6 Traffic and Transportation

Transcription

1 6 Traffic and Transportation 6.1 Introduction This chapter presents the Traffic and Transportation Assessment for the construction and operation of the Proposed Project. The Proposed Project is described in detail in Chapter 4 and includes the construction of a new pedestrian plaza at College Green to enhance the street environment in this very central location in Dublin City. 6.2 Methodology This chapter presents the findings of the assessment of the impact of the Proposed Project on the transportation networks both at a local and strategic level. In order to understand the traffic impacts of the Proposed Project, the National Transport Authority have undertaken a detailed transport modelling exercise using the NTA s Regional Modelling System East Regional Model (ERM). Assessment Scenarios In preparing the updated assessment, as requested by An Bord Pleanála, consideration has been given to three assessment scenarios, being; A do-nothing scenario; A do-minimum scenario and A do-something scenario. Each of these scenarios are described in the following sections. The do-nothing scenario For the purposes of assessment, the do-nothing scenario locally to the College Green area is defined as the traffic management measures which would be in place as envisaged under the Railway Order for Luas Cross City (Ref: 29N.NA0004), and assuming that Luas Cross City is operational. For clarity, the junction layout currently under construction between College Green, College Street and Grafton Street Upper, as part of the Luas Cross City works is presented in Figures 6.1a and 6.1b. Chp 6-3

2 Figure 6.1a: Luas Cross-City layout across College Green (southern section) Figure 6.1b: Luas Cross-City layout across College Green (northern section) This layout involves some design development and localised changes post the Railway Order, primarily comprising the reconfiguration of one of the two lanes eastbound from College Green onto College Street being converted to cycle track provision. Chp 6-4

3 Under the do-nothing scenario, a number of relevant wider area road/traffic management and public transport schemes are considered, including the North and South Quays Traffic Management Measures which came into effect on the 20 August These included: One bus lane and one traffic lane on Burgh Quay; One bus lane and one traffic lane along Aston Quay, Wellington Quay and Essex Quay. No left turn from Wellington Quay at Grattan Bridge; and Right-turn ban for general traffic from Bachelors Walk on the North Quays onto O Connell Bridge Southbound. A non-exhaustive list of other relevant schemes and traffic management changes is presented below: Camden Street, Wexford Street and Aungier Street Area Traffic Management; St Stephen's Green Area Traffic Management; Lincoln Place, Merrion Street and Westland Row Area Traffic Management; Public transport (bus and taxi) only from O Connell Street to Rosie Hackett Bridge; Kildare Street converted to bus-only with the exception of local access; Clanbrassil Street / Patrick Street and Bride Street QBC; Thomas Street / James's Street Quality Bus Corridor (QBC); and Custom House Quay Contra Flow Bus Lane. In addition, the following local traffic management arrangements would pertain to College Green and local environs: General traffic movement restricted to local access and servicing of businesses on College Green from Dame Street only via enforcement of the College Green Bus Gate arrangement; Restrictions on general vehicular movement, with the College Green Bus Gate restrictions implemented on a 24-hour basis when Luas becomes operational; West to east bus and taxi movement through, and from College Green onto College Street and onwards to Westmoreland Street; East to west bus and taxi movement from College Street to College Green; A signalised junction between College Green and College Street, incorporating Luas running to / from Grafton Street Upper and pedestrian crossings on both College Green and Grafton Street Upper; Shared Luas, Bus and Taxi southbound on Grafton Street Lower; and Chp 6-5

4 No right turn to Nassau Street from Dawson Street. Two-way traffic along Dawson Street between St. Stephens Green and Duke Street, public transport only north of Duke Street. In order to assess impact on current traffic flows, the 2018 ERM assessment year has been used, with the do-nothing road and street network coded in the model. The resulting predicted traffic flow data has been extracted for comparative assessment purposes. The do-minimum scenario The do-minimum scenario for the purposes of assessment is defined as the donothing scenario plus any additional measures which are likely to be introduced in parallel by Dublin City Council in the short term, and in the absence of the, in order to improve overall transport network management in the vicinity of College Green. The additional measures are therefore included in the do-minimum scenario therefore comprise the following; Pedestrianisation of Suffolk Street as an extension of the Grafton Street Pedestrian zone (proposed as part of the Dublin City Centre Transport Study); and Changes to traffic management arrangements on Grafton Street Lower to allow for two-way traffic for Luas, buses and taxis (proposed as part of the Dublin City Centre Transport Study). Previously the Luas Cross City Railway Order assumed segregated Luas running northbound on Grafton Street Lower. This change is primarily intended to facilitate improved bus service routing and flexibility; and New cycle track along northern side of College Green, between Foster Place and Westmoreland Street. The do-something scenario This scenario adds the proposed, as described in detail in Chapter 4, to the do-minimum scenario. 6.3 Existing Receiving Environment Local Street Network There are a number of streets and junctions that will be directly or indirectly impacted by the development of the Proposed Project. These streets are presented in Figure 6.2. Some of the core streets which be impacted by the Proposed Project are described in the following section. Chp 6-6

5 Figure Local Street Network College Green Currently, College Green is a public transport only area between the hours of 07:00-19:00 Monday to Friday. A large traffic island provides Sheffield stands for 26 bicycles, a taxi rank and is used as an informal area for parking motorcycles. There are currently two pedestrian crossings at College Green facilitating pedestrian movements from Grafton Street to College Street. The pedestrian crossings are separated by the existing traffic island. There are an additional 24 cycle parking spaces provided to the south of College Green near the junction with Grafton Street. There is a very significant volume of pedestrians crossing College Green on a daily basis, and this corridor could be considered one of the primary walking routes in Dublin City Centre. College Green connects the pedestrianised shopping street of Grafton Street with O Connell Street, in addition Trinity College has one of its primary pedestrian entrances located at College Green. Dame Street Dame Street extends from Parliament Street in the west to College Green in the east. Westbound, two general traffic lanes are provided from College Green to the junction with South Great George s Street. Eastbound, a bus lane and a single traffic lane are provided along the same length. Pedestrian footpaths are provided on either side of the street. Signalised pedestrian crossings are provided at the junctions with South Great George s Street, Trinity Street and Church Lane. There are no dedicated cycling lanes present along this section of Dame Street. A total of 18 bicycle spaces are provided along Dame Street (14 on the northern side and 4 on the southern side). Chp 6-7

6 As with College Green, there are very high pedestrian flows along Dame Street along with a high throughput of cyclists as Dame Street acts as an important east west route through the south city centre. In terms of traffic flow, the majority of traffic on Dame Street is either buses or taxis due to the upstream restrictions at College Green. Lower Grafton Street and Nassau Street Nassau Street (between Dawson Street and Grafton Street) was converted to oneway in early 2015 to accommodate the Luas Cross City construction works and would be returned to two-way following completion of the works. Pedestrian footpaths are maintained throughout the ongoing works of Luas Cross City. Due to the closure of Suffolk Street to through traffic, pedestrians have free movement through the Suffolk Street / Grafton Street junction. Signalised pedestrian crossings are present at the Grafton Street / College Green junction and outside the study area at the junction with Nassau Street and Dawson Street. There are no dedicated cycle facilities provided on these streets. As noted earlier, there is a significant volume of pedestrians using the western side of Lower Grafton Street to cross College Green. Westmoreland Street and College Street Westmoreland Street and College Street merge at College Green with Westmoreland Street facilitating northbound traffic and College Street facilitating southbound traffic. Westmoreland Street consists of a three-lane street while College Street is a twolane street following the construction of the Luas tracks. There is no specific provision for cyclists on-street or off-street. Pedestrians are catered for with footpaths and signalised staggered pedestrian crossings on Westmoreland Street and College Street. Foster Place Foster Place provides access to Bank of Ireland, as well as other offices and cafes. The uses on Foster Place includes on-street car parking and a subsidiary rank for taxis feeding the taxi rank in the central median on College Green. There are 8 bicycle spaces provided using Sheffield stands on the western side and pedestrians are catered for with footpaths along the perimeter. South Great George s Street South Great George s Street connects Dame Street to Aungier Street as well as Cuffe Street to the south. This street comprises of a single lane in each direction with a central bus-only lane travelling northbound onto Dame Street. Cyclists are catered for with an on-street advisory cycle lane in the southbound direction only. There are pedestrian footpaths on both sides of the street with a signalised pedestrian crossing on South Great George s Street at the junction with Exchequer Street. Chp 6-8

