Seanad debates

Monday, 22 March 2021

Covid-19 (Tourism): Statements

 

10:30 am

Photo of Barry WardBarry Ward (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Gabhaim buíochas leis an gCathaoirleach Gníomhach agus cuirim failte roimh an Aire arís. Tá sí i gcónaí go breá iarchomhairleoir de chuid Chomhairle Contae Dhún Laoghaire-Ráth an Dúin a fheiceáil sa Seanad.

I recognise the good and important work that is done by visitdublin.com, Fáilte Ireland and Tourism Ireland. Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown is sometimes omitted from the list of good things to see in Dublin. We are all looking forward to the resumption of tourism in Ireland and the removal of restrictions. We need to ensure that the people who visit Dublin also know that Dublin is not just the city centre and that there is a range of amenities to be seen in the county, especially Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown.

People will be aware of the rich villages we have in Dún Laoghaire, places such as Monkstown, Dalkey, Glasthule, Blackrock which are worth visiting. Fantastic transport links allow people to access these areas easily from the city centre through the DART and bus services. We have many leisure activities and literary connections. I am thinking here of the Mountains to Sea dlr Book Festival, which will take place on Saturday and Sunday and of which I know the Minister is aware. The festival is being arranged by Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council and our libraries. The literary connections with Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown are huge, whether through James Joyce and the Joyce Tower in Sandycove, Samuel Beckett and his family home in Foxrock or Maeve Binchy's and Hugh Leonard's connections to Dalkey. There is a long list of such connections.

As to sporting amenities, water sports are obviously of tremendous importance, with sea swimming in places like Seapoint, the Forty Foot, Hawk Cliff, Sandycove and Killiney beach. People want to visit these places. I implore the Minister to send that message also to people who visit Ireland from abroad.

Dún Laoghaire Harbour is a tremendous historical amenity. Over the years, it has been a staging point, sadly, for the departure of thousands of our citizens on boats to England and further afield. The harbour is a great Victorian entity of enormous proportions built with locally-hewn granite. It now provides significant tremendous leisure opportunities in sailing, paddle-boarding, kayaking, rowing and other water sports.

I ask the Minister to ensure Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown and other parts of County Dublin are included in planning for the aftermath of Covid restrictions. One very important element that would be an excellent link between Dún Laoghaire and Dublin is the proposed Sutton to Sandycove cycleway, the S2S. The Minister is aware of the initiative because we have spoken about it before. The Sutton to Sandycove cycleway and promenade is a coastal promenade around Dublin Bay which has largely been finished on the north side of the city. There is a problematic section between Sandycove and the Merrion Gates and Dún Laoghaire. This would be a fantastic amenity, providing a commuter route for cyclists that is separated from the traffic of Rock Road and the other main arteries and a walking facility for local people. Every year, more than 1 million people walk the East Pier in Dún Laoghaire Harbour which does not lead anywhere. The S2S would be a link between Dún Laoghaire and the surrounding hinterland and Dublin City. It has enormous potential as tourist infrastructure. One sees coastal promenades and cycleways in coastal cities throughout the world, from San Diego and Havana to Tel Aviv and other cities.

This is an enormous unrealised opportunity and it needs the Government to get behind it because it must be done at central government level. I have mentioned this to the Minister’s colleague, the Minister for Transport, Deputy Ryan. I would like a commitment from the Minister that her Department is also committed to moving forward the S2S? This will be a coastal cycleway outside the DART line and a facility for tourists and local people. It will be segregated, safe and separate cycling and walking infrastructure in our area. Many of the villages I mentioned are cut off from the sea, even though they are coastal communities. Let us reconnect them. I would like the Minister to give a commitment to join us in helping to make that happen.

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