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O2 Arena vows to tackle traffic problem

Thursday, 05 March 2009

A SPOKESPERSON for the O2 Arena has insisted it is doing everything it can to alleviate traffic congestion on event days. A letter of warning was issued in early January from Dublin City Council, which cited a breach of section two and section 13 of the planning conditions for the huge venue. The 14,000 capacity music theatre opened its doors on December 15. However, traffic management seems to be a major bone of contention among patrons of the e80 million arena, which is one of the largest purpose-built music venues in Europe. In the council warning, the owners of the O2 Arena were given four weeks to address issues raised in relation to the breach of compliance. Section 2 of the planning conditions states that the O2 should “put in place a system whereby car parking tickets for the Point Depot are sold in connection with and at the time of purchase of event tickets”. Under the planning stipulation, the O2 is also required to liaise with city centre car parks, so that any overspill of car parking can be dealt with. Under condition 13, the O2 owners were required to submit a mobility management plan to the Dublin Docklands Authority prior to the opening of the venue. “This shall include details of an agreement between all relevant parties regarding access to the 700 parking spaces reserved for public use for both the Point Village District centre and the Point Theatre.” Local councillor Emer Costello (Lab) was highly critical of the situation. “A number of gigs have been held in the venue already without these conditions being adhered to which completely flies in the face in the planning process,” she told Northside People. “The idea that the venue would be up and open regardless, shows a disregard for the conditions which were laid out for a reason. “The O2 Arena is in a residential area which is why the management should have been mindful of the area’s residents.” According to Cllr Costello, the enforcement option has been made all the more difficult as the planning application was granted by the Dublin Docklands Authority. However, planning enforcement falls within the remit of Dublin City Council. Meanwhile, the O2 Arena owners told Northside People that the concerns raised by the council were being addressed. “There was only one night where we had a serious problem with congestion and that was opening night,” he said. “We’ve had a large number of events since and there hasn’t been any problem.” The spokesperson outlined what efforts are being taken to ease traffic congestion and to facilitate patron parking on event nights. “The car park spaces at the front village are not available to us yet because the project hasn’t been fully completed,” he explained. “Obviously, when it is completed then we can make sure that the car park is available to our patrons. “Also, we advertise on our website and through Ticketmaster what parking is available close by. “We are also working with a private operator to provide a shuttle bus every 10 minutes to the venue from Stephen’s Green, Eden Quay and Connolly Station.”