7 There is a signalised pedestrian crossing on all arms of the junction with Dame Street. Public bicycle parking is also provided at the corner of South Great George s Street and Dame Lane with spaces for 20 bicycles and also along both sides of South Great Georges Street. Trinity Street Trinity Street is one-way southbound between Dame Street and St. Andrew s Street. Access is provided to Dame Lane off Trinity Street approximately 25m from its junction with Dame Street. Footpaths are provided on each side of the street. Provision is made for approximately 20 bicycle spaces on the eastern side of Trinity Street. St. Andrew s Street St. Andrew s Street is one-way eastbound from Trinity Street to Church Lane. Cyclists are catered for with a dedicated contra-flow cycle lane. A loading bay is provided outside the post office on the northern side of the street. Six bicycle spaces are provided beside the loading bay. The paved area outside the tourist office is used as an informal area for parking motorcycles. Footpaths are provided on each side of the street. Church Lane Church Lane is one-way northbound from St. Andrew s Street to College Green. Right and left turning lanes are provided at this junction. There are no dedicated cycling facilities along Church Lane. Footpaths are provided on each side of the street. Suffolk Street The existing layout of Suffolk Street provides a single traffic lane in each direction with footpaths on either side of the street. Suffolk Street was closed to through traffic in early 2015 to facilitate the Luas Cross City works. It is envisaged that this layout will remain following the completion of the Luas Cross City works. Prior to this, Suffolk Street was one-way westbound catering primarily for buses and taxis. A total of 8 bicycle parking spaces are provided on Suffolk Street Existing Public Transport The following section describes the existing public transport operating in the vicinity of the Proposed Project Buses A number of bus routes currently run through the Proposed Project area. These are presented in Table 6.1. Chp 6-9

8 Table Existing Buses in the Study Area Bus Route To / From Dublin Bus 7b Mountjoy Sq. to/from Shankill 9 Limekiln Avenue to/from Charlestown 13 Grange Castle to/from Harristown 14 Beaumont (Ardlea Rd.) to/from Dundrum Luas Station 15 Clongriffin to/from Ballycullen Rd. 16 Ballinteer (Kingston) to/from Dublin Airport 25a Merrion Sq. to/from Lucan (Esker Church) 27 Jobstown to/from Clare Hall 37 Baggot St. / Wilton Terrace to/from Blanchardstown Centre 38a Burlington Rd. from/from Damastown 39a UCD Belfield to/from Ongar 40 Liffey Valley Shopping Centre to/from Charlestown Shopping Centre 41x UCD Belfield to/from Knocksedan 44 DCU to/from Enniskerry 46x Phoenix Park to/from Dún Laoghaire 49 Tallaght (The Square) to/from Pearse Street 54a Ellensborough / Kiltipper Way to/from Pearse Street 56a Tallaght (The Square) / Ringsend Road 61 Eden Quay to/from Whitechurch 65 Blessington / Ballymore to/from Poolbeg 65b Citywest to/from Poolbeg 66a/x Merrion Sq. to/from Leixlip (Captain's Hill) 67x Merrion Sq. to/from Maynooth 68/a Newcastle / Greenogue Business Park to/from Fleet Street 69/x Fleet St. to/from Rathcoole 70 Burlington Rd. to/from Dunboyne 77a/x Citywest to/from Ringsend Road 79/a Aston Quay to/from Spiddal Park / Park West (79a) 83/a Kimmage to/from Harristown 84x Hawkins St. to/from Newcastle / Kilcoole 116 Parnell Sq. to/from Whitechurch 122 Drimnagh Road to/from Ashington 123 Walkinstown (Kilnamanagh Rd.) to/from Marino 140 Palmerston Park to/from Finglas (Ikea) 142 Portmarnock to/from UCD Belfield 145 Heuston Rail Station to/from Ballywaltrim 150 Rossmore to/from Fleet Street 151 Foxborough (Balgaddy Road) to/from Docklands 747 Heuston Rail Station to/from Dublin Airport Bus Éireann 109 Dublin Dunshaughlin Navan Kells Virginia Cavan Town 111 Athboy Trim Batterstown Dublin 120 Tullamore Edenderry Prosperous Clane Dublin 126 Dublin Kill Naas Newbridge - Kildare 130 Athy Kilcullen Dublin Chp 6-10

9 Bus Route To / From 132 Bunclody Kidavin Ballon Tullow Baltinglass - Dublin 133 Dublin Airport City Centre Ashford Wicklow Aircoach 700 Dublin Airport Dublin City Centre 704x Cork Dublin City Dublin Airport McConnon s Buses 180 Monaghan to/from Dublin Sillan Tours 179 Cavan - Dublin JJ Kavanagh 717 Clonmel Kilkenny Dublin City Dublin Airport John Kearns 845 Portumna - Dublin A number of the bus services noted above have been temporarily diverted to alternative routes to facilitate the construction of Luas Cross City along Westmoreland Street, College Green, Nassau Street and Dawson Street. Following the completion of the Luas Cross City works, it is intended that these services would return to their previous routes, with the exception of those, which run along Suffolk Street. These bus services will be rerouted to Grafton Street Lower through College Green along the Luas tracks currently under construction. It is important to note that the city s bus services and routes are subject to change, amendment and alteration on an on-going basis to improve the services with changing demographics and public transport use both within the city centre and in the wider hinterland of Greater Dublin. However, as part of this assessment the baseline conditions with respect to the routing of bus services through the study area has been assumed as that presented above. The general routes which buses take through the study area are summarised in Figure 6.3. Chp 6-11

10 Figure 6.3 General Routes of Existing Buses through College Green Taxi There is an existing taxi rank which is located on College Green adjacent to the traffic island supporting the Thomas Davis statue and Memorial Fountain. This taxi stand is approximately 24 metres long accommodating 5 taxis. A second taxi rank is provided on Foster Place which accommodates approximately 9 permanent taxi bays and a further 11 night time bays. Taxis park in this area while awaiting spaces at the College Green rank to become available. Dublin Bikes There are two Dublin bike stations in close proximity to the study area on Exchequer Street and on Fownes Street Upper by the Central Bank. 6.4 Future Receiving Environment The future receiving environment outlines any committed projects which will be completed by 2018 and 2035 which represent the opening year and design horizon years for this assessment. The projects presented in the following sections represent the assumptions made for the purposes of the traffic modelling with regard to the delivery of infrastructure in 2018 and These all form part of the do-minimum assessment scenario. Chp 6-12

11 6.4.1 Public Transport Projects Scheduled to be completed in 2018 A number of public transport changes are scheduled to be completed by 2018 including Luas Cross City and increased DART frequencies. The planned changes and assumptions made in this assessment are detailed in the following sections. Luas Cross City The Luas Cross City is an extension of the existing Luas Green Line beginning at the current Green Line Terminus at St. Stephen s Green, connecting with the Luas Red Line at O Connell s Street / Abbey Street and continuing northbound to the DIT Grangegorman Campus, Phibsborough and terminating at the Broombridge Rail Station. This scheme passes immediately adjacent to the Proposed Project. Luas Cross City is currently under construction and is scheduled to be open at the end of DART Frequency Increase The DART frequency increase will provide for increased rail throughput, in particular an increase of up to 17 trains per hour (tph) running across the Loop Line Bridge across the Liffey Public Transport Projects Scheduled to be Completed in 2035 A large number of public transport proposals are included in the Transport Strategy for the Greater Dublin Area For the purposes of this assessment, it has been assumed that all proposals made in that document have been delivered by The main proposals contained in the Transport Strategy for the Greater Dublin Area are summarised below: GDA Cycle Network Plan; Core Bus Network, including BusConnects; Swords/Airport-City Centre, Blanchardstown-UCD and Clongriffin-Tallaght Swiftway BRT lines; DART Expansion Programme; New Metro North from Fingal / North Dublin Transport Study; Dublin Corridor Study proposals; Dublin City Centre Transport Study; and Integration and ITS Measures. Chp 6-13

