 per cent) the next most popular mode of transport. Almost 15 per cent of people use the bus to get to work while just 4 per cent cycle.

However, just 25 per cent of parents use the car to bring their children to school with 28 per cent walking and 29 per cent using the bus. The DTO also examined the facilities for pedestrians and found that waiting times at many pedestrian crossings in Dublin remain significantly longer than in other European cities, although it notes that improvements have been made.

People trying to cross the junction at High St and Nicholas St (near Christchurch) must wait 3.59 minutes to cross the road.

In all, eight of the 22 pedestrian crossings surveyed were found to have waiting times of around three minutes or higher.