A ban introduced two years ago on cars travelling into Dublin city on North Strand Road, one of the busiest routes on the northside, was finally lifted on Sunday.
The one-way system was put in place in August 2022 to facilitate the construction of the Clontarf-to-city centre cycle route which is almost complete, with all work now expected to end in November.
The restrictions required private cars, vans and lorries coming into the city at Fairview to divert at Edge’s Corner on to Fairview Strand and Ballybough Road. Motorists could continue on Summerhill to reach the city centre, or use Portland Row to access the Five Lamps and Connolly Station on Amiens Street.
Residents on dozens of small roads that feed on to North Strand were also prohibited from using the road inbound and had to first drive north out of town to head back south on the diversion route. Several businesses, particularly in Fairview, reported significant drop in trade due to the extensive work outside their premises and reduced access for cars.
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The cycle route is part of a €62 million project that also involves watermains works and new bus lanes. The route will provide safe access from the city to the off-road Dublin Bay cycle path, which runs from Sutton to Clontarf.
Local Fine Gael councillor Naoise Ó Muirí said lifting the restrictions would be a great relief for local residents who had shown “patience and forbearance during an arduous period of works”.
He urged Dublin City Council to complete remaining snagging works “as soon as possible so cycling commuters can use their new cycling facilities”.
The route was proposed more than a decade ago at an estimated cost of €7 million. However, the project was beset by delays and underwent several redesigns, including one following protests in 2017 over plans to cut down 50 trees in Fairview Park. The council subsequently amended its plans to save 42 of the trees.
In February 2019, the council published revised costs of €20 million following design changes and the decision to include extensive water mains replacement and new sewerage systems in the project, as well as a link through Fairview Park as part of the Tolka Valley greenway.
The project again stalled due to a failure, the council said, to reach funding agreements with Irish Water and National Transport Authority concerns about proposed bus diversions during construction.
The costs had increased from €20 million to €62 million due to “enhanced streetscape, additional planting and upgrades of the public realm throughout the scheme” and the project incorporated “major upgrades of 6km of water mains and part of the Tolka Valley greenway” the council said.
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