The Court of Appeal overturned a High Court decision, allowing Dublin City Council to proceed with the proposed Sandymount cycleway on Strand Road. The High Court had previously halted the project, citing issues with the temporary nature of the cycleway and the lack of environmental impact assessment (EIA) or appropriate assessment (AA).
The Court of Appeal found the High Court erred in its judgment. Specifically, the higher court determined that the High Court was incorrect in its assessment regarding the temporary nature of the cycleway and the necessity of EIA/AA. The Court of Appeal also dismissed claims about fundamental flaws in the council's screening process for EIA and AA.
While acknowledging the council's breach of its duty of candour due to belated disclosure of relevant information, the Court of Appeal deemed the breach inadvertent and accepted the official's apology. The court stated that this breach did not prevent the council's appeal from succeeding.
The Strand Road plan involves transforming a two-way road into a single outbound lane for vehicles, with the other lane designated as a two-way cycle track. This includes removing a traffic island, mini-roundabouts, and installing bollards.
In 2021, the High Court quashed the council's scheme, arguing, among other points, that the cycleway would not be temporary as the council had claimed.
Dublin City Council has won an appeal over the proposed Sandymount cycleway in Dublin.
The installation of a cycle path on Strand Road, first proposed in August 2020, can go ahead, following the council’s successful appeal of a High Court judgement which stopped its implementation.
The Court of Appeal (CoA) has found the High Court, in quashing the scheme, had erred in finding that it was not to be introduced on a temporary basis and in finding that environmental impact assessment (EIA) or appropriate assessment (AA) should first have been carried out.
The three-judge court also found the High Court was wrong to hold there were fundamental flaws in the screening for EIA and for AA and also wrong to hold that an EIA, an AA and planning permission were required for the scheme.
The court said that while it was most unfortunate and very likely to have significant cost implications, the city council’s belated disclosure of the existence of the relevant decision providing for the commencement of the scheme and of the recession of the relevant order did not preclude the council from maintaining its appeal whether on the grounds of mootness or on the grounds of a breach by the City Council of its duty of candour.
While the CoA found the council was in breach of its duty of candour, it accepted that the breach was inadvertent and the relevant official has apologised to the court.
“We have concluded, therefore, that the council must succeed in its appeal”, the court said. It also dismissed a cross appeal by Cllr Flynn.
In 2021, the High Court quashed the council’s scheme finding, among other things, that the cycleway would not, in fact, be temporary, as the council had submitted.
The Strand Road plan would have turned what is currently a two-way vehicular stretch of road along the coast into a single outbound lane with the other lane used as a two-way cycle track.
It would require the removal of a traffic island at the junction of Strand Road and Merrion Road, as well as the removal of some mini-roundabouts and the installation of bollards.
The council appealed the High Court ruling in favour of local independent councillor Mannix Flynn and Sandymount resident Peter Carvill.
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