Masterplan for Dublin's Heuston includes 1,000+ homes, two new bridges - and no cars
Residential, Jason Plan For Martin The Station Development Across The Mercial, Includes Site Photo: Leisure The Dublin's And Of Heuston Retail Facilities
Over 1,000 new residential units, two new cross-river bridges and enhanced cycling and pedestrian infrastructure is all included as part of a new urban masterplan for Dublin's Heuston Station.
Heuston, which connects Dublin to Cork, Limerick and Galway by rail, is located to the west of the city and the plan envisages a “vibrant new urban area for Dublin” that is “centred on sustainable mobility”.
Lorcan O’Connor, chief executive of the Coras Iompair Éireann (CIÉ) group, said that the proposals are for a “largely car-free development” which will put an extra emphasis on public transport and active travel.
The lands earmarked for development cover 10 hectares and encompass Heuston Station and Conyngham Road Garage on the opposite side of the River Liffey.
The plan includes the development of commercial, residential, retail and leisure facilities across the site. CIÉ said there is the potential for 210,000 square metres of development and over 1,000 residential units.
The provision of new pedestrian and cycling infrastructure will include two new cross-Liffey bridges, 5,000 cycle parking spaces and “high-quality public realm space”.
A further one kilometre on river frontage would also be opened, “interlinking the green assets and public amenities of Phoenix Park and the Irish Museum of Modern Art”, CIÉ said.
The plan would also support existing rail, bus and Luas services while facilitating the planned enhancements as part of BusConnects and Dart+. A new station would be located at Heuston West, as announced as part of the Dart+ South West proposals.
Mr O’Connor added that the development will support the expansion of public transport as proposed under the National Development Plan and beyond.
CIÉ said the development of the largely brownfield site to the west of the city would become a destination for living, working, exercising and socialising. The masterplan is modelled on the concept of Transport Orientated Development, which focuses on public transport, walking and cycling over the car.
The National Economic and Social Council (NESC), which advises the Taoiseach on strategic policy issues of sustainable development, supports the concept and a report published in 2019 supported its development in Ireland.
The NESC report pointed out that efforts in Cork in recent times to implement elements of transport orientated development displayed “the necessary vision and some of the funding elements but suffered from inconsistent decisions, and the absence of an institutional driver and adequate funding”.
I'm delighted to launch the Heuston Masterplan. The 10-hectare site around the station will transformed into a largely car-free, mixed-use development with more than 1,000 homes, new linkages to our cities green spaces and 5,000 bike parking spaces.https://t.co/h7Em5tOHuc pic.twitter.com/AT6VKIxhZo
— Eamon Ryan (@EamonRyan) November 16, 2021
“Cork County Council now has in place a housing and infrastructure team that is seeking to expedite the development of major sites, some of which are along the rail corridor,” it said.
The next step for the Heuston project is to seek a developer to partner with CIÉ in the first half of 2022 to develop the plans further. It is not envisaged that a planning application will be submitted until 2023 at the earliest.
Minister for Transport Eamon Ryan described the proposals as “exciting” and said that it has the potential to “transform the western edge of Dublin city”.