12 6.4.2 Road Network Projects Road Network Projects Scheduled to be Completed by 2018 A number of changes to the road network that could affect the traffic flow in the vicinity of the site are assumed to be in place by 2018 prior to the opening of College Green Plaza. A non-exhaustive list of relevant schemes and traffic management changes is presented below: Camden Street, Wexford Street and Aungier Street Area Traffic Management; St Stephen's Green Area Traffic Management; Lincoln Place, Merrion Street and Westland Row Area Traffic Management; Public transport (bus and taxi) only from O Connell Street to Rosie Hackett Bridge; Kildare Street converted to bus-only with the exception of local access; Clanbrassil Street / Patrick Street and Bride Street QBC; Thomas Street / James's Street Quality Bus Corridor (QBC); and Custom House Quay Contra Flow Bus Lane. In addition, the following local traffic management arrangements would pertain to College Green and local environs: General traffic movement restricted to local access and servicing of businesses on College Green from Dame Street only via enforcement of the College Green Bus Gate arrangement; Restrictions on general vehicular movement, with the College Green Bus Gate restrictions implemented on a 24 hour basis; West to east bus and taxi movement through, and from College Green onto College Street and onwards to Westmoreland Street; East to west bus and taxi movement from College Street to College Green; A signalised junction between College Green and College Street, incorporating Luas running to / from Grafton Street Upper and pedestrian crossings on both College Green and Grafton Street Upper; Shared Luas, Bus and Taxi southbound on Grafton Street Lower; and No right turn to Nassau Street from Dawson Street. Two-way traffic along Dawson Street between St. Stephens Green and Duke Street, public transport only north of Duke Street. Chp 6-14

13 The North and South Quays Traffic Management Measures which came into effect on the 20 August 2017 are particular relevant to the assessment of the Proposed Project Road Network Projects Scheduled to be Completed by 2035 In addition to the street network changes to be implemented in the short term, there are a number of long-term proposals that are envisaged to be completed by The following lists some of the relevant road network proposals that will become operational between 2018 and 2035: Road / traffic management infrastructure upgrades; M50 and radial national road demand management proposals; Integration and ITS Measures; Dublin Corridor Study proposals; and Dublin City Centre Transport Study Proposals. 6.5 Details of the Proposed Project The Proposed Project is described in detail in Chapter 4. The following key components of the Proposed Project relevant to this chapter are noted below: It is proposed to provide a civic plaza space at College Green which would be reserved for pedestrians and cyclists, preventing all traffic travelling from Dame Street through College Green to Westmoreland Street, and travelling in the opposite direction, from D Olier Street to Dame Street. Buses currently using Dame Street to cross the city will be diverted onto other routes, while buses which continue to use Dame Street will turn around at College Green, in a new turning circle at the junction of Foster Place and Church Lane. Parliament Street will be restricted to public transport only from 7am to 7pm Monday to Friday. However, access to loading vehicles will be permitted on the southern section of Parliament Street availing of an all-day deliveries-only right-turn from Essex Gate The proposals include a two-way cycle track on the eastern and southern sides of the plaza. 32 bicycle parking spaces are proposed within the plaza. The existing permanent taxi rank on College Green will be relocated to Dame Street with capacity increased from 5 taxis to 8. The existing night time rank with capacity for 3 taxis on the northern side of Dame Street will be converted to a permanent taxi rank. Additional night time capacity equating to 21 spaces will also be provided through the use of proposed loading bays on Trinity Street, Church Lane and Dame Street. Chp 6-15

14 The Proposed Project is presented in Figure 4.1 in Chapter Predicted Impacts The Proposed Project will have an impact during both the construction and operational phases, both of which are considered in the following sections. The environmental impact of the development on individual road links as a result of the changes to traffic routings are considered further in the Chapter 7 Air Quality and Climate Factors and Chapter 8 Noise and Vibration which are the direct environmental impacts as a result of traffic increases or decreases Construction Stage Construction Access It is envisaged that access to the site during the construction phase will be from Dame Street. Dublin City Council operate a Heavy Goods Vehicle restriction within Dublin City Centre where 5 axle Heavy Goods Vehicles are banned within the city centre from 07:00-19:00 every day. Any Heavy Goods Vehicle wishing to access the restricted zone has to apply for a permit and is also obliged to use the designated Heavy Goods Vehicle routes within the restricted zone as illustrated in Figure 6.4. College Green Plaza Figure Dublin City Council HGV Routes Chp 6-16

15 College Green lies within this restricted zone and there are three possible routes designated for site traffic to and from the designated Heavy Goods Vehicle Routes. The Construction Access Strategy to serve the construction phase of College Green will be consistent with these designated HGV routes in the city centre and they will form the primary access and egress routes between the construction site and the external road network. Figure 6.5 presents the HGV access routes to serve the construction phase of the College Green Plaza. Construction vehicles will arrive and depart the site via one of the following routes: North or South Quays/Bridge Street/High Street/Dame Street; and Patrick Street/Dame Street. Figure Construction Access Routes Construction Traffic Generation Construction traffic would be generated from a number of sources during the construction of the College Green Plaza, primarily attributable to: Removal of spoil; Materials delivery; and Equipment delivery. In terms of construction staff, it is envisaged that during peak construction activity, the site will engage approximately 50 construction personnel. Considering a 11-hour (07:00-18:00 Monday to Friday) working day, it is likely that most of the construction staff will arrive to the site before the local AM peak traffic period and will depart after PM peak hour. No car parking spaces will be Chp 6-17

16 provided within the works area to minimise the impact of construction traffic on the local road network. It is envisaged that peak daily HGV traffic would be in the region of 8-10 oneway trips, during the most onerous construction stage (excavation). It has been robustly assumed that 30% of these trips would occur in the peak hour equating to 6 two-way trips Construction Traffic Impact The construction of the Proposed Project would result in an additional 6 trips on Dame Street during the peak hour. The impact of construction traffic is therefore considered to be slight and would result in negligible impact on the surrounding road network Operational Stage Traffic Impacts The NTA has carried-out modelling to assess the impact of the Proposed Project on general traffic, accessibility and public transport locally to College Green and in the surrounding road and street environs within the wider city centre area. This assessment has been carried out using the ERM, as discussed in Section for the 2018 model year do-nothing, do-minimum and do-something scenarios. In addition to 2018, a comparison of do-minimum versus do-something for the future year of 2035 is also included. This year assumes the completion of the integrated transport network as set out in the GDA Transport Strategy and compares impacts with and without the Proposed Project. Relevant sections of the city centre road and street network, which are predicted from the ERM to see changes in traffic patterns and daily volumes as a result of the Proposed Project are presented in Figure 6.6 and cross-referenced to the assessment summary traffic tables presented in subsequent sections. The full detailed output from the ERM is presented in Appendix 6.1. Chp 6-18

17 Figure 6.6: Relevant sections of the city centre road and street network Model Year Assessment A comparison of the do-nothing versus do-minimum changes on traffic patterns and volumes on relevant sections of the road and street network is presented in Table 6.2. Annual Average Daily Traffic (AADT) traffic volumes were deemed the most appropriate for a comparison in this case. Due to the relatively small changes identified, the values reported are those increased higher than 0.2%. Do-Nothing vs. Do-Minimum Assessment Table 6.2 Do-Minimum vs. Do-Something changes in traffic Street Link College Green (Anglesea St Trinity St) westbound (WB) College Green (Anglesea St Trinity St) eastbound (EB) Do-Minimum AADT volumes Do-Something AADT volumes % change 4,597 4, % 4,830 4, % Dame Street (Trinity St George s St) WB 4,208 4, % Dame Street (Trinity St George s St) EB 6,814 6, % Dame Street (George s St Parliament St) WB 3,456 3, % Dame Street (George s St Parliament St) EB 4,681 4, % Christchurch Place WB 4,053 4, % Christchurch Place EB 6,768 6, % Essex Quay 11,589 11, % Aston Quay (Prices Lane Westmoreland St) 5,090 5, % Chp 6-19

