Re: Re: O’ Connell Street

Yes eerie is an appropriate description, including the daylight hours! It is a most bizzare place now: not a main street, but not a secondary one either, located just off a major thoroughfare yet recieves little to no traffic. It’s more of a leftover space than a street.

It’s in a prime loaction yet there’s absolutely nothing on it – including people! Do you ever get the feeling walking along here that everyone’s very hushed and slightly nervous cause the street just feels so silent and weird?!

Agreed about the Luas works not finishing the place off properly; whereas the lack of traffic is great – it’s now one of the most pedestrian friendly streets in the city – some landscaping is badly needed. Not to go on about the linear thing again, but considering there’s no breaks on Middle Abbey St at all save the Arnotts car park, a very impressive avenue of trees could be planted here that’d really look fantastic.

Something along the lines of the beautiful species of tree on Talbot St of all places – anyone see them?
They probably get mostly ignored due to people walking with their heads down along here for obvious reasons :), but they’re very attractive, esp when ‘leafing’ if there’s such a word, in spring.
I’m sure Peter knows what they are…:

Regarding O’Connell St, agreed about the median not being a fiasco. From a functional perspective it’s simply the bikes that are causing the problem – get rid of them and all is solved in that respect, though considering the attention to detail in the manner they were put down it seems they’re permanent… The fact as J. Serski pointed out that the median is now narrower than the old does not help either in fitting the bike parks in, whatever about the appearance.
Abbey St should be able to absorb a lot, as well as Cathal Brugha St for the northern end.

It’s a pity the Luas sub-station could not have been sunk; its sheer scale is going to significantly bulk out what is supposed to be a simple kiosk, not a dominant structure. Judging by the pictures though it will be finished off very well.
And just on the sinking of services, why was this 80s signal box dumped back down from space into the middle of the Eason’s pavement?!