Dublin Alley ways?

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    • #706266
      garethace
      Participant

      Some people regret the loss of certain pedestrian used ‘ways and routes in the city’. I found this interesting discussion about the topic in American cities.

      Alleys opinions?

      http://www.cyburbia.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=7356&perpage=25&pagenumber=1

    • #727604
      sw101
      Participant

      seen too many crack heads shout at their crack hoes in kippy little alleyways around o’connell street to hold out much hope for their effective incorporation in the renewed urban fabric of dublin. thats got more to do with my opinions on scumbags than any like or dislike of narrow streetlets in cities.

      the patrolling issue is an important one, as well as cleaning. are their any alleys in dublin that are well lit, oft frequented all day and night, and desirable and safe? connections around grafton street and stephens green spring to mind

    • #727605
      urbanisto
      Participant

      Good examples of alley-ways with a new lease of life are Dame Lane and Castle Lane both off Sth George Street. Smart new paving and better lighting has managed to attract busnesses and people and made for an interesting little thoroughfare.

      Not an alley-way but a street with that feel is Sackville Place beside Clerys. Poor old street. Its a right dump but surprisingly it has quite a high footfall. It is in dire need of some development. That DCC Library has to go first and something needs to be done about Malborough Street. Isn’t Malborough St just the sadest street in the city. There are so many excellent features on it: D of Education, Abbey, a Georgain terrace, etc and yet time has passed it by. Nothing to do with the Irish Life Centre ripping the soul out of it I’m sure.

    • #727606
      GregF
      Participant

      I agree about Marlborough Street …..all the attractions yet it is one big piss pool.
      It’s always full of beggars, down and outs and alco’s…..roaring and shouting at each other. I frequent the pubs and off licences here and see them all in all their drunken unrestrained glory. Very intimidating to tourists and natives alike. Not good for just a few feet away from our premiere street….and never a garda in sight either.

    • #727607
      GrahamH
      Participant

      ‘Premiere street’, good one!

    • #727608
      garethace
      Participant

      “But just as the area’s public space has degraded gradually over decades, its streets can be tamed incrementally, one block or one intersection at a time. . . “

      I found this quote in an article i was reading only yesterday. I think that strategy would be a wise one for Irish towns and cities. If you look at it at this level, there are sometimes positive news, sometimes little victories like Dame Lane for instance.

      I went 3 rounds with a whino there myself only last year!!! So i know its charm or lack thereof personally. I have known Dublin for ten years, and it has changed slowly, in little bits here and there. Young people growing up now, don’t realise that at all.

      What i am particularly interested in, is what has disappeared in time though. I.e. the very many laneways and routes commonly used in times past, which may appear on maps etc, but since have fallen prey to ‘Mass Block development’.

    • #727609
      WhiteCube
      Participant

      Paris has pissoirs..Dublin has alleyways

    • #727610
      doozer
      Participant

      Is pissoirs just the french for alleyways?

      Actually it sounds alot worse.

    • #727611
      urbanisto
      Participant

      A pissoir, as the name suggests, is a urinal.

    • #727612
      notjim
      Participant

      well its a outdoor urinal where the user (the pisser I guess) is visible from the waist up.

    • #727613
      doozer
      Participant

      nice

    • #727614
      ew
      Participant

      Did you ever see the “anti-pissoirs” on the custom house? They jut out just below waist height and slope down away from the building in each corner alcove on the street side. I heard they were there to discourage dockhands relieving themselves…
      Is there an architectural term for these?

    • #727615
      Rory W
      Participant

      They really are a great idea – they should install them in Temple Bar (along with a pavement that pukes back at you!)

    • #727616
      notjim
      Participant

      and buildings that wear tinsel tiaras and show you their love handles . . .

    • #727617
      GrahamH
      Participant

      Is that what they are?!
      I’ve wondered and pondered over those yokes on the Custom House for years and never coped on.
      Brilliant!

    • #727618
      garethace
      Participant

      What do you guys think of this notion?

      It combines two traditional street designs: the conventional loop and cul-de-sac pattern of the modern suburb and the grid pattern from the early 1900s.

      The traditional grid pattern provided efficient routes and “connectivity” for pedestrians and those travelling by horse and buggy. The loop and cul-de-sac pattern reduces the impact of traffic on a community.

      Some more information here in PDF Format

      Brian O’ Hanlon.

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