We'll listen to residents, insists NTA as more than 2,000 submissions made on BusConnects

As controversy continues to surround proposals to deliver 12 sustainable transport corridors (STCs) across Cork City, the National Transport Authority (NTA) has insisted that the details in the current proposals are not a fait accompli.

A spokesperson for the NTA said the organisation will go through all the submissions received, and that they “will be reflected in the revised plans”.

“We went through a similar process for corridors in Dublin, plans for which were substantially changed arising from we received from local communities,” the spokesperson continued.

Approximately 2,300 submissions were made during the initial phase of public consultation, which ended last week.

Elements of the current proposals, including the potential acquisition of land, the removal of on-street parking, and the removal of trees have proved highly controversial.

Ahead of tonight’s Cork City Council meeting, Fianna Fáil councillors have tabled a motion calling for the current NTA plans to be rejected.

The motion also calls for better communication from the NTA, more consultation, and a permanent NTA office in Cork City.

The first round of public consultation regarding proposals to deliver the 12 new STCs as part of the €600m BusConnects Cork project commenced in late June and concluded last Monday.

A spokesperson for the NTA said that many of the submissions have already been published and the process of publishing the remainder "will be completed over the course of the coming weeks". 

Aims of the STCs

The proposed project for Cork includes the development of approximately 93 km of bus lane/ bus priority and 112 km of cycle facilities across the city with STCs proposed connecting the areas of Dunkettle, Mayfield, Blackpool, Hollyhill, Ballincollig, Bishopstown, Togher, the Airport Rd, Maryborough Hill and Mahon with the city centre as well connecting the Kinsale Rd to Douglas and Sunday’s Well to Hollyhill.

The corridors, the NTA has said, are aimed at transforming the public transport network “into a more efficient, sustainable model to help meet anticipated growth and future demand in the region”.

The proposed STCs have been described as “fundamental” to realising the ambition of the Cork Metropolitan Area Transport Strategy (CMATS) in increasing the number of people using public transport in Cork fourfold by 2040 and expanding the numbers cycling and walking by 33%.

Additionally, BusConnects Cork, the NTA said, will also be “essential” to achieve Cork’s objective to become one of Europe’s first climate-neutral cities by 2030.

993 properties could be impacted

However, concerns have been expressed over the impacts the proposed STCs would have, particularly in relation to the removal of on-street parking, the removal of trees and the acquisition of land.

The NTA has said due to “very little unused space along many of the busy roads in the city” it will be “necessary, in places, to acquire parts of the garden space of houses plus land in front of commercial properties, in order to allow the bus and cycle facilities to be provided”.

Speaking in relation to the acquisition of land at a press briefing in June, NTA deputy chief executive Hugh Creegan said that approximately 993 properties could be impacted but that, as the design evolves, a lesser number could be impacted.

“At the moment we’ve identified that approximately 993 properties could be impacted but we know from this type of work before that as the design evolves that number will reduce so we don’t know yet what the final number will be, but that gives an indication,” he said.

Where lands, such as parts of gardens, are being acquired for widening – the NTA has said it will purchase the portion of land from the property owners; ensure new landscaping and replanting of the gardens and compensation for the garden portion loss and disruption.

Where trees have to be removed from roadsides and footpaths, the organisation has committed to implementing “a comprehensive replanting programme” and that where there is a loss of parking spaces “and it is appropriate to provide replacement spaces”, it will “seek to provide, where feasible, alternative parking close by for residents and businesses”.

But concerns abound from local councillors, business owners and of the public, with criticism also levelled that communication and engagement with locals on the ground has been inadequate. 

One residents’ group said the communication process “has failed to be adequately robust” with another group saying the “timing of the consultation period over the summer months was not experienced as helpful”.

South-East ward

In the city’s South-East ward, the proposed widening of the Boreenmanna Rd, proposed restrictions to general traffic in Douglas, and a bridge proposal over Ballybrack Woods were some of the reoccurring concerns expressed in online submissions seen by The Echo.

Independent councillor Kieran McCarthy, in his submission, said the amount of emails and letters he has received from worried and frustrated constituents has been “huge”.

Mr McCarthy said he acknowledges “the need for improving the future of the city’s public transport” but that his “current confidence in the process is very limited”.

