The Dublin Community Blog

Buried in the coverage of yesterdays emergency Budget was a interesting little statement from Minister for Transport Noel Dempsey. Capital expenditure on public transport is being cut and this will cause delays in some planned projects. When talking about the Metro the Minister said “he is no longer in a position to guarantee a time-scale on these developments”.

Personally I’ve never been a fan of the Metro, thinking the money could be better spent building Luas lines to other parts of Dublin, building up an interconnected tram system that serves more parts of the community and reusing the proven technology we already have.

Dublin Bus drivers yesterday rejected Labour Court recommendations aimed at solving the dispute over driver redundancies and the withdrawal of 120 buses. The threat of a strike is now on the cards again for this weekend which I suspect is more likely than before since the Labour Court is usually the last chance saloon before a strike. Prepare for some travel chaos this Easter.

Update: It’s back to the Labour Court for Dublin Bus so no changes to the fleet and no strikes over the weekend. Apparently the drivers want clarification on what the effect the “implementation of legal limits on driving times will have on overtime earnings”. What the hell? The effect on overtime earnings of legal limits on driving time? I’ll go out on a limb here and say probably a lower effect than the effect of a Dublin bus driven by a tired driver hitting a car. No offense to Dublin Bus drivers but seriously guys if you are going on strike you need a better reason than “I’m loosing money by not being allowed drive a 14 ton vehicle while tired”.

While everyone is talking, twittering and typing about the Budget 2009 that was announced today, and as the direct impact of it on Dublin itself is not yet measurable (and about Dublin this blog is, young Jedis) I’ll write about something more pleasant: One City, One Book.

Now in its fourth year, Dublin: One City, One Book is a project designed to encourage everyone in the city to read the same book during the month of April each year. The project promotes reading in a city which boasts one of the world’s greatest literary heritages including four Nobel Laureates.

And this year we are encouraged to read the one book that introduced that ebony-fanged count and expert impaler from Transylvania to Victorian readers, 60′s horror movies and our collective consciousness; all dreamed up by a theatre manager who used to live on Kildare Street here in Dublin. Of course I’m speaking about “Dracula” by Bram Stoker. You’ll find a list of activities linked to this project and the novel at the official website; events including several exhibitions and walks plus a screening of F. W. Murnau’s classic silent movie “Nosferatu” including musical accompaniment.

So I’ll see if I can find my old second hand copy of that fascinating book somewhere – and hey, who couldn’t use some escapism in these dire times. Especially when the real-life vampires are already circling our paychecks…