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After my post yesterday, I got a few critical voices about the quality of that cycle lane and why it& #39;s no reason for celebration. Firstly, yawn. No sh*t Sherlock. But a couple of points on the Phibsboro road and the area as a whole
First of all, it& #39;s the greatest area in the city 
https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="☺" title="Lächelndes Gesicht" aria-label="Emoji: Lächelndes Gesicht"> It& #39;s literally 10mn (walk) from cinema, theatre, we have a great library, plenty of history, a multicultural population, beautiful food, a canal, close to the Phoenix Park. In short, it could be paradise.
Unfortunately, 2 national roads have torn the community apart. The Phisboro road is one of the busiest in the city, the NCR is congested all the time. Until Covid, you had to wait 3 minutes at Doyle& #39;s Corner to cross the road as a pedestrian (and had 6 seconds to do so)
The very dynamic @Phizzfest talked for years to everyone. DCC, the NTA. They consulted engineers, architects, and were told time after time that nothing was possible because the flow of motorised traffic in and out of the city cannot be disturbed
And that& #39;s what we& #39;ve been hearing. It doesn& #39;t matter that you live here, that your school is here, that your business is here. Whatever is passing through the place you call home is more important than the people actually raising their kids here.
A community torn apart by 2 motorways is not an easy place to organise anything. On the Phibsboro road, there& #39;s a lot of people in underpaid labour, who live in far too expensive flats rented by slumlords.
On the other side of the village, there& #39;s a lovely area, tree lined, Victorian houses, where @Phizzfest has been started. Is it by chance that a community organisation started in an area where you can talk to your neighbours? I& #39;d think not.
So, after 12 years of incessantly calling, writing, ranting, demonstrating, signing petitions, a few bollards appear in front of my place, yes, it is something I am happy about. Because it is a nudge in the right direction for an abandoned area like the Phibsboro road.
Phibsboro never gets the attention of even the most dynamic lobby groups when it comes to urbanism or cycle lanes. So did I celebrate yesterday? No, because I want planters, and terraces, and a cycle lane where my imaginary kids could cycle
But for the first time ever were we told by the Council that the area got its attention. And I& #39;m planning to keep it that way. Onwards and upwards!
