Part of Dublin's quays to become single lane for cars

Car drivers expecting easier access to the city centre following the ban on five-axle lorries next month could find their progress impeded by the introduction of new bus lanes on the city quays.

Traffic will be reduced to one lane on Arran Quay and Ellis Quay for cars and other non-public transport vehicles from February 19th next in a move which Dublin City Council says will shorten bus journeys into the city by 20 minutes, but could significantly increase car journey times.

The introduction of the new bus lanes will coincide with the ban on Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGVs) with five axles or more from a city cordon area between the Royal and Grand canals and some suburban districts after February 19th.

The HGV strategy is being implemented by the council to maximise the use of the recently opened Dublin Port Tunnel and to stop large lorries from clogging up the city streets, particularly the north and south quays.

The council will today announce full details of the cordon and the permit system for HGVs that need to access the city centre for deliveries, or those run by businesses within the city centre.

In addition to the bus lanes on the north quays from Watling Street to Church Street, a new bus lane will be put inbound on St John's Road from the junction of Military Road to Stevens Lane in front of Heuston Station, and the peak-time bus lane on Parkgate Street will become a full-time bus lane. Alterations will be made to existing bus lanes on the rest of the quays to give buses priority at junctions.

The changes will result in an almost continuous bus lane along the city quays with the exception of the particularly narrow stretch along Aston Quay and Wellington Quay on the south of the Liffey.

However, the layout of these quays will be reviewed once the HGV strategy has bedded down, the council said.

Project manager of the council's Quality Bus Network Ciaran de Burca said the council had long wanted to extend the bus lane on the quays and saw the removal of large lorries as the ideal opportunity. "One of benefits of the port tunnel will be the reduction in general traffic which allows us to extend the bus lane and will mean the 14,000 passengers that use buses on the quays between 7am and 10am will gain a huge amount, with a reduction of about 20 minutes on their journeys."

Currently at peak times about 1,600 vehicles per hour travel along north quays.

Between 300 and 400 of these are HGVs, some 200 are buses and the remainder are cars and vans.