18 Parliament Street (Essex St Dame St) 5,715 5, % Bedford Row 3,781 3, % Anglesea Street % Fleet Street (Bedford Row Aston Place) 3,042 3,057 +0,5% Fleet Street (Aston Place Westmoreland St) 3,595 3, % Fleet Street (Westmoreland St D Olier St) 1,313 1, % Westmoreland Street (College St Fleet St) 8,749 8, % D Olier Street 7,574 7, % College Street (east section) 10,858 10, % College Street (west section) 4,982 4, % Grafton Street Lower (SB) 1,707 1, % These changes are also graphically illustrated on the street network in Figure 6.7. Figure 6.7: Do-Nothing vs. Do- Minimum Changes in Traffic Volumes As can be seen from Table 6.2, generally, changes to traffic patterns on the local road and street network post Luas Cross City becoming operational and taking into account the additional traffic management measures proposed in the dominimum scenario are mainly confined to immediate environs of College Green and are considered to be imperceptible or not-significant. The highest reduction in traffic is observed on College Street (-3.2%) and the highest increase in traffic on Fleet Street west of Westmoreland Street (2.9%). These results are expected, since the only relevant change effected by the dominimum scenario is the closure of Suffolk Street and subsequent diversion of traffic. The increases on Aston Quay and Fleet Street may denote diversions of traffic further to the east of the city centre as a result of the closure of Suffolk Street. Chp 6-20

19 Do-Minimum vs. Do-Something Assessment The College Green Traffic Management Measures Modelling Report, presented in Appendix 4.1, shows an improvement of the overall traffic conditions in the area defined by the canals following the implementation of the Proposed Project. In the 2018 do-something scenario, 93.5% of the network links are shown to operate at a volume-to-capacity (V/C) ratio below 75% (considered normal operation ), which is an increase from the 90.2% in the 2018 do-minimum scenario. A similar improvement is identified when looking at junctions, with 97% of junctions operating below 75% V/C increasing to 99% in the do-something. A comparison of the do-minimum versus do-something changes on 2018 Annual Average Daily Traffic (AADT) traffic volumes on the road and street network, immediately after implementation of the Proposed Project is presented in Table 6.3. Table 6.3: Do-Minimum vs. Do-Something changes in traffic Street Link Do-Minimum AADT volumes Do-Something AADT volumes % change College Green (Foster Place Anglesea St) WB 4,557 1,267-72% College Green (Foster Place Anglesea St) EB 4,057 1,430-65% College Green (Anglesea St Trinity St) WB 4,563 1,272-72% College Green (Anglesea St Trinity St) EB 4,803 2,945-39% Dame Street (Trinity St George s St) WB 4, % Dame Street (Trinity St George s St) EB 6,796 3,689-46% Dame Street (George s St Parliament St) WB 3,427 3,089-10% Dame Street (George s St Parliament St) EB 4,651 6, % Lord Edward St (Parliament St Exchange St Upper) WB Lord Edward St (Parliament St Exchange St Upper) EB Lord Edward St (Exchange St Upper Fishamble St) WB Lord Edward St (Exchange St Upper Fishamble St) EB 7,230 4,833-33% 2,717 4, % 7,173 4,560-36% 2,946 6, % Christchurch Place EB 6,715 8, % High Street WB 2,053 1,728-16% High Street EB 15,927 18, % Wood Quay 11,642 12, % Essex Quay 11,642 14, % Wellington Quay 9,897 12, % Aston Quay (H penny Bridge Bedford Row) 10,460 12, % Aston Quay (Bedford Row Aston Place) 6,090 6, % Aston Quay (Aston Place Prices Lane) 6,039 6, % Aston Quay (Prices Lane Westmoreland St) 5,118 5, % Parliament Street (Wellington Quay Essex St) 7,165 2,830-61% Chp 6-21

20 Parliament Street (Essex St Dame St) 5,733 3,542-38% Bedford Row 3,805 5, % Anglesea Street 748 1, % Fleet Street (Bedford Row Aston Place) 3,057 3, % Fleet Street (Aston Place Westmoreland St) 3,700 4, % Fleet Street (Westmoreland St D Olier St) 1, % Westmoreland Street (College St Fleet St) 8,798 8,075-8% Westmoreland Street (College Green College St) 2, % D Olier Street 7,511 6,478-14% College Street (east section) 10,784 8,960-17% College Street (west section) 4,823 1,862-61% Grafton Street Lower (SB) 1,666 1, % Trinity Street 2,367 1,682-29% These changes on the street network relevant to the Proposed Project are also graphically illustrated in Figure 6.8. Figure 6.8: Do-Minimum vs. Do-Something Changes in Traffic Volumes 2019 As general traffic movement through College Green will be restricted in any event in the do-minimum scenario once Luas Cross City becomes operational, the primary differences in traffic patterns associated with the Proposed Project relate to changes from the diversion of buses and taxis to other routes. In addition to this, the Proposed Project includes for the removal of through private car traffic from Parliament Street during the daytime (i.e. between 7am and 7pm). At an individual street level, it is clear that there are some locations where traffic increases and others where traffic reduces as a result of the Proposed Project (i.e. comparing the do-minimum with the do-something scenarios). Chp 6-22

21 As discussed previously in this report, the Proposed Project effects the re-routing of buses and taxis from College Green and Dame Street towards the Liffey Quays, which is reflected in the forecast increases in traffic flows on those links. The most significant increases in traffic are predicted form the ERM to happen on local streets such as Anglesea Street, but also on the eastbound direction on Lord Edward Street, as a result of the proposed right-turn from Dame Street to George s Street. These changes in traffic volumes are also reflected in Figure 3.25 of the appended College Green Traffic Management Measures Modelling Report, where the AM peak differences (in number of vehicles) in the city centre area are illustrated. With regards to reductions in volumes, some are very significant, within the immediate vicinity of College Green (Dame Street, Trinity Street, College Street, Fleet Street East). Changes to traffic management on Parliament Street (public transport only from 7am to 7pm) are also reflected in notable reductions in traffic volumes. Chp 6-23

22 Model Year Assessment Do-Minimum vs. Do-Something Assessment A comparison between the do-minimum and the do-something for 2035 for the canal cordon area shows a negligible impact of the Proposed Project on the prevalent volume-to-capacity (V/C) ratios. An insignificant decrease in V/C ratios from 90.2% to 89.8% of links below 75%V/C is identified in the College Green Traffic Management Measures Draft Modelling Report (Appendix 4.1). Looking at junction performance, the decrease is also insignificant, with 97% under 75% in the do-minimum and 96.6% in the do-something. At an individual street level, the comparison between the do-minimum and the dosomething scenarios for 2035 reveal similar results as those described above for This is shown in Table 6.4, where the road and street sections with differences of 5% or more are listed. Table 6.4: Do-Minimum vs. Do-Something Street Link Do-Minimum volumes Do-Something volumes % change College Green (Foster Place Anglesea St) WB 2, % College Green (Foster Place Anglesea St) EB 2,957 1,464-51% College Green (Anglesea St Trinity St) WB 2, % College Green (Anglesea St Trinity St) EB 2,968 1,667-55% Dame Street (Trinity St George s St) WB 1, % Dame Street (Trinity St George s St) EB 4,847 2,271-53% Dame Street (George s St Parliament St) WB 4,284 4,527 +6% Dame Street (George s St Parliament St) EB 4,656 6, % Lord Edward St (Parliament St Exchange St Upper) WB Lord Edward St (Parliament St Exchange St Upper) EB Lord Edward St (Exchange St Upper Fishamble St) WB Lord Edward St (Exchange St Upper Fishamble St) EB 6,316 5,966-6% 4,173 5, % 6,153 5,642-8% 5,404 7, % High Street WB 3,182 3, % Wood Quay 18,014 16,173-10% Essex Quay 19,416 18,289-6% Aston Quay (Bedford Row Aston Place) 13,695 12,750-7% Aston Quay (Aston Place Prices Lane) 13,644 12,699-7% Aston Quay (Prices Lane Westmoreland St) 12,626 11,605-8% Burgh Quay (D Olier Street - Hawkins Street) 15,633 14,207-9% Burgh Quay (Hawkins Street Tara Street) 15,746 13,871-12% Eden Quay (O Connell Street Marlborough Street) 11,360 12, % Parliament Street (Wellington Quay Essex St) 2,287 1,708-25% Chp 6-24

