September 11 2010 by Paul Gogarty
Large Attendance at Bus Review Public Meeting
By Ciaran McCabe
A WELL-ATTENDED public meeting hosted by Green Party TD Paul Gogarty gave Lucan residents the chance to question Dublin Bus officials about proposed changes to the local bus network.
More than 100 people from across Lucan attended the meeting in Finnstown House Hotel on Wednesday evening (8th September), as did three officials from Dublin Bus – Network Review Project Manager Ray Coyne, Chief Inspector Joe Stobie and Davin Finnerty from the Operations Department.
The meeting arose following the large number of queries received by Deputy Gogarty from Lucan residents regarding the bus review, details of which were first announced in April of this year.
The initial changes included the provision of a new 25b service from Adamstown, the re-routing of the 25x and the termination of all Lucan buses at Leeson Street in the city centre.
Furthermore, buses on the 25a and 25b routes will travel to the city using the Chapelizod By-Pass, thereby greatly reducing journey times by avoiding Chapelizod village.
The proposed changes to the local bus service is part of a wider initiative being undertaken by Dublin Bus, representing the largest network review in the company’s history. The review is aimed at providing a more reliable, faster and direct service on all routes.
Speaking at the public meeting, Mr Coyne explained that many months of preparation and research have gone into the changes to the Lucan buses, due to the “very complex” services in the local area.
“The complexity of the service in Lucan is a major complaint among bus users,” Mr Coyne acknowledged.
A key feature of the network review is the provision of a more efficient timetable for buses, preventing the common situation of two or three buses arriving at a bus-stop at the same time. “Coming out of town, no buses will go at the same time. We will have a consistency that we don’t have at the minute.”
The new timetables are hoped to be published in the coming week, Mr Coyne added.
One of the main concerns expressed by local residents at the meeting was the public consultation process initiated by Dublin Bus.
In this regard, the decision by Dublin Bus to take citybound 25b buses serving Griffeen Avenue through Foxborough (instead of the original plan to run them onto the Outer Ring Road from the Griffeen Avenue junction) caused great upset locally.
It was felt by some local commuters that this change would add up to ten minutes to the journey, while Foxborough is currently served by the frequent 25a. “We want to see Foxborough served as much as it needs to be but we need balance,” said a woman living in Adamstown.
The lack of public notification of this change to the new 25b was the cause of some criticism at the public meeting.
One woman stated that she was unaware of the proposed changes to the bus network until she received Deputy Gogarty’s leaflet on the public meeting through her letterbox.
Another woman, living in Elmbrook, a long-established estate in Lucan, stated that it takes her 20 minutes to walk to her nearest bus-stop.
“I am living here 20 years and it is 20 minutes to the nearest bus-stop. When Morton’s was there, there was a bus very near to me. But Dublin Bus has neglected this area which is one of the oldest areas in Lucan. “So, therefore I drive [to work].”
Speaking after the meeting, Deputy Paul Gogarty said: “The large turnout for the meeting last Wednesday indicates the interest in and concerns shared by many residents about the proposed changes to the bus service. The 25b service featured strongly, but was overshadowed on the night by the 25x.
“Many residents in the Finnstown/Adamstown area remain to be convinced that they will not be put out by moving the 25b service through Foxborough. I welcome the statement by Ray Coyne of Dublin Bus that if changes will be made quickly if something is not working. The routes are to be reviewed within two weeks, apparently.
“Most people in the estates east of the Penny Hill welcome the changes, as they will enhance the service there and it was always my contention, and still is, that a balance needs to be found and that the bus lane on the Outer Ring Road needs to be used more frequently.
“The main new message that came out of the meeting I think was the concern expressed by users of the current 25x service which goes via Superquinn onto the N4 at Hillcrest and directly into the city centre. The people using this very well subscribed service will not only now have to go through Lucan estates, but they will also have to go through the Foxborough route on the 25b, which could easily mean a delay of 20 minutes or more from what they are currently getting. This in my view is unacceptable.
I “do hope that Dublin Bus analyses the times with the new service and does not put loyal existing customers out in an attempt to win more customers,” said Gogarty
