Council votes against continuous cycle path in Curraheen
The new plan, which cycling activists say is dangerous, will see a gap in the planned segregated cycle path in Bishopstown to provide for parking and access to businesses.
Cycle lane plans for Curraheen Road in Bishopstown will now include a controversial 120 metre gap in a segregated cycle lane to provide access to businesses including a pharmacy, a physiotherapist and a GP clinic, following a vote by Cork City Councillors.
The layout would force cyclists to merge with traffic on a busy stretch of road, cycling activists have argued.
19 Councillors voted for the gap in the cycle lane, while eight councillors voted for a continuous cycle lane.
The Curraheen Road Pedestrian and Cycle Safety Improvement Scheme is meant to provide a safe cycling route from Marymount Hospice to Cork University Hospital, as well as facilitating more segregated cycle links between MTU and local schools. Public consultation on the scheme was invited late in 2021.
98 submissions were received by the council in relation to the new cycle path, the majority from the local area, but with others from as far away as Mitchelstown, Dublin, London and Sweden.
Speaking at their monthly council meeting tonight, several Cork City Councillors expressed concerns that elderly pedestrians in the area would experience difficulties navigating the new layout, especially in accessing local health services.
Cllr Eolan Ryng said increased plans for active travel had to be balanced against the needs of residents in different areas and that public consultation had highlighted perceived problems with the idea of a continuous cycle lane.
“That’s why public consultation is important,” Cllr Ryng said. “There are unique requirements in that area, including the preschool. 25% of the people living in the area are over 65, and for them the anxiety is access to the health services.”
“Back to the drawing board” overturned
A “back to the drawing board” motion to refer the plans back for further consultation at a local area committee, put forward by Cllr Colette Finn, was backed by 11 councillors, with 16 voting against such a move.
“I admire Cllr Colette Finn’s passion for cycle lanes, but there’s an element of personal responsibility when it comes to road safety,” Cllr Paudie Dineen said during his comments at the council debate on the issue.
“When it comes to cycle lanes in general, we have to ask ourselves if Cork city is a city that’s dynamically built for cycling? If you live on the Northside, are you really going to be cycling home?” he asked the floor, with several councillors responding vocally that they cycle home regularly.
The final vote for a gap in the cycle path went in favour of the plan recommended by the Infrastructure Development Directorate following public consultation.
Paude Dineen is passionate about parking, strangely the double yellow lines disappear outside his home and premises on the corner of Quaker Road and Evergreen Street. It’s an awkward corner and his concerns for road safety are not his priority there.