Fianna Fail TD Mr Conor Lenihan has called on Dublin Corporation to close Dublin’s main thoroughfares next month so the city can have a ‘proper’ European Car Free Day.
Mr Lenihan said the decision by Dublin Corporation to close just one short stretch of roadway along the quays on September 22nd next is ‘madness’.
Dublin, Cork, Limerick, Galway and Portlaoise were among 751 cities and European towns that restricted the use of cars for a day last year to promote a cleaner environment. But only a limited number of Dublin’s streets were closed to cars from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
This year, in an effort to raise awareness and reverse the trend in increasing private-vehicle commuting and declining public-transport use, Dublin, Cork, Galway, Limerick, Sligo, Waterford, Castlebar, Greystones, Dublin South, Clonmel and possibly Portlaoise will participate in the no-car day.
The proportion of people driving a car to work in Dublin rose from 46 per cent in 1996 to 50 per cent last year, according to a recently published ESRI report. At the same time, the proportion using public transport and cycling fell.