“At this moment in time, I see a very fragmented partnership between the general public and the stakeholders involved in Cork BusConnects.

“That partnership and dialogue needs to seriously improve if the epic parts of the project are going to get across the line. The top-down manner of consultation is very present,” he said.

Mr McCarthy was also critical in relation to the timing of the public consultation which partly took place over the summer and described some aspects as “very tokenistic”.

Compulsory purchase order proposals, Mr McCarthy said, are “of very serious concern” to his constituents adding that “the amount of these proposals is a very high price to pay for the implementation of Cork BusConnects”.

He described the level of proposed tree felling under the current plans as “environmental vandalism” and expressed particular concern in relation to the proposal to build a bridge over Ballybrack Woods.

Elsewhere in the ward, Fine Gael councillor Des Cahill said he believes the proposed widening of Boreenmanna Rd to create bus and cycle lanes in both directions is “totally unnecessary”.

“An outbound bus lane is sufficient and a two-way cycle lane would suffice.

“The traffic issue is at the junction of the Boreenmanna Rd and the City Link Rd. No solution to the traffic on the link road is offered in this plan,” he continued.

In his submission, Mr Cahill also said he disagrees with current proposals relating to Douglas which includes restricting general traffic to local access only on East Douglas St.

Plans for the Douglas area also include bus priority and segregated cycle lanes on the Douglas Rd, which would necessitate the removal of trees.

“The natural beauty, history and identity of Douglas and in particular the Douglas Rd will be destroyed forever if this current plan goes ahead,” Mr Cahill argued.

This was among the points raised by the Douglas Road Woolhara-Bellair Residents’ Group.

“The Douglas Rd is one of the last mature green routes in urban Cork and ought to be celebrated and protected for this reason,” the group said in their submission.

They also said proposals in relation to land acquisition have caused distress among residents.

The submission was also critical of the consultation process and said the timing of such over the summer months “was not experienced as helpful” and that official documents on the plans were “overstating the benefits and downplaying the negative effects”.

South-Central ward 

In the city’s South-Central ward, Green Party councillor Dan Boyle said he s “the intent behind the BusConnects proposals”, but warned that “substantial changes” will need to be made in the updated design to “encourage public buy-in into the necessary changes”.

Mr Boyle, in his submission, said it is “vital that we democratise our road space so that pedestrians, cyclists, and public-transport s have greater access to better and more safe movement across our city”.

“What follows the initial first-draft proposals has not been, nor should it have been, expected to be received as being universally popular.

“The public events that have occurred have been good experiences but to reach their full potential only substantial changes in the next draft will encourage public buy-in into the necessary changes,” he continued.

However, Mr Boyle voiced opposition to some of the current proposals, including the bridge over Ballybrack Woods in Douglas, locally known as ‘The Mangala’.

“Proposals to dramatically reduce the number of trees and incursion into wooded areas are counterproductive,” he said.

“They reduce important carbon sinks and create the potential for increased carbon emissions.

“Emblematic of this is the proposal for a bridge through Ballybrack Woods/The Mangala that would be a greater benefit for car traffic rather than for more sustainable transport,” he said.

He also suggested that on major arterial roads, “parallel one-way traffic systems matched with contra flow bus lanes should be used as much as possible” and said under the STCs, all primary and secondary schools should be “incorporated into a connected network of adjacent and nearby cycle lanes”.

Among the concerns expressed by Independent councillor Paudie Dineen in his submission was the loss of on-street parking, particularly mentioning the proposed removal of parking on Evergreen Rd.

Mr Dineen opined that the current plans “are not sympathetic to the current streetscape and residents’ concerns”.

Ballincollig proposals spark criticism 

Meanwhile, former Lord Mayor of Cork, Fianna Fáil councillor Colm Kelleher has expressed concerns over the emerging preferred route for the sustainable transport corridor connecting Ballincollig to the city centre.

In his submission, the south-west ward councillor said he fully recognises the “need for top-class public transport service and the benefits such a service will have for Cork and the physical environment”.

However, Mr Kelleher, who is also a long-standing business owner in Ballincollig, said he believes the loss of on-street parking “will have a detrimental effect on trade in the town”.

