Blanchardstown

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Blanchardstown (Baile Bhlainséir in Irish) is a growing outer suburb of Dublin, Ireland. The area is located 10km north-west of Dublin City and covers most of the An Post postal district Dublin 15. It is administered by Fingal County Council, and is that Council's largest urban area, though its headquarters are located in Swords.

1 Etymology
2 Population
3 Transport
4 Education and business
5 Government
6 Clubs and Societies
7 External links
8 References

[edit] Etymology

The town's name means "estate of a family called Blanchard", an Anglo-Norman surname. The name was recorded in 1385 as villa de Blanchard.

[edit] Population

The 2006 Census recorded a population of 90,952 ^[1] in Blanchardstown and its immediate environs. However, if the greater area is included this figure is much larger (well over 100,000) and the area is on a par with cities like Limerick.

[edit] Transport

The area is located just beyond the M50, lying just past one of the main junctions on the orbital motorway, slightly to the north of the tolled crossing of the River Liffey. It is often said that the bridge is inadequate for the amount of traffic using it daily, with traffic jams extending several miles in both directions^{[citation needed]}. The M50 upgrade will replace the barrier-operating toll booths with a free flow toll facility consisting of icence plate recognition cameras erected on gantry posts which will scan number plates and charge the driver the appropriate toll.

Blanchardstown suffers from ongoing traffic problems because of rapid development and a lack of public transportation^{[citation needed]}, with long waits at bus stops, overcrowded buses and difficulty in getting on trains as they pass the nearest, Castleknock Bridge, station^{[citation needed]}. Most areas in Blanchardstown are still served by the same bus networks (routes 38 and 39) that have been in place since the 1970s, when its population was a fraction of what it is today.^{[citation needed]}

The average journey time for the 6 mile trip to the city centre for most commuters from the greater Blanchardstown area peaks at up to 2 hours^{[citation needed]}, which is disproportionately higher than the European average^{[citation needed]}. This same journey took 30 minutes in 1970^{[citation needed]}. Curiously, of the two more frequent services running to and from Blanchardstown, only one goes through the large shopping campus.

Blanchardstown is served by several Dublin Bus routes: 38/A/B/C, 39/A/B/C/X, 70, 76a, 220, 236, 237, 238, 239 and 270. The privately owned URBus also serves the town going to and from Swords via Dublin Airport.

The majority of delays in the area occur close to the village of Blanchardstown and the N3, due to low road capacity and poor road planning.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Education and business

The suburb is the location of Institute of Technology, Blanchardstown as well as some prominent multinational companies like IBM, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Symantec and eBay.

[edit] Government

Fingal County Council operates a local Blanchardstown office adjacent to the Blanchardstown Shopping Centre where most local government needs can be addressed. The Council's transportation department operates exclusively from the Blanchardstown office and local planning decisions are led by planners based in this local office.