Traffic plan needs green light

IF the imaginative transportation system envisaged in Cork’s Development Plan is not delivered the city will eventually grind to a standstill.

Even before the ambitious plan comes together, though, the Government will have to provide the funding for an extensive upgrading of the rail system.

According to CASP, the Cork Area Strategic Plan, the continuing rise in car ownership and projected population growth will have dramatic consequences if sustainable land use and transportation policies are not implemented. What that means, is if nothing is done now, the city will gradually but inevitably come to a halt. If you think driving to work is bad during the school term, which recommences shortly, it is like nothing in comparison to what the future holds if today’s problems are ignored.

Quite simply, the forecast is that without intervention, traffic will double in the city in 20 years’ time, peak-hour travel speeds will fall to five miles per hour on most roads in urban areas, and travel times to work will become up to five times longer than at present. Transport or, more accurately, access has to be provided and this entails planning and a lot of it.

Integration is key because while the draft plan is essentially Cork City Council’s, it will have to tie in extraneous bodies such as the County Council and CIE and, crucially, the co-operation of citizens.

The draft plan sets out Cork City Council’s policies for the development of the city to the year 2010. But it is not that straightforward. It is set within the framework of the CASP, which looks as far forward as 2020, but also involves the county.

There are also other local strategies and plans knitted together in the City Council’s scheme, but CASP is the most important. It covers an area of about 45 minutes’ journey time from the city in all directions, including the satellite towns of Midleton, Carrigtwohill, Carrigaline, Ballincollig and Blarney and the ring towns and hinterlands of Bandon, Macroom, Fermoy, Mallow, Youghal and Kinsale.

While the city is the centre of the scheme, the success of the development plan depends on many factors, one of the most vital being easy access, whether by road, rail, bus, car, walking or cycling, from the suburbs and beyond.

The city council intends to encourage people to use buses more often by providing priority “Green Routes”, which will improve the frequency, reliability and speed of services. Within two years it is intended to have these implemented on routes from Bishopstown; Carrigrohane Road; Farranree; Blackpool; Mayfield; Knocknaheeny; Gurranabraher; the Douglas routes; Kinsale road/airport, and Mahon, along the old Passage railway, although there is opposition to the latter. The option of a light rail system on some of the green routes was considered but it was decided demand would not support them. However, in a mid-term review of CASP, it could again be considered and there is also a suggestion it might be considered at the planning stage of routes such as those from Mahon and Ballincollig.

The appalling bus station in Parnell Place will be seriously upgraded to cater exclusively for regional services, and the city terminal will be relocated to on-street locations around the city.

Park and ride facilities are proposed on major radial routes into the city and at railway stations on commuter links, giving the option of changing from cars to public transport before entering the city.

A facility will be based at the Kinsale Road roundabout and the process has already begun to provide it on City Council-owned land at the South City Link road in conjunction with a private developer. This will provide for 900 car-parking spaces and will be serviced by park and ride buses. A study is underway to consider a similar facility near the Bandon Road roundabout which would serve Cork University Hospital, CIT and UCC.

A central objective of the CASP transport strategy is the provision of a commuter rail service linking Mallow and Midleton. This will involve the re-opening of the rail line to Carrigtwohill and Midleton, the introduction of new services from Mallow and Blarney and the upgrading of the Cobh rail service. Additional stations are envisaged at Kilbarry and to serve a new settlement area between Blarney and the city. New stations may also be required at Ballynoe on the Cobh line and to cater for park and ride close to Dunkettle.

At present, there are 7,650 car-parking spaces in the city centre of which 4,450 are off-street spaces in public car parks and 2.100 are on-street, and the remainder are private off-street. No new multi-storey parks will be allowed in the city centre but the opening hours of the existing ones will be extended to cater for night-time, weekend leisure and tourism uses.