*Paddywagon Tours Ltd.
PADDYWAGON TOURS Ltd have been granted planning permission for an expansion to their Liscannor base.
Scenic tours of Ireland have been provided by the tour operator since 1998.
In April 2024, Paddywagon Tours applied to Clare County Council for permission to extend and reorder their existing car park in Liscannor. The development was to provide fourteen carparking spaces, fifteen bicycle spaces, the provision of bus pull-in on the local road LP1088 and provision of four on-street parking spaces to the front along Main Street at their site at Mermaid House, adjacent to the John P. Holland centre.
The fourteen new parking spaces feature two EV charging stations as well as disabled and family accommodation. Paddywagon Tours currently runs a restaurant at the site that exclusively caters for bus passengers.
Plans for the parking were initially halted by the planning department however who expressed fears over the effect the development could have on traffic and road safety in the tourist hotspot.
The Council stated that “The proposed spaces would also pose a hazard to traffic on the R478 and traffic exiting the existing premises to the west”. Detail was sought on the amount of buses anticipated to visit the development at any given time and how this could be accommodated. The planning authority also noted that potential works on the public road alongside the site may be required to make it viable.
In response to this, Doyle Kent Planning Partnership Ltd on behalf of Paddywagon altered the plans for the proposed development, removing plans for a proposed bus pull-in and preserving the existing footpath. The Dublin based planners addressed the Council’s concerns by saying that “All turning movements for the three buses will be within the confines of the private forecourt and not in the public street. Thus, there will be no turning movements on either of the adjoining public roads”.
Congestion in Liscannor from both tourists and traffic was flagged by the Council. In response to this, the architect has “redesigned the forecourt to accommodate three buses. All turning movements will be accommodated within the forecourt and there will be no reversing in from the minor road L-1088 to the east side of the Mermaid property. Each bus accommodates 56 persons and the restaurant accommodates dining for two buses”.
Work on the proposed development can now begin with the granting of planning permission at the site. The planning department has outlined conditions that must be adhered to during the development phase. These include the removal of external Paddywagon signage from the area as it is believed the advertising would “seriously injure the amenities of the area”.
