Deputies from the constituency said that locals in the impacted areas of South Dublin are concerned by the move and feel they are losing a “prized local asset”
The Edmonstown An Post sorting office in 2014. Image: Colin Keegan
The proposed move of an An Post sorting office has been called out for its potential negative impacts on the local community.
There is a reported proposal by An Post to close the sorting office at Edmondstown and relocate its operations to a centralised hub in Grange Castle in Lucan. This sorting office serves people in Dublin South-West as well as Dublin Rathdown.
The move would lead to “cruel commutes” for people who need to collect their parcels, and people locally see this as a degradation of services, the Dail has heard. Deputies from the constituency highlighted that the move would mean that people from the area would have to drive on the M50 to collect their post, or collect it from local post offices which may not have the same extended opening hours as a sorting office.
Staff and locals alike are “concerned,” said Dublin South-West’s Ciarán Ahern. Deputy Ahern asked that a meeting be set up with An Post to clarify details about the proposed move, and in response Minister of State at the Department of Culture, Communications and Sport Deputy Charlie McConalogue said he would do his best to facilitate engagement directly between An Post public representatives.
“This sorting office has been a prized local asset for decades,” said Labour’s Deputy Ahern. “We have heard rumours. We have not heard anything formally from An Post about this yet. The Minister of State has written to me about it and said that this is still a proposal but we would like to get some facts and we would like a meeting with An Post.”
Dublin South-West Deputy John Lahart of Fianna Fáil added that the proposal has caused significant concern across a wide area of south Dublin, including Rathfarnham, Knocklyon, Ballycullen, Ballyroan, Ballyboden, Butterfield and other neighbourhoods.
He said: “The Edmondstown facility currently provides reliable, accessible and community-focused services. It allows residents to easily collect missed deliveries and engage with a local service that is clearly valued and has employed a lot of local people historically. The proposed location would require residents to travel across the M50 to Lucan simply to collect a parcel and for many, this is a significant and unreasonable burden. We have been contacted by constituents with no access to private transport or who may have significant needs and are not able to use public transport. Postal workers are also concerned about significantly longer commutes for them.”
Dublin South-West Sinn Féin Deputy Seán Crowe acknowledged that parcels sending is at a high, describing the demand on services as being at “Christmas levels,” but said that this proposed move is a considerable distance.
“Travelling from Rathfarnham to Lucan is not straightforward, particularly given chronic traffic congestion across south and west Dublin. Second, public transport options in Rathfarnham and Lucan are limited and indirect for many residents, particularly older people and those with disabilities or those without access to a car. Collecting missed deliveries would become extremely difficult. Many of the people who are impacted by this would have to go the M50 route with all the challenges in relation to that,” he argued.
Deputy Charlie McConalogue responded by saying that An Post is an independent commercial State body and makes operational decisions in this regard. However he said he will inform An Post of the concerns raised and ask that the relevant management of An Post meet with the Deputies to discuss the matter.
“An Post has advised me that it is considering moving the An Post delivery office – not the post office but the delivery office – from Edmondstown, Dublin 16, to a new Dublin west delivery hub later this year. It has noted as well that it is in consultation with its union and staff and that the company will be working hard to ensure local customers are not disadvantaged,” he said.
“This work includes securing local post offices to enable customers to pick up missed mail. As noted, it is a matter for the company directly as opposed to the Government”
He added that An Post is in the process of hiring and will be hiring 300 additional postmen and women across the country, some of whom will be working in this area.
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