Plans to divert traffic away from Bray’s Main Street

Northbound traffic could be diverted away from the main street in Bray to Herbert Road, under a scheme approved by the NTA.

At a meeting last week between council officials and the NTA, funding approval was given to go ahead with a traffic management scheme that aims to reduce north bound traffic on Bray Main Street.

The scheme would allow for increased priority for buses, district engineer Liam Bourke told members of Bray Municipal District.

The work entails new signing and new and modified signalling, including bus detection, with only minor civil works.

Through traffic northbound will be discouraged and diverted to the Herbert Road.

The engineer said that the proposal is considered essential in preparation of the opening of the new Bray Town Centre, which will generate additional town centre traffic.

He said that the Killarney Road and Vevay Road Cycle Scheme has been on hold for the last few years over concerns by the NTA on related town centre traffic issues.

‘In view of the agreement to advance with the Bray Bus Priority & Congestion Mitigation Scheme, the NTA have agreed to the council proceeding with the detailed design of these schemes,’ said Mr Bourke.

He said that the scheme doesn’t mean that all traffic would be diverted onto Herbert Road.

‘That is not going to work,’ said Cllr Joe Behan. ‘Some outside agency is telling us what we have to do with our town,’ he said. ‘And buses will determine everything in the town centre

‘We have been waiting years for a car park in the town centre,’ he said, adding ‘anyone who wants to get to Dublin from the other side of the town will be diverted through what are primarily residential areas.’ He said that there would be uproar among residents. ‘They are already complaining of the speed of traffic despite the fact that we reduced the speed limit,’ he said.

‘I don’t know how far along this project is but I am demanding that we have a say,’ said Cllr Behan.

Cllr Aoife Flynn Kennedy agreed that the plans have to come to the members. ‘I welcome it being looked at,’ she said. ‘People bringing children to schools on the Vevay Road area are experiencing near misses and it really needs to be looked at,’ she said. ‘There are concerns regarding where the traffic will go but at the moment there is a risk of losing a life.’

Cllr Erika Doyle asked for clarity on what route the diversion would take. ‘While we want to encourage more people on buses, obviously there would be a huge reaction from residents to pushing a problem from one are to another,’ she said. ‘There are already tailbacks on Herbert road.’

Cllr Doyle said that she is on the parents committee for st Cronan’s school. She said that the traffic on the Vevay is very dangerous with people parking and so on. She said that there are a handful of parking spaces in the area and asked if their possible removal could be investigated. She also asked if the cycle scheme design is segregated. ‘If not then it will be parked on, so probably pointless.’ The engineer said that the NTA are prepared now to invest more into getting the space required for segregated lanes.

‘We have ourselves been anxious to progress the Vevay and Killarney Road schemes for a long time,’ he said. ‘The triangle at the Town Hall was always contentious. The scheme has been on hold for a long time. We could have progressed from Church Road on. The NTA said the whole lot had to be done.’

Various models had been looked at which were not feasible.

He said that there will be public consultation regarding the diversion of traffic, and before that they need to gather more information regarding traffic flows in the area.