BusConnects Cork plans: Groups express ‘a lot of anger’ at meeting 

CONCERNS around loss of on-street parking and the impact on a popular Douglas woods were raised by city residents ahead of a community forum yesterday on the National Transport Authority’s (NTA) proposals to develop 12 sustainable transport corridors.

However, the NTA said public will refine the plans, which form part of the BusConnects Cork project.

Independent councillor Kieran McCarthy said there was particular concern about a proposal to develop a bridge providing a footpath, cycle track, bus lane, and traffic lane in each direction over the woods known locally as ‘the Mangala’. The bridge would be developed at the junction of Grange Rd and Donnybrook Hill over the Mangala to connect with the Carrigaline Rd.

Mr McCarthy said the bridge would “blow out half the woods”, destroying “the lungs of Donnybrook Hill”.

“It’s a very, very serious proposal that, for me, is an act of environmental vandalism,” he said.

Community forums taking place

As part of the public consultation process, five community forums are taking place this month, the latest of which was at Nemo Rangers GAA Club on the South Douglas Road yesterday evening focusing on the proposed Togher to city, Airport Road to city and Kinsale Road to Douglas — routes G, H and K.

Mr McCarthy feels there has been inadequate engagement from the NTA on the proposals.

“It’s a case of poor communication by the NTA and very much dependent on local public reps to go out and tell the story of what’s being proposed." 

He said he was left unsatisfied by a previous community forum he attended last week.

“The only thing that really emerged from the meeting last week was make submissions, make submissions, make submissions, but there’s a lot of devils in these details and people need to be aware of it,” he said.

Meeting closed to media 

Speaking to The Echo ahead of the meeting yesterday evening, which was closed to the media, Ashling Desmond from Shamrock Lawn Residents’ Group said she has major concerns with the proposals to develop a bridge over the Mangala. Marie Piper Gregan, who lives in Crosshaven but is originally from Douglas, said she believes the bridge proposal would “destroy” the woods.

She said she felt it was important to attend the meeting yesterday evening to voice her opinion.

“We may not be able to do anything, but at least we can say we tried.”

Concerns about the loss of on-street parking in some areas was also highlighted by several of the meeting’s attendees.

Mike Bowler and Matt Hartnett from the Evergreen Road Residents’ Group said the loss of parking along Evergreen Road would be detrimental to residents and local businesses who have no driveway parking.

Joe Healy and Tom Fielding, who both live on Pearse Road in Ballyphehane, also voiced concerns about the loss of parking if the plans as proposed went ahead.

The proposals by the NTA include approximately 93km of bus lane/bus priority and 112km of cycle facilities across the city. Attendance for each community forum is limited to two representatives from groups such as — resident and community associations, disability and special interest groups and business organisations on the corridors, with local public representatives also in attendance.

Deputy CEO of the NTA Hugh Creegan stressed that the current proposals are “not final plans for development”.

“Nothing is set in stone yet, so everything is there to be teased through. 

"We’re not so wedded to anything that it can’t be changed.

“I suspect there will be changes on all corridors,” Mr Creegan added.

“We’ll have a second round of consultation when we’ve completed an update of the design taking of the and that will probably be in Q2 of next year,” he said of the next stages.

Speaking following the meeting, Mr McCarthy said there was “a lot of anger” expressed by groups and that he believed attendees should have been allocated more time to speak as they had “a lot to say and a lot they wanted to express”.