Transport in Belfast - City Layout

City Layout

Belfast remains a divided city. There are 14 neighborhoods in the inner-city of Belfast which are divided by peace lines. These walls were erected by the British Army, after August 1969, at the beginning of the Troubles. They were built in an effort to deal with the nightly rioting in the city at the time, and to stop intimidation and population flight. There was very little community consultation throughout this process.

Since the 1970s, the inner city numbers have dropped and the Greater Belfast suburb population has grown. As with many cities, Belfast's inner city is currently characterised by the elderly, students and single young people, while families tend to live on the periphery. Socio-economic areas radiate out from the Central Business District, with a pronounced wedge of affluence extending out the Malone Road to the south. An area of greater deprivation extends to the west of the city. In fact the areas around the Falls and Shankill Roads are the most deprived wards in Northern Ireland.

Some important arterial routes into Belfast include:

• York Street/York Road/Shore Road
• Antrim Road
• Oldpark Road
• Crumlin Road
• Shankill Road/Woodvale Road/Ballygomartin Road
• Divis Street/Falls Road/Glen Road
• Grosvenor Road/Springfield Road
• Andersonstown Road/Stewartstown Road
• Donegall Road
• Lisburn Road
• University Road/Malone Road
• Ormeau Road
• Ravenhill Road
• Woodstock Link/Woodstock Road/Cregagh Road
• Castlereagh Street/Castlereagh Road
• Albertbridge Road
• Newtownards Road/Upper Newtownards Road
• Holywood Road

The most significant road scheme in Belfast for some years began early in 2006, with the upgrading of two junctions along the Westlink dual carriageway to grade separated standard. The Westlink, a dual carriageway skirting the western edge of the City Centre, connects all three Belfast motorways and has suffered from chronic congestion for some years. The work will cost £103.9 million and is scheduled for completion in 2009. Some commentators have argued that this may simply create a new bottleneck at the at-grade York Street intersection until that too is converted to a fully free-flowing grade separated junction, currently scheduled to take place between 2011 and 2016.

The Lagan and Lough Cycle Way, part of the National Cycle Network, runs through the city centre along the Laganside promenade and linking north to Jordanstown through the docks and along the lough shore and south-west to Lisburn along the Lagan towpath.