Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council are proposing to improve walking and cycling access to Stepaside village. This is a really positive change for the village and residents who live nearby and I strongly welcome it. It will also facilitate much safer connections down to shops, schools and the new library on Ballyogan Road via the Cruagh Greenway. The project is being funded by the National Transport Authority as part of the €360m annual walking and cycling investment secured by the Green Party in government.
Details of the proposal
You can download the above PDF here. The proposals include the following measures:
- New raised entry treatment at the entrance to St. Patrick’s Park to facilitate safer pedestrian and cycle movements across the junction.
- Upgrade of existing footpath on the northern side of Enniskerry Road.
- Construction of a
two-way segregated cycle track on the northern side of Enniskerry Road, providing a beneficial cycle connection from the Cruagh Greenway to Stepaside Village.
- Reduction in carriageway width on Enniskerry Road between Stepaside Park and Stepaside Village to encourage slower vehicular speeds on approach to the village.
- Tie in with the proposed traffic lights at Stepaside Park.
- Upgrade of existing signalised pedestrian crossing to new toucan crossing (pedestrian and cycle crossing) in Stepaside Village.
Overall, the aim of this project is to improve walking and cycling access to Stepaside village.
Public Consultation
The council are running a public consultation and are welcoming all views. It’s open from today until 26th May. You can complete an online survey here, email your views to [email protected] or in writing to the suggestion box in Stepaside Post Office. The voices of people who are in favour of projects are often under-represented in these consultations, so I would encourage you to make a submission. The survey or a quick email to say “I support the proposal” takes less than 1 minute.
I will be making a submission on the project myself too and will seek positive changes where possible. If you have any questions or suggestions, please don’t hesitate to contact me by phone 0876065648 or email [email protected].
FAQs
It’s always hard to predict when a project will begin construction as there are many factors at play. At a guess, construction on this project may start by the end of 2024 and finish by summer 2025.
This is Phase 1 as part of improving walking and cycling in Stepaside. Phase 2 will come after and will involve changes in the village itself. I have engaged with council officials on Phase 2 emphasising the need to prioritise walking and cycling while also seeking a more sustainable arrangement for car parking for those who need it.
The Cruagh Greenway is due to be extended to Enniskerry Road. The new extension will run from where it currently ends in Stepaside Park, through the green space and then come out near where the Stepaside signs are on Enniskerry Road.
This extension is on private developer-owned land and the developer has applied for planning permission for it. The council granted planning permission for it in 2022 and this was appealed to An Bord Pleanála, who have still not made a decision.
Some details of the current proposal could depend on how An Bord Pleanála decides that appeal.
There is a strong demand from people for improved walking and cycling links to Stepaside village. Without providing this infrastructure, more people who want to walk or cycle, will drive instead, creating more traffic congestion and lack of parking for those who really need/want to drive.
Good question. At the March 2023 meeting of the Dundrum Area Committee, I secured a commitment from the Active Travel team to begin seeking funding from the NTA to progress a cycle track from the end of this current proposal, as far as De La Salle Palmerston RFC. This new cycle track will then meet with the new junction that will be built as part of the Glenamuck Distributor Link Road (due to start construction by the end of 2023). See here for further information.
The council have many teams working on many different stages of different projects. e.g. design and public consultation on this project doesn’t slow down the tendering process for the Glenamuck Distributor Road scheme or the preliminary technical surveys of Hillcrest Road.
This project will also make it safer and more comfortable to walk, wheel and push a buggy along this stretch of road. Reducing vehicle speeds on the approach to Stepaside village will also make the roads and the village safer for all people. This will also make it safer and more comfortable for people to reach the Luas, the Samuel Beckett and schools by bike/scooter. This means less traffic congestion on the roads in the area – a benefit for people who have no choice but to drive.
One of the purposes of this project is to make it safer for people to make work, school, social, leisure journeys by bike. Faster, more confident cyclists will still be able to cycle on the road if they wish, just as they do now. The revised road layout will reduce vehicular speeds and discourage dangerous overtaking on the approach to/exit from Stepaside village, making conditions safer for cyclists who prefer to stay on the road.
This is 250m of improved pedestrian and cycling infrastructure in the suburbs. It doesn’t reduce parking spaces anywhere and it doesn’t mean any car journey needs to be re-routed.
