STREET IS OPEN FOR (NOT EXACTLY) ALL

DUBLIN City Council is to be praised for pedestrianising Capel Street, leading the way in what should be a dividend from the Covid pandemic to better use of our civic spaces.

However, such an initiative cannot come at a cost to people with different needs, leading to exclusion rather than inclusion.

The street’s former disabled parking spaces have been moved to Fishamble Street, across the River Liffey.

But this street is narrow and access from both passenger doors is limited. It is also one of the steepest hills in the capital’s city centre. Four-time Paralympian John Fulham tested the spaces for us this week, and concluded that they would pose significant challenges and risks for those less fit than himself.

In opening up Capel Street to all, Dublin City Council should not be engaged in a box-ticking exercise that does not serve the needs of those for whom it is allegedly designed.