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WHEN ANDREW MONTAGUE became Dublin Mayor, one of his aims was: ‘Provide a Free Bike Scheme for Dublin’.
It’s still there, tucked in amongst his other aims (‘a thriving Dublin economy’, ‘more affordable housing’) on his Labour profile page.
But when he first mooted the idea, it didn’t quite stoke up the sort of enthusiasm he had hoped for.
“I was the first guy to propose it,” he said today, catching some shade under a tree as the midday sun blazed overhead onto Grand Canal. “There was so much cynicism about it.”
Nearby were Minister for Public and Commuter Transport, Alan Kelly, and Lord Mayor Christy Burke, who had spent the past half hour holding poses while perched on Dublin Bikes emblazoned with Coca-Cola Zero signs.
Montague had been inspired by bike schemes in cities like Copenhagen, which had also “faced the same battles and same cynicism and same disbelief”.
But he had also noted one important thing about them: “They eventually overcame the problems.”
“We were picking up a system that had already worked it out, that had gone through those all problems, so I was always confident it was going to work,” said Montague.
That proof was in the zero calorie carbonated pudding today, when yet another expansion of Dublinbikes, the scheme that faced that cynicism at the beginning, was announced.
The number of bikes is set to treble (to 1,500), and Coca-Cola Zero has invested a not insubstantial €2 million euro in the scheme.
“I didn’t realise the sheer scale of it, how successful it was going to be,” acknowledged Montague.
I knew they weren’t all going to be stolen and thrown in the river, but I didn’t know people would take to it with such numbers.
Pedalling into the future
He sees it as one day rivalling the Luas – which sees 90,000 trips a day – in terms of popularity. With 11 – 12,000 trips a day by Dublinbike, up from 6,000, he might not be aiming too high.
Now that his small hope for a bikes scheme has been so embraced by Dublin’s local authority (who have shed the cynicism and inspired their compatriots in Limerick, Galway, and Cork), and local people, he’s thinking of what should happen next.
“What we really need now is to provide the facilities to make cycling more comfortable for people,” he said, hoping for an expansion out to the suburbs.
As for the suggested North Quay changes, which would involve another cycling lane being constructed, he’s all for it. “Absolutely, we should,” he said. “We’ve got to make people feel confident about cycling”.
Why?
Because far more people can fit down the quays on a bike than can fit in a car. So it’s about getting the most amount of people around the city, about providing the best atmosphere for people visiting the city. It just makes for a friendlier, happier, more fun city, and bring it on.
Asked about any safety concerns with the bikes, he said that since Dublinbikes were launched, the number of fatalities in the city has plummeted. The council has also rolled out optional cycling classes in primary schools, which Montague would like to see in second level schools – and for adults too.
Lord Mayor Christy Burke was among those who initially wasn’t quite sure about Montague’s bike scheme proposals.
“I don’t think many of us at the time at City Council believe[d] it would take off like it did, certainly like an express train – it’s coming down the track and it’s very difficult to stop it,” he said, having just disembarked from a bike that was situated perilously close to the canal edge.
He wants to see a ‘kiddies scheme’ being introduced, to encourage healthy living among Dublin’s youngsters.
Burke welcomes the North Quay proposals “with caution”, due to the congestion in the area. “Let’s see how it goes. If it rock and rolls OK, then I’m OK – if there’s problems we’ll have to address it.”
“The majority of people want to see cycle lanes, we want to see cycle lanes, we want to see the law being adhered to,” added Burke.
https://vine.co/v/MILx6gjVrQ6
A ‘phenomenon’
Junior Minister Alan Kelly was, of course, “thrilled” with the latest expansion – despite the fact the €2m team-up with Coca-Cola Zero has seen some criticism.
Many people didn’t even believe this was possible.
“Let’s be frank about it – by most measurements this is the most successful bike schemes in the world,” said Kelly, who added that local authorities have to look at provision for cyclists “because the numbers are growing so fast”.
“Cycling in Ireland is going through a growth spurt” concluded Kelly. “The infrastructure around the cities is improving rapidly… it’s a phenomenon.”
Do you use Dublinbikes? Want a scheme in your local area? Tell us what you think in the comments.
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Will never forget Ray D’Arcy taking a dublin bike into his office on the launch day and proceeding to try to cut the lock with a hack saw – saying it will never work – bikes in the liffey yada yada yada – the height of cynicism.
I though he’d left the country!
He’s a grumpy bully.
Picks on the Catholic Church, Healy Rays etc… how brave!
He had James Blunt on the phone one day and as soon as it ended he slagged him off! WTF? Reckons Blunts and Coldplays music is too inoffensive for the show and then he plays Jack Johnson…. Brilliant.
Cynics are people who haven’t the liathroídi to try something new and feel the need to wreck others heads.
I use it and I’m glad of it. MUCH faster than Dublin Bus ( who won’t even respond to customer queries).
The stations need to be restocked a bit more regularly though.
Very good scheme although I havent used it as I have my own bike that I take everywhere. The next thing cyclists need to lobby for is bicycle friendly public transport. Stop Bus Eireann and Irish Rail charging to carry bikes.
Hold on, free transport …for bikes ? I thought that they were supposed to be peddled or is that out of fashion/
Rail yes, Buses no. there is extremely limited capacity on a Bus and Bikes are a really awkward shape for storage
It cost me 12.50 for a return ticket on Bus Eireann. Cost me 14 to carry my bike one way. The bike was over double the price of a person for a one way. Madness.
