Plans for a two-way cycleway in Dublin's Sandymount that would have reduced cars to one lane have been put off until the New Year following opposition from local residents.
The city council received a total of 2,500 submissions during public consultation that ended today.
It is understood that overall the submissions were running 2:1 in support, but among Sandymount residents there was strong opposition.
Many local people expressed concern that traffic would be displaced onto residential streets.
The council announced that these submissions will be reviewed and further traffic modelling will take place before another round of public consultation.
The plan involves putting a two-lane cycle lane along the seafront on Strand Road, Sandymount reducing general traffic to one lane southbound as a six-month trial.
It is part of Covid-19 measures to encourage greater use of cycling and walking for commuters travelling shorter distances and leaving public transport to those who have no alternative.
However, local residents in Sandymount feared that northbound traffic looking to cross the East Link bridge would be forced to go through the village and small residential streets leading to greater congestion.
One resident Eoghan Heneghan said they have the RDS, Aviva Stadium and Three Arena in close proximity and any time an event is held the residential streets are blocked.
He said if one lane of Strand Road is removed it could bring the whole area to a standstill.
But the Dublin Cycling Campaign pointed out that the city is facing two emergencies – Covid-19 and Climate Change - and that actions need to be taken quickly.
Spokesperson Kevin Baker said he was very disappointed at the delay.
He said this scheme could have been built within a month, while a cycle track can take up to five years with design and construction.
It would also have formed part of the long planned S2S cycleway from Sutton to Sandycove.
