Author: Dublin City Council

The Dublin Liffey Quays refers to the two roadways and quays that run along the north and south banks of the River Liffey in Dublin City Centre. Both roadways run approximately 4.3 km from Sean Heuston Bridge in the west. The eastern end of the north roadway is at East-Link Bridge while the south roadway turns southward at the Grand Canal.  

Seventeen bridges cross the river along the line of The Quays: three of them are exclusively pedestrian bridges, one a railway bridge, one other for Luas trams (with another planned) and pedestrians, and the remainder for vehicular and pedestrian use.  The quays have incorporated a one-way traffic system since 1982 – the north quays operating from west to east and the south quays from east to west.  The Liffey Quays form an integral part of the city’s traffic network, serving the core city centre with various bridges connecting the north and south city.  It is a primary access and servicing corridor for businesses in Dublin City Centre. Traffic movement along this corridor is generally tidal in nature, that is, the predominant movement is towards the city centre in the morning and away from the city centre in the evening. 

The Liffey Cycle Route has been an important objective of Dublin City Council (DCC) and the National Transport Authority (NTA) since 2013.  It was identified in the Greater Dublin Cycle Network Plan (2013), and is incorporated into the approved National Transport Authority Greater Dublin Area Transport Strategy (2016 -2035) and the Dublin City Development Plan 2016 – 2022.  The objectives of the Liffey Cycle Route are:

1. To provide a safe continuous cycle facility in both directions through the study area (Liffey corridor between the Phoenix Park and the Tom Clark East Link Bridge in the east-west direction and between North Kings Street/Parnell Street and Dame Street/Thomas Street in the north-south direction);
2. To be consistent with the National Cycle Policy Framework and the NTA’s Transport Strategy for the Greater Dublin Area (2016 – 2035);
3. To comply with the NTA’s national Cycle Manual and principles within.

Numerous options were assessed to advance this primary route on the Cycle Network Plan for the Greater Dublin Area including the following:

• Two-way cycle tracks, both along and parallel to the River Liffey Corridor;
• One-way cycle tracks, North and South of the River Liffey; and
• Various combinations of the above. 

Each proposed option faced specific alignment and environmental concerns, including:

• Key pinch-points;
• Bus capacity and operational requirements, particularly at the busy central section of the corridor; and
• Heritage constraints, including the need to respect and avoid historic bridge parapets. 

The Liffey Cycle Route - Options Assessment Study considered the feasibility of all possible options through the study area, including on-line options along both Rover Quays and parallel routes to the North and South.  It also includes options that on first inspection may not readily lend themselves to the receiving environment but might form a viable solution if combined with others. This included options that involve sharing with the Luas, options for the diversion of some modes from the river corridor, and options for changes to the existing traffic circulation arrangement along the River Liffey. The options Assessment Report describes all feasible options in detail – a summary of options can be viewed here.

The proposed plan for the Liffey Cycle Route will commence non-statutory public consultation on Thursday 2^nd May, 2019 for a period of five weeks.  Reports and drawings will be made available on the Consultation Hub section of the Dublin City Council website from this date.  Submissions and comments are welcomed via the Consultation Hub.

For more information on the Velo-city Programme, Exhibition and Registration go to: https://www.velo-city2019.com 
Sign up for our newsletter: https://abbey.us9.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=fd5fa9b846888ef25e85f1973&id=75273fab2e
Follow us on social media: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn