A Dublin councillor has accused the city council of “pure gaslighting” and treating cycling “like a child’s toy” after flood alleviation works shut down a busy section of the S2S Dublin Bay cycle route, forcing riders into what he describes as an “anti-cycling death trap”.
The northern section of the route, which links to the Clontarf to City Centre path, has been closed since May. While the footpath and roadway, including the bus lane, were reopened on 10 August, the cycleway remains shut.
The works are part of the Clontarf Outfalls Project under the River Wad flood alleviation plan, aimed at preventing a repeat of past flooding that damaged homes.
Dublin City Council has referred to the scheme as “emergency works”, but An Bord Pleanála approved the project in 2023 with a planning condition that the Traffic Management Plan must include a “pedestrian and cycle diversion route” in the “interests of public safety”. Only a pedestrian diversion was provided, with cyclists told to ride in the carriageway.
Cllr Paddy Monahan (Social Democrats) told IrishCycle.com that what’s in place “is pure gaslighting from Dublin City Council.”
Video of cyclists using Dublin Clontarf to City Centre cycle lane (credit: Dublin City Council)
He added: “There are no cycling provisions there. I cycle that route most days, and there is no provision for cyclists. They are shunted suddenly from the cycle lane with no amenities, no care, no instructions, straight into full motorised traffic and expected just to mingle. There has been no effort made for provisions for cyclists that I can see.
“People using this cycle track every day to get to work in the city centre are not extremist rebels — they just want to get to town safely. The roadworks on the seafront are an anti-cycling death trap. No thought or effort has been given to accommodate cyclists or their safety while these works are taking place,” he said.
“Dublin City Council talks a good game on cycling, but actions speak louder than words. Unfortunately, it seems the real attitude towards cycling in Dublin City Council is that bikes are a bit of fun, like a child’s toy, but the first thing to be taken away when there’s ‘serious stuff’ to be done.”
Monahan criticised what he called vague, evasive answers from officials — including an early assurance that the lane would reopen in August “if at all possible” — and said an official who was due to explain the situation at a North Central area committee meeting failed to show up. “Nobody from Dublin City Council has yet explained the ‘provisions’ they refer to,” he said.
He also rejected the council’s claim that “provisions for cyclists” are in place at the works and questioned its reported finding that 50 per cent of riders are ignoring them. “If people are not following whatever bizarre instructions Dublin City Council think they’ve given, well, there’s a reason for that – it’s self-preservation and safety,” he said, adding that the situation is deterring families and children from cycling.
From Sutton to the city centre, the S2S route and the Clontarf to City Centre project form what Monahan called “one of the best pieces of cycling infrastructure in the country”. But, he said, “as soon as any serious work needs to be done, [they] take away cycling facilities like taking away a child’s toy.”
In a May notice, the council said the works were delayed by the late departure of Brent Geese and that environmental and traffic permit restrictions required closing the cycleway.
“We apologise for the inconvenience to cyclists and pedestrians in this area and will endeavour to get more acceptable routes open as soon as possible,” it said.
‘Cyclists please dismount’ sign, Dublin (credit: @donna_cooney1 on Twitter/X)
Dublin City Council told IrishCycle.com that “dismount” signs were only for those who had followed the pedestrian diversion by mistake, but when the site was visited, there was no ramp or obvious route onto the carriageway, and diversion signs could easily be misread.
The dispute comes after a series of controversies involving the Clontarf to City Centre route since its opening in November last year. In June, Dublin City Council faced a social media backlash after posting — and then deleting — a short video showing a busy rush hour on the new protected lane, which tinfoil hat conspiracy theorists online claimed was “staged” using paid actors. Cyclists countered that the scenes were entirely normal during commuting hours, and some posted their own footage to prove it.
A month earlier, part of the route in Clontarf was abruptly closed and cyclists told to dismount and push their bikes, prompting then-Deputy Lord Mayor Donna Cooney to call the scene “chaos” as riders and pedestrians were funnelled into a narrow pavement. No official detour was provided, and the closure drew criticism from locals and councillors who said it undermined confidence in the city’s active travel commitments.