By car
Travelling by car in Carlow is straightforward enough. Minor traffic jams are common, particularly around Upper Tullow Street. A small section of motorway M9 opened in June 2008 which serves as a bypass for Carlow town - the previously frequent traffic jams on Barrack Street caused by Dublin-Waterford traffic have almost been completely resolved as a result.
Browne Street, Castle Street, Charlotte Street and Church Street all have a one-way system, as well as the area around the Courthouse. Lower Tullow Street is also one-way, while most of the street is closed to traffic completely from 8am to 6pm Monday to Saturday.
Carlow has over 3,000 car parking spaces, so there's never a shortage. The majority are fee-paying during the day, and most of these must be paid in advance. Unlike other towns and cities where 'parking discs' have to be purchased in shops Waterford for example, parking tickets in Carlow are purchased from vending machines on the street, which have the time stamped on them.
There are two multi-storey car parks, the largest of which is located at Carlow Shopping Centre. The other is on Dublin Street. Patrons at these car parks are issued with tickets on the way in, which must be 'validated' before you return to your car.
By taxi
Due to recent government legislation, taxi fares are the same in every part of Ireland. Therefore, the price of a taxi will usually depend on the length of the journey, whereas before, a journey within the town boundaries was at a standard fare of â¬5. Some companies are exploiting a loophole in this legislation, and charge a minimum fare of â¬6 within Carlow town's boundaries,you must sign a waiver form to allow this to happen otherwise you will not be insured in the taxi, although generally the cost of a taxi from one end of town to the other is about â¬5-â¬8. Customers have the right to have all fares calculated by the taximeter and get a printed receipt at the end of the journey. You will need the receipt if you wish to make a complaint about the Taxi service.
The initial fee incurred by passengers is roughly â¬4. For the next 14km or 40 minutes, each additional kilometre is about â¬1 or 40 cent per minute. The exact fares vary on the time of the day, and a â¬2 booking fee may be placed at the driver's discretion where taxis are ordered by phone. Second and additional passengers are â¬1 each. An exact breakdown is available on the Taxi Regulator's website (http://www.taxiregulator.ie).
Carlow's sole full-time taxi rank is located on Potato Market. With room for eight taxis, the small size of the rank has been repeatedly criticised, however recent measures have been introduced whereby loading bays are used as taxi ranks between 6pm and 8am, so as to alleviate the pressure on taxi operators and provide extra facilities around the town overnight.
A1 Cabs
Lismard House, Tullow Street, Cabs +3539142020Bridgecabs
(http://www.bridgecabscarl...) +35359728555Carlow Cab Service
4 Tullow Street, +353 059914000Carlow CO-OP Cabs
1 Haymarket, +353 9182222Park Cabs Tipp's Cabs
Tolerton, +353 087 2440621