“It will seriously discommode elderly regarding access to three pharmacies and two medical surgeries and two opticians on the main street but to use one example,” he said.

Mr Kelleher said he believes the “problematic changes” are those in Ballincollig town centre. 

As part of the proposed plans for the route, bus priority is to be provided by restricting non-essential through traffic on Main St through the provision of a new bus gate between Harrington St and High St, with buses and cyclists only permitted to through this section. 

Through-traffic flow would be diverted to Old Fort Rd to the north of the town centre, with the section of Main St between High St and Harrington St becoming a bus and cycle-only section of the corridor.

In documentation on the proposals, the NTA states that some of the existing on-street parking will be removed to provide for dedicated cycle infrastructure; however, loading areas and setdown areas will be provided on Main St.

Among his concerns, Mr Kelleher said he believes existing traffic problems “will be exacerbated by any additional traffic coming from the east of Ballincollig”. 

This was echoed by another business owner who said the proposals would cause traffic mayhem.

North-East ward 

In a lengthy submission on the proposals relating to the city’s North-East ward, Green Party councillor Oliver Moran said he wished to give his “broad ” for the proposed STCs.

The current draft plans, he said, are “an initial starting point, which the NTA has presented to city councillors as lacking local at this point”.

“I believe that as the proposals receive that during this consultation, and if local communities can engage well on the issues involved, the plan will evolve into a set of designs that will benefit communities and businesses along these routes, as well as public-transport s across the city,” he continued.

In his 17-page submission, Mr Moran suggested a number of amendments to the current proposals.

In relation to Blackpool, he said “the provision of bus gates and some restrictions on private motor vehicles — and the shifting of focus to active and sustainable transport for Blackpool — should be accompanied with a public realm investment in the village centre”.

The bus gates, Mr Moran said, should operate 24/7, “otherwise they will be ignored by motorists”.

Meanwhile, in a t submission from Sinn Féin TD Thomas Gould, Sinn Féin councillors Mick Nugent, Kenneth Collins, Eolan Ryng, and Sinn Féin local area rep Mandy O’Leary Hegarty, the party said that BusConnects “could be a transformative, sustainable plan” but that they are “deeply disappointed” with the current proposals.

In relation to the STCs impacting the northside, they described the potential loss of on-street parking along the Mayfield to city route as “significant” and asked “that the NTA consider how this will impact on the local area”.

They also expressed concerns about proposed traffic restrictions in Blackpool, stating that “given the potential impact on traffic volumes and businesses” consideration should be given as to “whether these bus gates are necessary 24/7 or whether these could be operational during specific periods only”.

Harbour View Rd

In the city's North-West ward, “extensive revision” is needed to the proposed changes on Harbour View Rd under the Hollyhill to City (STC D), Sinn Féin in Cork have said.

In their t submission Sinn Féin TD Thomas Gould, Sinn Féin councillors Mick Nugent, Kenneth Collins, Eolan Ryng, and Sinn Féin local area rep Mandy O’Leary Hegarty, the party expressed concern over numerous aspects of the proposed STCs.

In relation to the Hollyhill to City route, the party said the proposed scheme “must be delivered in conjunction with, or as complementary to, the required traffic calming currently, separately, proposed for the Harbour View Rd area”.

“There is deep concern amongst residents here, and those who risk losing driveways must be engaged with extensively alongside community groups who have campaigned hard for traffic calming.

“The proposal, as it exists, requires extensive revision. We stand with the community in their opposition to the plan as proposed,” the submission continued.

Party noted that the portion of Harbour View Rd at Carbery Grove is “very narrow” and said they would “query the practicality” of the proposal to provide two cycle lanes, two bus lanes and two lanes of general traffic along the stretch of road.

“The proposal to remove a portion of driveways and gardens at this junction will also leave these potentially too short for even a single car-parking space,” they added.

“Similar losses may be experienced to driveways and gardens at the Beara Drive junction with Harbour View Rd.”

Party also voiced opposition to other proposals along the route, including removing through traffic from Cathedral Rd.

“Given the role of Cathedral Rd as a key spinal route for those entering and exiting the city centre from the northside of Cork City, removal of traffic from this road, and thus pushing these onto secondary roads, which are narrower, could result in significant traffic chaos,” they stated.