Howth is located on the peninsula of Howth Head, which begins around 11 kilometres (6.8 mi) east-north-east of Dublin’s GPO, on the north side of Dublin Bay.
The village itself is located just over 14 kilometres (8.7 mi) by road from Dublin city centre (the ninth of a series of eighteenth-century milestones from the Dublin General Post Office (GPO) is in the village itself).
The settlement spans much of the northern part of Howth Head, which was once an island but now is connected to the rest of Dublin via a narrow strip of land (a tombolo) at Sutton. Howth is located in the administrative county of Fingal, within the traditional County Dublin.
The village is bounded by the sea and undeveloped land except along two roads, one rising towards the Summit, one running at sea level near the coast, towards Sutton Cross.
Howth is at the end of a regional road (R105) from Dublin. One branch of the DART suburban rail system has its physical terminus by the harbour, the other northern terminus being Malahide’s station, which is actually on a through line for mainline rail towards Belfast.
Under the bus route network for Dublin overseen by the National Transport Authority, Dublin Bus serves Howth with route H3, and the local route 290 which goes over the hill and through Sutton to Sutton DART station.
For decades prior to 2021, Howth was served by the 31 series of routes. There was previously also a tram service. Howth, in addition to its fishery harbour, hosts a substantial marina, and seasonal boat service to the uninhabited Ireland’s Eye. Howth is also a waypoint for aircraft approaching Dublin Airport.
IT WAS BUILT IN THE 1660s AND NAMED THE CHAPELIZOD BRIDGE
The Anna Livia Bridge, formerly Chapelizod Bridge (Irish: Droichead Shéipéal Iosóid, meaning ‘Isolde’s Chapel Bridge’), is a road bridge spanning the River Liffey in Chapelizod, Dublin, which joins the Lucan Road to Chapelizod Road.
As the Liffey flows into the town of Chapelizod, a weir divides the course to form a large mill race. Split by the two bodies of water, the island at Chapelizod has been a base for industry since at least the 18th century. The main flow is crossed by a four-span stone arch bridge, having two large central spans and two much smaller end spans.
This bridge was built in the 1660s, and originally named Chapelizod Bridge. The bridge was renamed in 1982 to mark the centenary of James Joyce’s birth. (The bridge is mentioned in Joyce’s Dubliners, as one of his “Dubliners”, James Duffy, lives in Chapelizod and visits a public house near the bridge. Anna Livia is the name given to the personification of the River Liffey, and was a principal character in Joyce’s Finnegans Wake – her final monologue recalls her life as she walks along the Liffey.)
As the only bridge 8 km past the Strawberry Beds to Chapelizod, and a main thoroughfare for traffic from the western suburbs (e.g.: Clonsilla and Blanchardstown) to Dublin city centre, the volume of road traffic over the bridge and through Chapelizod has increased in recent years.
Dublin City Council planned changes to bridge, as part of a general “Traffic Management Plan for the Chapelizod area”. The changes include the construction of separate footbridge sections outside the parapets of the bridge (to improve pedestrian safety), and the creation of cycle lanes on the bridge. Preparatory works for this initiative commenced in 2010 and the official opening was held in December 2011.
Sinéad O’Connor was a truly unique and iconic artist, and her death is a great loss to the world. In her memory there have been a number of memorials.
I visited Phoenix Park on Friday and at the bandstand near the Zoo I came across what I would describe as an impromptu memorial to Sinéad O’Connor … sorry about the quality of the photographs but my camera was giving me problems and I did not want to reposition any of the items.
Impromptu memorials to the deceased have become a common feature of the national and international landscape and they have greatly increased in frequency here in Ireland and especially in Dublin. They take many forms and represent various types of deaths; nonetheless, they have in common the expression of mourning for the deceased, regardless of whether or not the mourner personally knew the deceased. The site of the impromptu memorial may be located by the roadside, as in the case of a motor vehicle fatality, or outside a building associated with the deceased. In this instance it was a bandstand which may have been chosen as Sinead was a very popular musician.
The Bandstand at Phoenix Park is a freestanding octagonal-plan cast-iron bandstand, built c. 1890. It is located in the Hollow, a natural amphitheatre in the park, near the People’s Garden.
The bandstand was manufactured by Musgrave & Co. of Belfast, as marked with an ornamental escutcheon on one of the pillars flanking the steps. It is surrounded by tarmcadam hard standings, with grass and mature trees beyond.
The bandstand was originally used for military bands, but it is now used for a variety of events, including concerts, recitals, and dance performances. It is also a popular spot for weddings and photo shoots. The bandstand is a beautiful and historic landmark in Phoenix Park. It is a reminder of the park’s rich history of music and entertainment. It is also a popular spot for people to relax and enjoy the outdoors
When I first photographed this in July it was a work in progress and no information was available and the artwork was only black and white.
Superb new artwork ‘Dublin’s Motion’ by Siberian artist & graphic design student Elizaveta Tolmacheva. Artwork located at Weaver Park, Liberties, Dublin 8.
Weaver Park is theW first purpose built Public Park in The Liberties area in over a century; a major step forward for Dublin City Council in addressing the deficit of quality green active amenity space providing outdoor recreational opportunities for the local community of Dublin 8 and further afield. There are a multitude of uses provided for within the park design, including grassed lawns, a terrace onto Cork St., an enclosed play area, a picnic space, a skate park, extensive seating along internal walls and perimeter zones with tree planting, mounding and play features. The central lawn accommodates small scale active and passive uses on a day to day basis but can also provide the space for larger events such as markets, parties, exhibitions and performances. Weaver Park was officially opened on the 2nd October 2017.It has to date proved to be a highly valued and much used space by all age groups.
IT IS THE MOST ATTRACTIVE THAT I HAVE SEEN IN DUBLIN
I was lucky as I arrived at this stop just ahead of a really heavy shower of rain. While I was there two large dogs arrived and remained in a section of the shelter until the rain ceased.
This is described as an island bus stop as a cycle track runs between the footpath and the bus stop waiting area and shelter creating, a pedestrian island at the bus stop that is segregated from the footpath. This design resolves the conflicts associated with in-line bus stops, that is, the conflicts between buses and cyclists on the roadway, and the conflicts between cyclists and pedestrians at the bus stop. However, island bus stops create a potential conflict area on the cycle track behind the bus waiting area, where pedestrians need to cross the cycle track when moving to or from the bus stop.