23 Bedford Row 2,381 2,580 +8% Fleet Street (Westmoreland St D Olier St) % Westmoreland Street (College Green College St) % D Olier Street 7,084 5,923-16% College Street (west section) 1, % Trinity Street 2,456 1,288-48% These changes on the city centre street network are graphically illustrated in Figure 6.9 and also reflected in Section of the appended College Green Traffic Management Measures Modelling Report, where the AM peak differences in numbers of vehicles are shown. Figure 6.9: Do-Minimum vs. Do-Something Changes in Traffic Volumes 2035 The differences between the do-minimum and the do-something scenarios in 2035 are somewhat similar to those described previously in relation to the 2018 scenarios. Traffic volume reductions are notable on College Green and parts of Dame Street, as well as on D Olier Street, Westmoreland Street and College Street. The changes along the Liffey Quays are less pronounced than in 2018, with the south Quays denoting some small reductions in traffic. With regards to increases in traffic volumes, the street links where this is the case include Bedford Row, Lord Edward Street (eastbound), Dame Street (both directions between George s Street and Parliament Street). The latter streets, particularly in the eastbound direction are likely to see increased traffic due to the proposed right-turn onto Georges Street from Dame Street Vehicular Journey Times Analysis carried-out by the NTA using the ERM model for the do-minimum and do-something scenarios shows improvements in the vehicular journey times on both the selected east-west and north-south routes. Chp 6-25

24 Impact on Access to Car Parking Both College Green and the area immediately surrounding, does not cater for any significant numbers of on-street car parking, which is typical of a city centre environment where visitors by car are directed towards managed off-street parking. As such, the Proposed Project will have a negligible impact on on-street parking activity within the city centre. The following two multi-storey car parks in the vicinity of the Proposed Project have been assessed: Trinity Street Car Park; and Fleet Street Car Park. Figure 6.10 illustrates the current access and egress routes for each car park, also being applicable to both the do-minimum scenario and the do-nothing scenario. Figure 6.10: Access to Car Parks While the current traffic management arrangements on College Green (through enforcement of the College Green Bus Gate) allows for some off peak general traffic through movement, once Luas Cross City becomes operational, in both the do-nothing and do-minimum scenarios, College Green will cease to become an access route for all general traffic, including to the off-street car parks. The recent right turn ban from Bachelors Walk on the north quays of the River Liffey onto O Connell Bridge, which came into effect as part of the North and South Quays Traffic Management Measures project in August 2017, has added a further specific restriction on access to the Fleet Street Car Park from the west (i.e. via the north Quays). Chp 6-26

25 Access routes to and from these car parks in the do-something scenario, on implementation of the Proposed Project is illustrated in Figure Figure 6.11: Proposed Car-Park Access By comparing the do-minimum and do-something car park access arrangements in Figure 6.10 and Figure 6.11 respectively, it is clear that there will not be any direct impact from the Proposed Project on access and egress routes to either the Trinity Street or Fleet Street car parks Impact on Access to Loading/Unloading Facilities The College Green project proposes a formalisation of loading and unloading facilities in the area, including the retention of one of the present loading bays on Andrew s Street in addition to three new time-limited areas on Dame Street, Trinity Street and Church Lane, as illustrated in Figure Chp 6-27

26 Figure 6.12: Existing and Proposed Time-Limited Loading bays College Green There are presently no dedicated service areas accessed directly off College Green. There are, however commercial premises along the southern edge of College Green that need to be serviced from the street. Presently this is done on a time-limited basis, utilising the bus stops located along College Green. As illustrated in Figure 6.13, access is obtained from Dame Street availing of a U-turn on College Green with egress towards the west along Dame Street. Figure 6.13: Existing Access to Loading/Unloading facilities - College Green Chp 6-28

27 As a result of the proposed project, the commercial premises to the east of Church Lane will cease to have direct road access but will avail of a time-limited loading bay on Church Lane. Access and egress will continue to only be possible from and to Dame Street. The pedestrianised College Green will enable occasional vehicular use, including along its southern edge. The future service access and egress is illustrated in Figure Figure 6.14: Proposed access to loading/unloading facilities - College Green Dame Street Dame Street has numerous commercial premises along both its southern and northern edges, which need to be serviced on a regular basis. Presently this is done from the street itself with access and egress to/from the western end of Dame Streets as well as from South Great George s Street, as illustrated in Figure Figure 6.15: Existing access to loading/unloading facilities- Dame Street Chp 6-29

28 Following the implementation of the Proposed Project, vehicles will cease to be able to access Dame Street from the College Green side, and therefore access to the southern frontages and egress from the northern frontages will rely on the Turning Circle opposite Foster Place and Church Lane that is included in the proposals. Figure 6.16: Proposed access to loading/unloading facilities- Dame Street Anglesea Street Cope Street Fownes Street Upper These streets operate a one-way system off Dame Street that enables service access to the former Central Bank building, as well as to a number of commercial premises locally and beyond in the Temple Bar area. Figure 6.17 shows the existing circulation required, which due to a banned right turn at the junction of Fownes Street Upper and Dame Street, includes the need for vehicles to circulate around the one-way system of Trinity Street, Andrew Street and Church Lane before heading westwards along Dame Street. Chp 6-30

29 Figure 6.17: Existing access to loading/unloading facilities - Anglesea Street-Cope Street- Fownes Street Upper Following the implementation of the Proposed Project, there will be no alteration to the existing servicing routes to these particular streets, as illustrated on Figure Figure 6.18: Proposed access to loading/unloading facilities-anglesea Street Cope Street Fownes Street Upper Trinity Street Andrew Street Church Lane Similarly, the access to these streets is presently made along a counter-clockwise one-way system off Dame Street. This will continue to be the case following the implementation of the proposed project for College Green, as illustrated in Figures 6.19 and Chp 6-31

30 Figure 6.19: Existing access to loading/unloading facilities Trinity Street Andrew Street Church Lane Figure 6.20: Proposed access to loading/unloading facilities Trinity Street Andrew Street Church Lane Parliament Street The traffic management changes proposed for Parliament Street as part of the Proposed Project will also result in changes to the manner in which loading/unloading operations take place presently, particularly in relation to access and egress. Presently, service vehicles avail of two small loading bays on either side of Parliament Street and a loading area on Essex Street East, close to the junction with Parliament Street. These can be accessed from Grattan Bridge or from Chp 6-32

31 Exchange Street Lower-Essex Gate. Access via Essex Street West is also possible, but only up to 11am, time at which this street becomes pedestrian-only. Egress is achieved via Lord Edward Street for those vehicles using the Parliament Street loading bays, and via Essex Street East, Temple Bar, Eustace Street and Wellington Quay for those using Essex Street East to load/unload. These routes are illustrated in Figure Figure 6.21: Existing access to loading/unloading facilities Parliament Street The Proposed Project includes a ban on general traffic on Parliament Street between the hours of 7am and 7pm. During this period, the street is proposed to operate as a public transport only route. However, and in order to mitigate the loss of access to the Parliament Street loading bays during the day, it is proposed that a deliveries-only right-turn is retained on Essex Gate up to 11am, thus allowing for service vehicles to continue access from Exchange Street Lower-Essex Gate. These proposals are shown in Figure Chp 6-33

32 Figure 6.22 Retained Time-Limited Service Access off Essex Gate Only public transport will be allowed on to the northern section of Parliament Street, and therefore loading/unloading access will be only possible via the alternative route described above. This will ensure that no rat-running takes place and the service vehicles movements present on Parliament Street itself will be kept to a minimum, catering for local needs only before 11am. The proposed access and egress routes to Parliament Street are illustrated in Figure Figure 6.23: Proposed access to loading/unloading facilities Parliament Street Chp 6-34

33 Essex Street West This street does not avail of dedicated loading bays, but it has a number of businesses (on Essex Street West and on the adjacent pedestrianised Cow s Lane) which could be affected by the traffic management proposed for Parliament Street. As shown in Figure 6.24, access to this street is only achieved off Fishamble Street, which in turn is accessed off Essex Quay or Lord Edward Street/Christchurch Place. Egress is via either Parliament Street and back to Lord Edward Street or via Essex Street East, Temple Bar, Eustace Street and Wellington Quay. Figure 6.24: Existing and proposed access to loading/unloading facilities Essex Street West The proposal to retain a deliveries-only right-turn on Essex Gate onto Parliament Street before 11am means that the access and egress options for this particular street will remain as at present. Essex Street East Essex Street East presently avails of a formal loading bay near its junction with Parliament Street, but loading/unloading activity talks place along its length as far as Temple Bar. Access is either achieved off Parliament Street, which in turn is accessed via Grattan Bridge, or via Exchange Street Lower-Essex Gate. Egress is made via Eustace Street onto Wellington Quay, as shown in Figure Chp 6-35

