The number of shoppers on Dublin's Grafton and Henry streets increased in the first quarter of this year compared to the same period in 2004, a survey has suggested.
The survey by property consultant CB Richard Ellis Gunne says the number of shoppers rose despite the opening of the Dundrum shopping centre.
However, Don Nugent, director of Dundrum Town Centre, said yesterday that Dundrum saw its facility as an extension of the city centre rather than taking trade away from it.
The survey shows that for the first three months of this year, pedestrian footfall on Grafton Street was up by almost 14 per cent on the same period last year. There was an average of 14,500 pedestrians per hour.
Research analyst Lisa Corcoran said the trend was also in evidence on Henry Street, where an average of 13,500 people per hour were recorded in the first quarter, an increase of 12 per cent over the first three months of 2004.
The proximity of the Luas had been a significant factor in maintaining high levels of pedestrian traffic on both streets, she added.
Cormac Kennedy, director of retail at the consultants, said: "This is a testament to the quality of retail offering in Dublin city centre and is reflective of the strength of consumer spending in the Irish economy at the moment."
Mr Nugent pointed out that Dundrum was opened on March 3rd, which would account for only one of the three months in the survey.
Dundrum Town Centre had its first million shoppers by the end of the first two weeks of opening.