Transport operators and concert-goers have expressed anger at a decision by Dublin City Council to move all coach parking for this weekend's concerts in Croke Park to Whitehall in north Dublin, which is an almost 40-minute walk from the venue.
At least 100 private coaches are due to transport around 5,000 concert goers to the Ed Sheeran concerts in Croke Park tomorrow and on Sunday.
Previously, these coaches had been allowed to park on the Alfie Byrne Road between East Wall and Fairview which is about 20 minutes from the venue.
However, the National Transport Authority which is involved in the process of choosing the coach parking location said the road could no longer be used due to roadworks and the objections by cyclists to coaches blocking the cycling path.
A spokesman for the NTA said because they needed capacity to park 120-150 coaches their options for parking were limited.
They said the location had been chosen in consultation with Dublin City Council and gardaí and said that there will be an extensive management system in place with signage to direct patrons to and from Croke Park.
But the country's largest concert coach operator said more suitable parking locations close to the city centre could have been found.
Damien Long, Transport Manager with Travel Master, which is operating 26 coaches from all over Ireland to Dublin for the Croke Park concerts this weekend, said the decision to make coaches park in Whitehall "makes no sense".
He said operators were only notified of the decision in the past 48 hours and that since they had notified customers he had received around 100 cancellations from people such as pregnant women and people with young children who said the distance between the parking and the venue was too far.
He said the decision also meant many companies had to hire additional drivers because extra time involved had implications for the number of hours that drivers are allowed to work.
Mr Long also expressed concern about customers, particularly younger people who were not familiar with the capital, being able to find their way back to Whitehall where the parking will be located late at night.
Green Party Councillor Donna Cooney said she is pleased that coaches are no longer permitted to park on the Alfie Byrne Road, which she said will protect all those using cycle lanes on that road.
She said locating the concert coach parking in Whitehall was the NTA's decision but she questioned if they could have allowed some of the coaches to park in facilities that are located closer to the city centre.