34 Figure 6.25: Existing access to loading/unloading facilities Essex Street East The closure of the northern section of Parliament Street between 7am and 7pm to all vehicles except public transport, will force service vehicles onto Fishamble Street, from where they can access Essex Street East via Exchange Street Lower and Essex Gate. There are no changes to the egress route as a result of the proposed traffic management proposals. Figure 6.26: Proposed access to loading/unloading facilities Essex Street East Chp 6-36

35 Impact on Access to Commercial Premised and Residents Presently, there is very limited direct vehicular access to commercial premises and to local residential uses in the city centre area. Access largely relies on loading areas and on multi-storey car parking, respectively. Therefore, the impacts on access to car parking and to loading/unloading facilities described in the previous sections is fully applicable to the access to both commercial premises and to local residential uses. However, it is considered that the Proposed Project will have significant positive impacts on the pedestrian accessibility throughout the area, by enabling improved permeability and pedestrian comfort at College Green, as well as improvements on the adjacent street network by means of reductions in traffic flows Impact on Public Transport Do-Minimum Scenario Figure 6.27 illustrates the local bus and Luas movements on the College Green area in the do-minimum scenario. In this scenario, buses and taxis share the Luas corridor in both directions, but can also traverse College Green from east to west and west to east, linking College Street with Dame Street and west to east linking Dame Street with Westmoreland Street. There will be no general vehicular access allowed between College Green/Dame Street and Lower Grafton Street and vice-versa. The do-minimum scenario does therefore include a conflict between bus and taxi vehicles heading towards Dame Street from College Street and those (including the Luas) travelling northbound on College Street-Grafton Street Lower. Bus and taxi vehicles travelling between Dame Street and Westmoreland Street join the northbound Luas corridor at the signal-controlled crossing on College Street. The management of these movements, within the conflict zone, including pedestrians and cyclists crossing through, will be managed via the signal control arrangement as illustrated in Figures 6.1a and 6.1b, in Section As a result of the need to manage vehicular movement (i.e. buses and taxis), Luas trans, pedestrians and cyclists within this localised area, the overall result within the do-minimum scenario is effectively a compromised level of service provision for all modes. Specifically, for public transport, Luas Cross City journey time reliability is diminished by the need to share with buses and taxis turning across, and joining from College Green to the north-south transport corridor along Grafton Street Upper. Chp 6-37

36 Figure 6.27: Do-Minimum Scenario - Local Bus and Luas Movements Do-Something Scenario General Impacts Following the implementation of the proposed project, the College Green Plaza will result in the elimination of the turning movement conflicts for buses and taxis, which will need to be controlled via junction signalisation in the dominimum scenario. Locally this results in significant level of service and journey time reliability improvements for Luas operations and buses running on the north-south transport corridor along Grafton Street Upper, in addition to the significant benefits for pedestrian and cycle movements through the area as set out in Section and respectively. The east-west bus and taxi movements prevented from using College Green as part of the Proposed Project will be accommodated elsewhere in the wider street network, with the existing bus network and service patterns locally also planned to be reconfigured by the NTA as part of the BusConnects project. While the final detail of BusConnects is yet to emerge from the NTA, it is clear that the introduction of the Proposed Project will result in existing bus routes through College Green being re-routed towards the Liffey Quays, via Winetavern Street on the eastbound direction and via Parliament Street on the westbound direction. In addition, a number of services will be able to access and terminate at College Green from the west along Dame Street, as illustrated in Figure Chp 6-38

37 Figure 6.28: Do-Something Scenario - Proposed Bus Movements In terms of impact of the Proposed Project on general bus routing through the city centre, the removal of vehicular conflicts locally within the College Green area, as set out above, will have a positive impact on north-south public transport movements, including those of the Luas. In terms of east-west bus movement through the city centre area, Section 3.7.2, explains that the Proposed Project is as a baseline assumption for the ongoing planning of BusConnects project for the Greater Dublin Area. A key outcome of BusConnects will be a simplified, more legible bus network and service to, and through, the Dublin City Centre area. Generally, east-west bus routes diverted from College Green under BusConnects will avail of the benefits already seen on the Liffey Quays since the introduction of North and South Quays Traffic Management Measures at the end of August Recent survey data (comparison of September 2017 journey times with the same month in 2016) published by the NTA reports overall journey time reductions along the Liffey Quays on both directions as a result of the implementation of the bus priority measures. For buses travelling eastbound, between Ormond Quay and D Olier Street, journey times are shown to have decreased by up to 45% in the morning peak (9am to 10am) when compared with the previous year. Reductions of up to 25% were achieved during most other hours. With regards to the westbound direction, bus journey times measured between Aston Quay and Essex Quay have decreased by as much as 38% in the PM peak period (between 5pm and 6pm). Within the city centre as a whole, the introduction of the Proposed Project will support a significant improvement in bus service provision, taken in conjunction with the BusConnects proposals. As explained above, the bus priority measures implemented in the city centre and particularly along the Liffey Quays have been reflected in significant journey time savings for public transport. Chp 6-39

38 The diversion of the routes from the Dame Street-College Green corridor to the Quays, particularly the eastbound routes, which will be relocated to the North Quays, will have an impact on the walking catchment of the bus stops locally. Possible bus re-routing The rerouting of buses assumed in this assessment is summarised below: Routes which currently originate/terminate in the vicinity of College Green (e.g. 65, 68, 150) would continue to use Dame Street terminating at the new turning around facility proposed at the junction of Foster Place and Church Lane; Routes which currently use South Great George s Street before passing through College Green and vice versa (e.g. 122, 16), would be rerouted to Patrick Street, Nicholas, Winetavern Street, North Quays in the inbound direction. Some routes may also be maintained along South Great Georges Street turning left onto Dame Street and onwards to Winetavern Street. Outbound, at O Connell Bridge, buses will either use D Olier Street and Westmoreland Street as per the existing situation or may be permitted in future to turn right directly from O Connell Bridge onto Aston Quay. These routes would be rerouted to the South Quays, Parliament Street and Patrick Street (outbound, route 16 would use Parliament Street and South Great Georges Street). This is illustrated in Figure 6.29; Figure 6.29: Future Rerouting of Buses Currently Running Through College Green and South Great Georges Street Chp 6-40

39 Routes which currently pass through College Green other than those using South Great Georges Street which do not terminate originate in the vicinity (e.g. 27, 123), would be rerouted onto the South Quays and Parliament Street in the outbound direction. At O Connell Bridge, buses will either use D Olier Street and Westmoreland Street as per the existing situation or may be permitted in future to turn right directly from O Connell Bridge onto Aston Quay. In the inbound direction, buses would be rerouted along Winetavern Street and the North Quays. This is illustrated in Figure Figure 6.30: Future Rerouting of Buses Currently Running Through College Green and High Street Chp 6-41

40 Bus Stop Locations The re-routing of buses noted above will result in the relocation of bus stops to alternative locations along the new bus routes. The distance which bus stops are moving from their current location varies between routes but all relocated stops will be within comfortable walking distance of the existing stops (maximum relocation of approximately 500m). To assess the impact on bus passengers, a walk catchment analysis was undertaken for existing routes passing through College Green and compared to the walk catchments for the proposed alternative routes. To simplify the assessment, the general routes of buses, as well as representative bus stops were included, rather than an assessment of each individual route. This assessment looked at residential/employment populations living/working within a 5 minute walk catchment of stops along each route. The 5 minute walk catchments are illustrated in Figure 6.31 and Figure 6.32 for both the existing and future routes. The results of the catchment analysis are presented in Table 6.5. Figure 6.31: Existing and Future Catchments for Routes Currently Passing Through College Green, Dame Street and High Street Chp 6-42

41 Figure 6.32: Existing and Future Catchments for Routes Currently Passing Through College Green, Dame Street and Parliament Street Chp 6-43

