More than 300 people packed Taney Parish Hall over the Dundrum Bus Layover Plan. What are the main concerns, who controls the project, and what happens next?
Community meeting
A community meeting about the Dundrum Bus Layover Plan was held last night (30 September) in Taney Parish Hall, Dundrum.
The meeting was organised by the Save Dundrum Village Action Committee (SDVAC). Their website is https://savedundrumvillage.ie/index.html
More than 300 people attended.
The hall was so full that late arrivals had to stand.
You can read the Irish Times report of the meeting here.
What is the Dundrum Bus Layover Plan?
Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council approved a Dundrum Local Area Plan in 2023.
One part of this plan is to move the Dundrum bus layovers.
The current bus layovers are outside the Eir telephone exchange.
The proposal is to move them to two locations on Upper Churchtown Road.
The project is funded by the National Transport Authority (NTA).
It is being delivered by Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council.
The Council employed AECOM as the consulting engineers for the project.
Public consultation
AECOM’s design was published for public consultation in November 2025.
A total of 492 people made submissions on the design.
92% of submissions objected with concerns about traffic congestion and reduced capacity at the very busy Taney Junction.
AECOM published its Post-Public Consultation Report in April 2026.
The meeting heard that AECOM did not accept most of the points raised in the submissions.
AECOM only accepted the need for improvements to the public area in front of the Carnegie Library.
Who makes the decision?
The Dundrum Bus Layover Plan is a Section 38 Project.
Section 38 projects are local authority projects for traffic calming and minor road improvements under the Road Traffic Act 1994.
The meeting raised concerns about how decisions on the project are made.
Under the Section 38 process described at the meeting, Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Councillors do NOT have a decision-making role in the project.
The decision-making role rests with local authority officials, working with officials from the NTA.
Concerns raised at the meeting
The meeting raised concerns about the wider impact of the Bus Layover Plan.
One view expressed at the meeting was that the plan is another step towards making Dundrum Village a car-free zone.
There were also concerns that the changes could have an adverse effect on local businesses.
The meeting therefore focused not only on the bus layovers themselves, but also on the possible effects on traffic, Taney Junction changes, local businesses and the future of Dundrum Village.