Dublin lacks a sophisticated planning strategy to tie together all of the development it has witnessed during the past 10 years and what has yet to come over the next decade, according to urban design expert Dr Patrick Malone.
He told the Forum for Irish Urban Studies at TCD yesterday that there was still "great confusion" about the scale and density of new buildings despite the "fantastic output" of residential development in the inner city.
"The old rules still apply, with the emphasis on expediency and profit-taking, and the public sector does not seem able to remedy that," he said. "It doesn't seem to have a really good grip on the wider issues of housing, which is rather sad.
"I would like to know who is behind the development boom - where is the money coming from, which are the developers and architects involved? Building is a social act, and planning is all about the intentions behind the plan."
Dr Malone, who is now based in northern Italy, having headed the urban design department of the University of Manchester for many years, was particularly critical of Docklands, where he believes the scale is too low along the River Liffey. While the new amenity areas along the dockside were welcome, he did not get the feeling that there was "something more than the sum of the buildings".
Delivering a lecture entitled "Redesigning Dublin: Impressions of Recent Urban Development", Dr Malone said the only scheme which had impressed him was the major development just being completed on the west side of Smithfield. Although he was critical of elements of its architecture, there was "some bite to it and the quality is good".
At a more general level, Dr Malone said there was a need to "break down lumps, barriers and improve links" by strengthening the basic network of streets, making them more pleasant for pedestrians, as well as a need for major public spaces and landmarks.
But such improvements were restrained by one very important factor - traffic. "Other than war, few things can match the car as a source of disruption, discomfort, nuisance and erosion", he said. "The car makes us feel like children in a playground full of bullies. There are a lot of partial solutions, but we know that only ruthless suppression of the car and the adoption of both alternative transport systems and forms of development that are less dependent on the car can really provide a proper solution."