42 Table 6.5: Number of People Living or Working with a 5 minute Walk of Existing and Future Bus Routes Routes Currently Passing Through College Green, Dame St and High St Direction Base Route Future Route Change Inbound 35,022 35, Outbound 37,378 39,060 +1,682 Routes Currently Passing Through College Green, Dame St and Parliament St Direction Base Route Future Route Change Inbound 59,415 49,372-10,043 Outbound 63,227 74, ,699 As can be seen in Table 6.5, routes that currently pass through College Green, Dame Street and High Street, would see a small increase in people working or living within a 5 minute walk catchment in each direction. For routes that currently pass through College Green, Dame Street and Parliament Street, there would be a decrease in people living or working within a 5-minute walk catchment of the future bus routes. This is largely due to the movement of the route to Patrick Street, which is further from the large employment areas around St. Stephens Green. However, the rerouting of the inbound route would bring buses closer to high employment centres such as Wood Quay and Jervis Street/Henry Street. This results in an increase to the number of people within a 5- minute walk catchment. On balance, the changes to inbound and outbound buses along these routes is considered to be neutral as overall, it would serve a similar number of people. Generally, this assessment shows that while bus stops may be moving further away from some users, it will also move closer to others and overall there is a small increase in the total number of people that would be served by buses along the future routing. It is also worth noting that the distance, which routes are moving are all within comfortable walking distance of the existing routes. For these reasons, on balance, the local impact of the bus route changes on bus users is considered to be neutral. Conclusion It is however considered that the diversion of east-west bus services from the Dame Street-College Green corridor to what is now a high-performance public transport corridor along the Quays, will improve the bus level of service, even considering the impact brought about by the relocation of bus stops. Locally however, there will be some slight negative impact in terms of public transport accessibility by bus as a result of service diversions form College Green to the Liffey Quays in terms of bus stop locations and walking distances to some origin and destination locations. The additional walk time (between 4 and 5 minutes, depending on the bus stop location) will be offset by the improvements to journey time into and out if the City via the Quays, coupled with potential reductions in wait time likely to come about from the BusConnects project. Chp 6-44

43 With regards to the future potential diversion of northbound buses to Winetavern Street, it is considered that this is likely to have a similar impact to the diversion of westbound buses, as the buses will be subsequently routed via the north Quays, availing of high capacity and relatively short walk times from most city centre destinations. Impacts on Public Transport Flows The NTA has carried-out modelling to assess the proposed changes to the Dublin City Centre public transport networks, as part of the College Green Proposed Project. Within the canal cordon, some changes to public transport networks are apparent. Forecast 2018 public transport passenger flows increase along the Quays in the city centre, which reflects the rerouting that was carried-out to account for the closure of College Green. The full results are detailed in Section 3.4 of the College Green Traffic Management Measures Modelling Report in Appendix 6.1. The implementation of the Proposed Project will, as discussed, divert the majority of buses that currently route through College Green to the Liffey Quays, both in the eastbound and westbound direction. This is clear in the results from the 2018 model, which show decreases of over 1,500 passengers per direction in the AM peak along College Green and Dame Street, and similar increases along both the north and the south Quays (see Figure 3-29 of appended modelling report). In the 2035 scenario, the decreases in public transport passenger flows on College Green and Dame Street are less pronounced (in the order to 450 and 650 in the eastbound and westbound direction, respectively) with the increases along the Liffey Quays remaining significant, with up to 800 westbound and 1,300 eastbound (see Figure 3-31 of appended modelling report). Impacts on Public Transport Journey Times The model was also interrogated to identify changes in bus journey times before (do-minimum scenario) and after (do-something scenario) the implementation of the Proposed Project. The two relevant bus routes analysed (Aircoach and 25B) run along the College Green-Grafton Street Lower corridor, along the Luas line, in both the dominimum and the do-something scenarios. The do-something scenario shows journey time improvements when compared with the do-minimum in both 2018 and 2035 and in both directions Bus Stop Capacity on North/South Quays As part of a separate project, DCC propose to increase the length of bus bays, on the North and South Quays in order to provide additional kerbside capacity. The additional bus lanes on the north and south quays will also assist in maximising the existing kerb side space. Additional bus lanes, as planned on the North and South quays will allow buses to access and egress more easily to their stops without impeding following buses and causing the buses to bunch. Chp 6-45

44 This better use of the road space and kerb space will enable buses to adhere more closely to their schedules, thereby loading and unloading passengers in a more timely fashion. The more efficient turnover of passengers will in turn assist in reducing congestion on the footpaths Impact on Taxis To facilitate the Proposed Project, it is necessary to remove a total of 5 taxi ranks spaces from College Green (located on the eastbound carriageway in the traffic island). In addition, it is proposed to remove the taxi rank on Foster Place. This taxi rank accommodates approximately 9 permanent taxi bays and a further 11 night time bays. As part of the Proposed Project, it is proposed to provide a new taxi rank accommodating approximately 8 taxis on the southern side of Dame Street between South Great George s Street and Trinity Street. In addition, the existing nighttime rank on the northern side of Dame Street just east of South Great George s Street which accommodates 3 taxis will be converted to a permanent rank. In addition to this, the following three loading bays, which are proposed, will also act as a nighttime rank between the hours of 19:00 and 07:00: Southern side of Dame Street between South Great George s Street and Trinity Street with space for approximately 7 taxis; Eastern side of Trinity Street just north of the junction with St Andrew s St with space for approximately 6 taxis; and Western side of Church Lane with space for approximately 4 taxis. In summary, it is proposed to remove 14 permanent taxi rank spaces and replace it with a new taxi rank with capacity for 11 permanent taxi spaces. Additionally, it is proposed to remove 14 nighttime bays and replace them with 17 nighttime bays. While there is some reduction in daytime taxi rank capacity as a result of the Proposed Project, the night time capacity has been increased. In addition, DCC propose providing an additional 10-space taxi rank on College Street as part of a separate project. Combined with the College Green Plaza proposals, this will result in an increase in provision for taxis in the College Green area Mode Split To understand the impact on public transport use as a result of the proposed scheme, the mode split data was extracted from the model for both the do minimum and do something assessment scenarios. This showed that the mode split for all modes was identical for each scenario (16% public transport in 2018 and 30% in 2035) across the metropolitan area meaning that the proposed scheme would have no impact on public transport use in the city. Chp 6-46

45 Impact on Access to Bank of Ireland Access to, and egress from, the Bank of Ireland customer car park is via College Green. The Proposed Project will continue to facilitate access / egress to / from this car park through the proposed plaza. Access to and egress from the cash transit operations to the rear of the Bank of Ireland is provided via Foster Place. The Proposed Project will continue to facilitate access /egress to / from this area through the proposed plaza and via Foster Place Impact on Pedestrians A key aim of the Proposed Project is to create a new pedestrian plaza, and therefore the design includes significant improvements for pedestrians, both moving through College Green and congregating to enjoy the planned new civic space within the city. The benefits of the Proposed Project on how pedestrian desire lines for movement through College Green are accommodated have been analysed using the Pedestrian Route Directness (PRD) methodology, as prescribed in the NTA s document Permeability Best Practice. PRD compares the deviations from a pedestrian desire line (as the crow flies) taking into account the actual existing and proposed street layouts, location of formal pedestrian crossings and obstacles. The lowest possible value is 1.0 with regarded as acceptable standards. For the purposes of this analysis, a number of origins and destinations within and around College Green were selected. These correspond to points where pedestrians enter or exit the College Green area. Based upon these points, relevant origin-destination pairings were analysed as illustrated in Figure Figure 6.33: Origin-Destination pairings Chp 6-47

46 Westmoreland Street to Grafton Street Lower The PRD between the western footway on Westmoreland Street and the western footway on Grafton Street Lower is seen to improve slightly from the existing 1.11 to 1.08 following the implementation of the Proposed Project, as shown in Figure 6.34 (do-minimum) and Figure 6.35 (do-something). Figure 6.34: (do-minimum) and Figure 6.35 (do-something): Pedestrian Route Directness - Westmoreland Street - Lower Grafton Street More significantly on this particular desire line however, is the fact that pedestrians presently have to negotiate two separate signal-controlled crossings, whereas with the completion of the Proposed Project, an unimpeded route will be available connecting Westmoreland Street with the pedestrianised areas of Grafton Street and Suffolk Street. Chp 6-48