In Chicago all buses have a rack at the front which holds two bikes. Would be massively helpful in Dublin
Fog I take it you must be a jackean. Im talking about transport around the rest of the country 》50km. I agree Dublin county is an easy commute by bike however Dublin to Sligo or Waterford might pose a problem. Bikes and public transport need to work together to make long distance easy by bike.
Bus Eireann buses have a completely empty compartment (the other side to reg luggage) that could easily store 3 or 4 bikes. Drivers mentality it will take an extra min so whack on 12 Euro so it will be a grand easy journey and to hell with those cyclists. I even had a driver tell me there was no room until I told him to open the 2nd compartment which was empty. Not done up North.
How does this work with ,say, the Tour de France? Do they cycle to the edge of Paris and then hop on the Train to to Lyon or wherever.
Not quite the same as the Tour de France visiting relations the other side of the country on two wheels.
Taking your bike on Bus Eireann during the Tour De France has 2 problems. One, it would be cheating. Two, Bus Eireann don’t travel to France.
Luas need to start allowing bikes as well.
I overheard a conversation on the Galway train which I take to commute to Newbridge in Kildare – cyclist was telling a woman that he doesn’t get charged for his bike. Also have seen a guy putting his bike on a Bus Eireann bus from Newbridge to Dublin and not get charged for it, so I’m not sure where you get these charges for bicycles?
the luas is already packed enough without allowing bikes on it – anyway, surely if someone is taking the luas they are only going a short distance and if they had a bike would be able to cycle the distance? For example if someone is going out to Saggart, there are no bike stations out there, therefore they wouldn’t be taking the bike out there!
It’s a good ten kilometres from town to Tallaght, up hill most of the way and more often than not the wind is against you. That puts some people off, so you could cycle into town, which is easy, and Luas back if they allowed a bike on. Metros in Europe allow bikes on, a system could be installed where there are hooks from the ceiling for bikes.
You can get away with just putting the bike on the bus or train, just like you can get away with not paying for the Luas. Most people do though, for fear of being caught.
@Ciara, last time I brought a bike onto Bus Eireann (which would have been one of the intercity buses about 2 years ago) I was warned that they had just changed the rules and now charged to take bikes, though this driver was kind enough to let bring it for free. Don’t know if the situation has changed since then.
Standard fare Dublin to Carrick on Shannon is €11 return for the bike. I get charged all the time.
This makes me so proud of our city. Dublin is a wonderful place.
Dublin Bikes are fantastic. The only way Dublin Bus will ever rival them is when buses become driverless…
Another idea would be to have suitable sized single bicycle storage compartments in the multi-story car park areas. By using or renting a suitably designated swipe card a cyclist could cycle to his/her nearest storage area, swipe the card any load the bike in a container. When he/she needs the bike it could be retrieved. It the person cycles to another destination in town the swipe card could be used to store the bike there. The designated swipe card could be used at any or the destinations enabling the bicycle to be stored safely. The cyclist would load credit onto the card and in that way the system would be cashless. The bicycle locker system could be rented on a weekly/daily or monthly rate. This system could work in tandem!!! with the Dublin bicycle initiative that is in place. As a matter of fact every town could have its own similar system in place raising much needed revenue for the localities through sponsorship with local companies. Of course if the idea worked well then a lot of cars would taken off the road making the towns and cities safer, at the same time guaranteeing the security of people’s bicycles. Maybe the “Dragons” might invest!!!!!
Checked it out Jayo. The locations are all at stations. If these lockers were located in designated areas of underground car parks etc the whole system could be expanded.
On the way Michael, we’ve already had discussions with some of the local authorities and state agencies responsible on the back of an 18 month successful trial of the prototype system. Secure locker based bike storage in public areas using card/coded access is en route. More details will follow once we’re ready to go!
I wish they’d provide Dublin bikes on the S to S (Sutton to Sandymount) route, or even out to Howth / Dun Laoghire. It would be lovely to take a bike for a spin along the coast, especially in this weather.
Nice to see a healthy drink like coke zero being promoted on Dublin bikes. Mixed message??
I’m not surprised it’s taken off. Dublin bus is so slow. The Luas is a great service but sometimes walking is as quick as the bus depending on route.
Our local and national government should start spending much more on cycling proportionate to cars. For the simple reason that it is much more democratic. Bikes are cheaper, cause less congestion, less fatalities and would give kids more freedom. Designated cycling carriageways that are completely separated from roads would make cycling much more attractive. In cork city for example a nice flat bike carriageway could run all along the river Lee giving some 30000 people in Ballincollig cheap and convenient access to the city. And an awful lot of the route is already public park. It seems like such a no brainer. I would love to see this happen.
I used Dublin Bikes most days on my walk from the dart station to work. I think its great. The only issue is restocking and very often there are no bikes at certain stations. I raised this with Dublin Bikes who said one of the issues was that the Dublin Bike Transport vehicle is not permitted to use the Bus lane apparently.
I think the numbers speak for themselves, there is no justification for enforcing a helmet law in Ireland when there are so few serious incidents resulting from not wearing one. The responsibility for wearing a helmet should fall on the cyclist, not the state. As John Horan said above, such enforcement would only drive down the number of people that would take up cycling as a part of their daily commute.
Even the biggest cycling nation on earth (the Netherlands) doesn’t have a law requiring helmets, and they are most certainly the model on which all modern bicycle schemes are based. Although, I will concede, they have much better/safer cycling infrastructure than us
Who pays the capital and running costs of this project ???
It has absolutely NOTHING got to do with Dublin bus drivers, its the public who use Dublin bus who are the problem
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