Malahide street pedestrianisation to proceed despite absence of local area plan

The High Court has refused to quash a local authority's decision to permanently pedestrianise a street. The court found that the absence of a Local Area Plan (LAP) for the town, while a statutory requirement, did not invalidate the pedestrianisation works, which were supported by the county development plan. The court also determined that the council's decision did not involve project-splitting, as the pedestrianisation was not functionally interdependent with other projects. The court dismissed claims that the council and the board failed to consider cumulative effects on public health and traffic hazard, finding that the board's assessment of the lack of significant environmental impacts was not flawed. A declaration was made that the council had failed to comply with the statutory requirement for an LAP since June 2020.