47 This improvement to pedestrian desire line and movement is the most significant benefit of the proposed project to general pedestrian level of service provision within the city centre area. Presently, the College Green area attracts pedestrian volumes of up to 75,000 on a daily basis, of which a large percentage is estimated to circulate between Westmoreland Street and Grafton Street. The elimination of the two signal controlled crossings through College Green as a result of the proposed project, effectively results in a largely unimpeded pedestrian priority route all the way from O Connell Bridge to St Stephen s Green (i.e. along the footpaths on the western side of Westmoreland Street and College Street, via College Green and on to Grafton Street). Westmoreland Street to George s Street/Dame Street junction The PRD between the western footway on Westmoreland Street and the southeastern corner of the junction between South Great George s Street and Dame Street is seen to improve slightly from the existing 1.15 to 1.12 following the implementation of the Proposed Project, as shown in Figure 2.26 (do-minimum) and Figure 2.37 (do-something). Chp 6-49

48 Figure 6.36 (do-minimum) and Figure 6.37 (do-something): Pedestrian Route Directness - Westmoreland Street - South Great George s Street Presently pedestrians along this route need to cross Dame Street on a signal controlled crossing, as well as Foster Place on an informal crossing. The proposals will in effect eliminate any conflict with vehicular traffic for this particular origindestination route. College Street to Dame Street/Temple Lane junction The PRD between the southern footway on College Street and the northern footway of Dame Street at its junction with Temple Lane is seen to improve significantly from the existing 1.16 to 1.07 following the implementation of the Proposed Project, as shown in Figure 6.38 (do-minimum) and Figure 6.39 (dosomething). Chp 6-50

49 Figure 6.38 (do-minimum) and Figure 6.39 (do-something): Pedestrian Route Directness - Dame Street College Street This pedestrian route requires the negotiation of three signal-controlled crossings (College Green, Church Lane and Dame Street) and two informal crossings (Fownes Street Upper and Crow Street) at present, but will be improved to only requiring a crossing of the public transport corridor on College Green and three informal crossings on Anglesea Street, Fownes Street Upper and Crow Street. Grafton Street Lower to Dame Street/Temple Lane junction The PRD between the western footway on Grafton Street Lower and the northern footway of Dame Street at its junction with Temple Lane is seen to improve from the existing 1.20 to 1.15 following the implementation of the proposed project, as shown in Figure 6.40 (do-minimum) and Figure 6.41 (do-something). Chp 6-51

50 Figure 6.40 (do-minimum) and Figure 6.41 (do-something): Pedestrian Route Directness - Dame Street Grafton Street Lower Presently, pedestrians need to negotiate two signal-controlled crossings (Church Lane and Dame Street), as well as two informal crossings (Fownes Street Upper and Crow Street). With the implementation of the Proposed Project, there will be no requirement for signal-controlled crossings and there will be three streets (Anglesea Street, Fownes Street Upper and Crow Street) crossed on informal crossings. Grafton Street Lower to College Street The PRD between the western footway on Grafton Street Lower and the southern footway on College Street is seen to slightly improve from the existing 1.16 to 1.15 following the implementation of the Proposed Project, as shown in Figures 6.42 (do-minimum) and 6.43 (do-something). Chp 6-52

51 Figure 6.42 (do-minimum) and Figure 6.43 (do-something): Pedestrian Route Directness - Grafton Street Lower - College Street Pedestrians presently have to negotiate one signal-controlled crossing on this route. Following the implementation of the Proposed Project, this same crossing will be improved to a wider facility across the public transport corridor. Impacts on Pedestrians Pedestrian Delays The PRD assessment does not take account of pedestrian delays, and therefore a separate assessment was carried-out to identify the differences in average journey times across the College Green area before and after the implementation of the Proposed Project. Chp 6-53

52 The route between the western footway at the start of Westmoreland Street and the eastern footway on Grafton Street Lower is representative of the changes to pedestrian movements effected by the pedestrianisation of College Green. Figure 6.44 illustrates this route comparing the existing situation and the Proposed Project. Figure 6.44: Pedestrian Delays - Routes Assessed Presently, the pedestrian route between the two selected points requires the negotiation of three signal-controlled pedestrian crossings, whereas with the Proposed Project in place, only one pedestrian crossing needs to be negotiated. For the purposes of this assessment, it has been assumed for both scenarios that the signals operate on a 60-second cycle and a 20/40 second split between pedestrian and vehicular green time, which results at an average wait time at the signals of 20 seconds. The distance in the existing situation is 147m, which at an average walking speed of 1.2 metres per second, would correspond to a journey time of 176 seconds. Considering an average wait time at the three signalised pedestrian crossings of 20 seconds, the overall journey time would be 236 seconds. Chp 6-54

53 With the Proposed Project implemented, the distance is reduced to 134m (161 seconds) through the reallocation of road space to pedestrians, which added to the 20 seconds of average wait time at the only crossing, equates to 181 seconds, approximately 3 minutes. This equates to a decrease in journey time between the do-minimum and do-something scenarios of over 23%. The above quantitative comparison also needs to be considered in the context of the quality of service provided to pedestrians on both scenarios. The need to negotiate three junctions on a relatively short length of route means that there is a discomfort associated with the areas for waiting at the signals. These areas, at peak times, are busy with waiting pedestrians, which in turn, become obstacles to moving pedestrians. In the do-minimum scenario, this occurs mainly at the northern and eastern footways, where the pedestrian space is limited by the Bank of Ireland and Trinity College buildings. In the do-something scenario, the whole of College Green west of the Luas corridor will be a pedestrian area, thus without circulation constraints. This will encourage the majority of pedestrian movements to occur here rather than on the eastern side, where conflicts with signalised crossing waiting areas will still be present. Impacts on Pedestrians Summary It is clear from the PDR analysis that, in addition to the civic space itself as a new attractive place of congregation within the city, the proposed project will result in positive benefits to pedestrian movements through, and wider linkages within the city centre area. These benefits will be mainly felt in terms of the directness of routes created along desire lines and the level of service improvements for pedestrian movement, in some cases catering for significant volumes of pedestrians, associated with the removal of controlled pedestrian crossing points with vehicular traffic (both general traffic and public transport) Impact on Cyclists The Proposed Project will have a significant positive impact on cyclists. Cyclists currently share the road through College Green with large volumes of cars and buses that pass through College Green with no dedicated facilities provided. Cyclists in the do-minimum scenario, following from the modifications to College Green implemented as part of the Luas Cross City project, will avail of a dedicated cycle track on the eastbound direction, between Foster Place and Westmoreland Street. However, in the opposite direction, from College Street to College Green, cyclists will have to share the right-turn lane with buses and taxis. The north-south public transport corridor (i.e. allowing for buses and taxis in addition to Luas running along Grafton Street Upper), which runs along the frontage of Trinity College, will also be available for two-way cycle movements between Nassau and Westmoreland Street/College Street. Chp 6-55

54 Figure 6.45 illustrates the do-minimum cycle routes, and associated cycle infrastructure provision, within and around the College Green area. Figure 6.45: Do-Minimum Scenario Cycle Facilities With the implementation of the Proposed Project, cyclists on the north-south route through the College Green area (i.e. between College Street and Nassau Street) will continue to share the north-south public transport corridor with trams, buses and taxis. East-west movements will be carefully accommodated through the new plaza area. The Do-Something cycle routes, and associated cycle route infrastructure provision, within and around the College Green area are illustrated in Figure 6.46 Chp 6-56

55 Figure 6.46: Proposed Cycle Facilities It is considered that the removal of vehicular conflicts from the College Green area, along with the addition of cycle lanes on Dame Street will have an overall positive impact on the movement of cyclists within and through the core city centre area. The proposed cycle route across College Green is not direct for those cyclists travelling in the west-east direction. There are also some sharp turns proposed that will require cyclists to travel very slowly, and therefore safely, while negotiating the various interactions with pedestrians through the plaza. However, unlike other modes of traffic that will be displaced from College Green, cyclists will benefit from being able to circulate through the plaza without conflicts with motorised vehicles, thus enhancing their quality of service and comfort. The level of service is also improved along adjacent streets, mainly due to reductions in traffic volumes as a result of the Proposed Project. The pedestrian priority zone of the College Green Plaza is only 60m long from west to east. Even though cyclists will be required to travel slowly at about 10 km/h or less through this space, it will take only 1/2 minute to get through from one side to the other. Compared to the current frequent delays at multiple traffic signals between George's Street and Westmoreland Street, the journey time for cyclists should actually reduce considerably. On balance therefore, the proposed arrangement with pedestrian priority and a cycle route across the plaza will still provide considerable convenience for cyclists, but in a controlled and safe arrangement that respects the appropriate allocation of priority to pedestrians. Chp 6-57