If you ever cycle in Dublin city centre on a nice red tarmac cycling lane on Custom House Quay heading West, just before you reach Talbot Memorial Bridge you will be quite puzzled, as the cycling lane abruptly ends. There is no solution given to a first-time passer-by: there is bridge with no pedestrian crossing ahead, two-lane street to the right and murky Liffey river to the left.
You're left to your own devices to figure how to cross this junction. Naturally you pull towards the street, where you learn that the first lane is left-turn only, so you'd be cutting across angry traffic trying to go straight. Not risking to squeeze between cars into second lane, you rather get off the bike and become a pedestrian, contemplating on the pushbike pun. As you've already noticed, there are no lights or pedestrian crossing to continue West on Custom House Quay. So after lengthy wait at the lights you cross over Custom House Quay, over Memorial Road, and back over Custom House Quay, where you happily continue on the cycling lane. Until MacMahon Bridge, that is...One of the things that annoys me while driving in Dublin, is that cyclists do not use cycling lanes, and drive on the road instead. However, if I put myself into their shoes, that is very often the best solution. Nobody can expect a fit guy to get off a high-speed bike any time cycling lane abruptly ends with no solution on how to continue.
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