Cycling Group Labels Bus Lane Taxi Access ‘Huge Step Backwards’

A cycling organization has labeled the temporary authorization for taxis to utilize specific bus lanes within Belfast City Centre as “a huge step backwards.” Andrew McClean, who serves as Cycling UK’s Northern Ireland lead, stated that this measure “will make cycling less safe and put more people off cycling in the city”. The Department for Infrastructure (DfI) Minister, John O’Dowd, disclosed the alteration on Tuesday, aiming to alleviate traffic congestion. This initiative has been implemented as a provisional arrangement for the Christmas season, commencing at 06:00 GMT on Wednesday, and has been met with approval from retail organizations. Nevertheless, Mr. McClean expressed his conviction that the action “does nothing to meet the needs of people looking for healthier, cheaper and more sustainable ways of getting around”. He further noted, “Even the department’s head of roads said that we need ‘to get more people onto public transport, or to walk and cycle’.” He observed that Belfast suffers from a “serious lack of safe cycle routes, and by opening up bus lanes to more drivers, we risk making things even worse for people that choose to travel by bike”. The provisional traffic regulation will permit Class A and Class C taxis, which encompass private-hire taxis and Ubers, to utilize designated bus lanes. Conversely, black taxis, which operate as public-hire vehicles, were already authorized to use bus lanes. Pat, a black taxi driver, informed BBC News NI that he anticipated the change might exacerbate congestion. He elaborated: “You look now, the bus lanes are free. Once the private taxis go into them they’re not going to be free. “They’re going to be chock-a-blocked and the buses are going to be even later getting to their destinations.” The announcement on Tuesday followed a meeting held on Monday between the DfI and business leaders, convened to discuss remedies for the city’s traffic issues. Drivers had reported several weeks of significant rush hour traffic, attributed to roadworks on the Sydenham Bypass and near the city’s new station. O’Dowd stated his commitment “to bringing forward measures which will help alleviate the traffic congestion in the city centre”. Clare Guinness, chief executive of Belfast Chamber, expressed her delight regarding the initiative. She informed BBC’s Good Morning Ulster programme: “We were really crying out for some positive action.” “Of course we would always have wanted a bit more and could they have done a bit more, but I think we need to take a step back and say ‘look it is an easement, it will create some alleviation’ in a really busy, critical week,” she added. She continued, “I think it’s welcome and certainly my members are very pleased about it.” “I think a very willing first step, I expect the engagement and the improvements to continue into the new year,” she concluded. Glyn Roberts, Chief Executive of Retail NI, described it as a “welcome measure, which we had raised with the minister at both our meetings with him”. He conveyed his hope that it would contribute to improving consumers’ journey times and reducing congestion. “Belfast City Centre has a fantastic retail and hospitality offer this Christmas and it is crucially important that in these last few days of trading, that consumers can travel in a timely and hassle-free manner,” he emphasized. Conversely, Stephen Anton, who serves as co-ordinator of the Licensed Taxi Operators Association and communications manager at fonaCAB, characterized the bus lane decision as “too little too late”. “Having seen the announcement today, we don’t think that’s going to help us as much as we would have liked,” he commented. Chris McCracken, managing director of the Linen Quarter Business Improvement District, endorsed the initiative as a short-term solution. He suggested it should be “reviewed in the new year to ensure bus times are not adversely impacted”. In the interim, Green Party councillor Brian Smyth expressed his belief that it constituted “an act of desperation with little regard for the wider consequences”. He further remarked: “Only last week the minister was encouraging people to get the bus into the city centre, yet now he has given the go-ahead to bus lanes being swamped by private taxis.” Cyclist Daniel Squires contended that “bigger issues in the city centre than letting taxis into bus lanes” exist. Mr. Squires noted that taxis were “for the most part, pretty considerate” but acknowledged the validity of concerns. He proposed that improving “infrastructure better for bikes” would be a method to alleviate congestion, deeming it a “big step”. Inbound towards the city centre Outbound away from city centre O’Dowd had previously disclosed longer-term initiatives to implement a pilot program allowing taxis to utilize city centre bus lanes to mitigate traffic. He indicated that officials were proceeding with the requisite legislative procedures to enact this once the provisional measure concludes, with the consultation phase scheduled to commence “early in the new year”. A Translink spokesperson stated: “We will continue to work with the Department for Infrastructure through the introduction of this pilot scheme to permit taxis to use the identified city centre bus lanes.”