PUBLIC TRANSPORT

All Photographs Supplied By William Murphy

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Bicycle Rental

DUBLINBIKES DOCKING STATION 03 BOLTON STREET DURING A SNOW STORM

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DECEMBER 2010 LEGACY PHOTO COLLECTION

Dublinbikes, launched in 2009, was still in its infancy in 2010. The scheme, with its distinctive blue bicycles and prominent docking stations, was designed to provide a public bicycle rental service for residents and visitors to Dublin.

In 2010, Dublinbikes was notable for its lack of a commercial sponsor. This meant the bikes were simply branded with the Dublinbikes logo and the city council’s emblem. This was a conscious decision by Dublin City Council, who wanted to establish the service as a public utility before seeking commercial sponsorship.

The winter of 2010 was particularly harsh in Dublin, with several heavy snowfalls. This was unusual, as snow in Dublin is typically infrequent and doesn’t tend to disrupt daily life significantly. However, 2010 was different. The heavy snow and ice caused widespread disruption to transport and daily life, including the Dublinbikes service. Many docking stations were temporarily closed due to the hazardous conditions, and the use of the bikes was significantly reduced as people opted to stay indoors.

Despite the challenges posed by the weather, Dublinbikes continued to operate throughout the winter of 2010, providing a valuable service to those who braved the elements. The lack of a commercial sponsor did not hinder the service’s popularity, and it continued to grow in popularity in the years that followed.

DUBLINBIKES DOCKING STATION 03 AT BOLTON STREET COLLEGE

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THE SUNLIGHT WAS INTENSE TODAY

As I walked along Capel Street towards I was blinded by the sunlight.

When I returned home I was a bit exhausted a somewhat lazy so decided to ask Google’s AI known as Bard [name changed to Gemini a few days ago] about Dublinbikes and after a number of attempts to get accurate information I eventually get the following: “I apologize, I made a mistake in my previous information about Dublinbikes. You are correct, there are not 600 docking stations. As of today, February 12, 2024, there are actually 115 Dublinbikes docking stations operating in the city. My information was outdated and I appreciate you pointing out the error. Is there anything else you’d like to know about Dublinbikes? I’d be happy to provide accurate and up-to-date information.”

Google explained the reasons for the name change as follows: ” “For us, Gemini is our approach overall in terms of how we are building our most capable and safe AI model and Bard was the most direct way that people could interact with our models so it really made sense to just evolve it to be Gemini because you are talking directly to the underlying Gemini model when you use it.” Does this actually explain anything?

DUBLINBIKES DOCKING STATIONS AT GRANGEGORMAN – THERE ARE IN FACT THREE

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DOCKING STATIONS 103 104 AND 105

It is unusual to see a cluster of three docking stations such as this collection of three on the street passing through the TU university campus.

DublinBikes is a public bicycle sharing scheme in Dublin, Ireland. It is operated by JCDecaux and has been in operation since 2009. The scheme has over 115 stations and 42,000 annual subscribers.

DUBLINBIKES DOCKING STATION 03 CLOSE UP

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BOLTON STREET 1 JULY 2023

I used a Sony E 18-105mm lens and a Sony FX30 camera. What worries me is that I do not remember buying this lens and it is my policy to purchase full frame lenses only … so where did it come from?

[UPDATE] I checked with my dealer and apparently it was included as a kit lens as part of a special offer as I was one of the first to purchase the FX30 Camera []

The Sony E PZ 18-105mm f/4 G OSS Lens is a wide-ranging zoom lens that provides a 35mm-equivalent focal length range of 27-158mm, covering wide-angle to telephoto perspectives. A constant f/4 maximum aperture offers consistent performance throughout the zoom range and is especially beneficial when working with greater zoom magnifications in low-light conditions. Also benefitting working in dim light or at the long end of the zoom range is Optical SteadyShot image stabilisation, which works to minimise the appearance of camera shake by up to four shutter speed steps.

The robust bicycles are produced by the French bicycle company Mercier in Hungary and are repaired by JCDecaux. They are three-speed bicycles, fitted with Shimano Nexus gears which can be changed up and down using a twist/grip shifter on the right handlebar. A Shimano hub dynamo in the front wheel generates power for front and rear always-on LED lighting. The bikes are fitted with Schwalbe Marathon tyres. Other components include a locking system, an adjustable cushioned saddle, a front bicycle basket, a kick stand and a bell.

Each station is equipped with an automatic rental terminal and stands for 20 to 40 bicycles. Initially, fourteen terminals have credit card facilities enabling the user to purchase a 3-Day Ticket.

If a user arrives with a rented bicycle at a station without open spots, the terminal grants another fifteen minutes of free rental time. The rental terminals also display information about neighbouring dublinbike stations, including location, number of available bicycles and open stands. A fleet of bicycle-transporting vehicles are used to redistribute bicycles between empty and full stations.

DUBLINBIKES DOCKING STATION 40

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AT WOLFE TONE PARK 5 MAY 2023

VISIT WOLFE TONE PARK

The feel of the area has greatly improved as a result of the greening of Wolfe Tone Park. This is now a well located and maintained docking station … of course all are well maintained but some locations are better than others.