January 05, 2012

Don't look back...

So, the government of the "Little Green Island" just announced that the inner city centre will be mainly for those on foot (also called pedestrians), cyclists and public transportation - no private vehicles anymore!

At first it sounds very "green" - and surely is if it was not nonsense! Not allowing cars into inner city centre of Dublin would demand a much - far, far, far much - better public transportation infrastructure than we have today! Areas like the north-west of Dublin are totally abandoned at their own fate, either in terms of buses or trains.

Dublin Bus is very well-known by the disservices they offer from long time, where buses have a no-show policy which Dublin Bus seems to not care at all! Drivers who skip stops at their wish, leaving people at the mercy of the weather! The Nitelink service which, in some routes, runs every 30 minutes Friday and Saturday, from 00:00 to 04:00 and costs ONLY €5!!! No services Monday to Thursday, so you have to get your bus by 11:30PM!

Trains towards the city HAVE to go through a unique hub - Connolly Station. They get there easy and quick... then they have to "wait their turn" (!) to serve the platform - yes, I know... it's hilarious!!! The timetable? For the west link, for instance, in the middle of the day you have to wait one hour to get into a train, not to mention they finish serving at 11PM and the first train on Sundays and bank holidays is 10AM! Buses as well!!!

"Oh, but it might be good for bikers", one may say. Not so fast, buddy! There are not enough corridors for bikes, and they are not that safe at all! Drivers don't really respect bikers, you'll quick learn that!

The government should care about the infrastructure first, and then come with these preposterous ideas...