COMHAIRLE CONTAE ÁTHA CLIATH THEAS
SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

MEETING OF LUCAN AREA COMMITTEE

Tuesday, December 17, 2013

MOTION NO. 17

MOTION: Councillor W. Lavelle

"That this Area Committee: NOTING the report from the Roads Dept. to the November meeting of this Committee which stated, in relation to traffic on Newcastle Road, that: 'since September the level of congestion has increased when compared to previous years. This is primarily due to capacity provided in recent years being finally used up and any additional growth in traffic causing congested conditions' FURTHER NOTING the serious challenges which this reality poses with respect to the future planning and development of Adamstown SDZ. REQUESTS the Manager to provide an updated traffic impact assessment for the revised level of development being proposed for Adamstown SDZ; and FURTHER REQUESTS that a meeting be set-up, as a matter of urgency, between this Committee and the National Transport Authority (to be attended also by officials of the Adamstown planning team and this Council's Roads Dept) so as to allow for a detailed discussion on the future traffic and transport planning for Adamstown SDZ, ahead of the elected members being asked to consider the Manager's draft amendments."

REPORT:

Peak time congestion apparent on the R120 Newcastle Road between Lucan Shopping Centre and Hillcrest is a local traffic management issue primarily arising as a result of a busy shopping centre with supermarket, two schools and church being located at the point of access to the N4 from the immediately adjoining area.  The development of Adamstown is not contingent on the creation of significant additional traffic capacity at this location.

Measures to improve junction and link efficiency between the Shopping Centre entrance and Hillcrest, better manage the need to travel by car on this link and in the general area at certain times and to encourage a shift to more sustainable modes, throughout Lucan, are all required, irrespective of the future development of Adamstown.  Further to this and in the context of a revised scope for a Lucan Movement Framework, the Planning and Roads Departments jointly met the NTA in recent days.  It was agreed that there are five areas for consideration as follows:-

1)                   N4 access, to be examined with the NRA in the context of an ongoing NRA N4/N7corridor study

2)                   Review of existing (Network Direct) bus routes and capacity

3)                   Access to bus stops on the R136 (Outer Ring Road)

4)                   Lucan network movement (i.e. movement between attractors such as the Village, shopping centres and schools)

5)                   R120-N4 design review from Shopping Centre to the N4 to determine options to improve efficiency

The NTA has confirmed availability for a meeting with the Lucan Area Committee in respect of the above at the earliest opportunity.

In relation to Adamstown, the proposed amendments to the existing Planning Scheme are framed in the existing strategic planning context as follows:-

• The current Adamstown Planning Scheme enables a further 8,700 residential units to be built on a phased basis;
• There is no statutory requirement to amend the approved Planning Scheme;
• In the light of changed economic circumstances, a series of amendments were recently proposed to enable a greater number of own door housing units with gardens to be built to accommodate housing demand arising in the Greater Dublin and Lucan areas;
• The amendments to the Planning Scheme propose a reduction in the overall amount of development permissible, from a maximum of 10,000 homes down to 6,600- 8,000 (i.e. a further 5,300-6,700 as opposed to 8,700);
• The Transport implications of the amendments have been assessed by the NTA, who have indicated that they are satisfied with the proposals.

The overall reduction in the amount of development has been carefully balanced with overall the commitment to Adamstown from both the public and private sectors:-

• In terms of transport alone, the 1,300 homes built in Adamstown to date have been accompanied by construction of a new railway station, a new 2km link road with QBC between Adamstown and the Outer Ring Road, significant upgrades to the Lucan-Newcastle Road adjoining Adamstown including the removal of a narrow bridge, doubling of the railway line and the improvement of services into Heuston;
• In addition to the above, the Outer Ring Road, N4 and M50 upgrades and Luas Red Line have all been completed since the Adamstown Plan was approved in 2003;
• Further infrastructural investment in schools, drainage and power networks has also been made at significant cost;
• The future development of Adamstown will be accompanied by additional improvements to the roads and transportation networks and will not be solely dependent on any one road link;
• The amount of infrastructure required to serve Adamstown has not been diminished in the proposed amendments to the Planning Scheme, despite the overall reduction in the maximum amount of development permissible.

The strategic planning commitment to the development of Adamstown has resulted in the expenditure of tens of millions of euro on and adjacent to the site to create a new community, supported by hundreds of millions of euro worth of strategic infrastructure, to make it one of the most sustainable locations for the development of housing on the Greater Dublin area, for which there is growing demand.  The purpose of the proposed amendments is to ensure that sustainable development can continue on a planned and phased basis in the context of the planning framework set out in the 2003 Planning Scheme.

Public submissions on the proposed amendments are currently being considered and will form the basis of a Manager's Report to the elected members of the Council, prior to the Council's determination of the proposed amendments, which may be appealed to An Bord Pleanala.