By Tom Coffey, CEO - DCBA*

Dublin City Centre looks better than it ever has and is now firmly established as one of the top visitor destinations in the world. The results of the vision and significant financial investment of Dublin City Council, city businesses and property developers are now being realised.

There are 4,000 shops and 10 department stores and shopping centres in Dublin City Centre, providing the largest concentration of shops, and the broadest choice and best value for money than anywhere else in the country. These combine to make 4.5 million sq footage of retail space. The City Centre's cultural, leisure and retail offering attracts an annual footfall of 260 million and a daily footfall of 660,000 - people shopping, working and enjoying their Capital City.

This massive city economy needs to be managed effectively to continue to operate successfully. Clean, reliable and frequent and efficient transport systems are the lifelines to the city centre and are vital to its success.

As a result of the huge investment in transport infrastructure, the city centre is now the easiest location in Ireland to get to and does not suffer the congestion experienced in the suburbs and along the M50, Red Cow etc. Dublin City Council has done a great job in facilitating the explosion of cars on the country's roads into our Capital's streets. As a direct result of investment and effective traffic management in changing road layout, traffic on the city's main streets is now moving easier than ever before. Improved and developed transport infrastructure such as the Fast Bus Lanes of Dublin Bus, the introduction of the Luas, Environmental Traffic Cells and an additional 9,000 taxis since deregulation, have proven to be an effective way in combating congestion.

There are 22 car parks in the city centre which give priority to shoppers' cars so there are plenty of spaces available. All are within five minutes walk of the shops. There are 1,100 buses in the Dublin Bus fleet serving the city, two Luas lines, the DART and 90 trains a day coming into Connolly and Heuston Stations (compared to 13 in the 1950s). The reality is that Dublin City Centre has more people in it any day now than anytime in its 1,000 year history and it is easier for them to get in and out. People are accepting that Dublin is a Capital City and because it has grown considerably additional time must be given to access it. Consumers are adapting to 'rush-hour' traffic. Members of the DCBA reported last year that trading on Thursday nights and Wednesday nights has increased significantly. This illustrates that people are using their commuting time wisely.

We congratulate the Government and Dublin City Council for the opening of the Port Tunnel. Taking trucks off the city centre roads will further improve the flow of traffic for shoppers in our Capital City. This significant initiative, together with the linking of the Luas lines and introduction of Metro are all important positive developments for the city centre economy.
Exemptions on restrictions for HGV movement in the City Centre should be miniscule - the argument of 'perishable product' is flawed. It is a historical term from an era before refrigeration and not appropriate to the 21st century where a product is defined in terms of shelf life. The quality of life in Dublin City Centre suffers from the negative consequences of the HGV traffic and unregulated deliveries. It is imperative that the Dublin City Council strategy is introduced and well managed.

The car shopper spends three times more money in the city than other road users and should be given daytime priority for access. The traffic management system must be changed now to give different times to different audiences - if business must deliver during the day they should do so outside of key commuting times and peak shopping times. According to research carried out by Trinity College the peak hours for deliveries are between 10am - 11am. This is rush hour traffic and critical commuter and shopper time. 49% of all deliveries use on-street parking - this causes congestion in the city's streets and is no longer acceptable. Deliveries undertaken during peak shopping hours adversely affect business in terms of compromised customer service, higher delivery costs and more difficult customer access. Managing the environment in which you operate is part of managing your business effectively. Many city centre businesses are now taking deliveries at night only.

The continued threat of rising tides is ultimately a threat to the city centre which we need to be prepared for. Barriers should be built from Malahide to Dun Laoghaire similar to that the 'Afsluitdijk' in Holland and roads built on top of the barriers to improve traffic flow around Dublin. This infrastructure project is likely to take several decades to complete and should start soon.

The revival of Docklands has created a new generation of city centre residents who are owner/occupiers and by 2010 there will be an additional 70,000 people living within the canal ring. There is a need for a new Vision for our city that includes more residential accommodation as people are the life blood and essence of the city centre but we need residential accommodation that improves quality of life and is linked into transport infrastructure. Dublin Port should be used as residential and office accommodation to build the city centre of the 21st Century that is a world-class city. The Government should immediately instruct Dublin Port to start the move to Braemore, for a proper East Coast Port.

We welcome the Dublin Transport Authority and look forward to the development of a hands-on constructive relationship with the city businesses in the interest of increasing economic growth, employment and investment in the city centre.

Dublin will continue to grow and prosper if we have a good quality of life and environment in the city centre and reliable, clean, frequent and efficient public service transport. There is a requirement and demand for this level of public transport at five minute intervals between 7.00am - 8.00pm, seven days a week. We support Transport 21 overall and only by introducing a high standard of public transport we will be able to fulfil the demand that is quite obviously there as seen by the great success of the Luas.

DCBA Irish retailers have committed €2 billion in refurbishing and expanding their stores in the city centre. International and European retail giants such as Guess, Zara and H&M have moved into Dublin City Centre in recent years, all confirming their confidence in our Capital City and the Irish economy.

* The views expressed in this article are personal views of the author alone and are not policy of the Dublin City Business Association.