Traffic chaos in Belfast City Centre
There were chaotic scenes in Belfast city centre this afternoon as thousands flocked to shopping centres for last-minute festive gifts.
On the final shopping weekend before Christmas, thousands of cars have arrived in the city causing long tailbacks with some queueing for car parks.
Traffic Watch NI cameras show long queues around Belfast city centre, Ormeau Road, Oxford Street, Howard Street, the West Link at Divis Street, Chichester Street and Falls Road.
It follows weeks of traffic chaos in the city with several infrastructure improvement works underway.
Infrastructure Minister John O’Dowd announced last week that class A and C taxis will be able to use a number of bus lanes during the festive period to reduce traffic congestion.
Traffic chaos on Sunday
Stephen Anton, communications manager at Fonacab and coordinator of the Licensed Taxi Operators Association, told BBC Radio Ulster that the move was “too little and too late”.
“We did say that allowing taxis into bus lanes would help. Having seen the announcement, we don’t think that’s going to help as much as we would’ve liked,” he said.
“It looks very much like a half-hearted attempt to try to appease the industry, and in many ways could cause more confusion by limiting the number of lanes.”
Business figures have generally reacted positively to the news, while also calling for more work to be done to remedy congestion.
Clare Guinness, Belfast Chamber CEO, said: “These temporary measures introduced by the minister are to be welcomed as they will help address the traffic congestion in the run-up to Christmas, but it is vital that the other solutions under consideration are progressed as soon as possible.
“Businesses have suffered significantly from the major increase in traffic in and around Belfast city centre, and Belfast Chamber has led the way in calling on the minister to intervene, having first voiced our concerns back in October.”