Council to engage with landowners over provision of much needed footpath

Meath Co Council will engage with landowners along the route of a footpath from the Rhine Road outside Kells into the N52/N3 Roundabout in a bid to speed up the provision of the footpath.

Transport Infrastructure Ireland had agreed to fund traffic calming measures in the area but gave no commitment to fund the footpath.

Following the passing of the Part 8 Planning Process for the traffic calming measures, the Council now intends to engage directly with the property and land owners who will be impacted by the installation of the proposed footpath.

"If this engagement is positive the Council will liaise with TII regarding funding sources to deliver the footpath," explains Cllr Sean Drew.

"In the immediate short term it was agreed that the Council would examine with the TII the practicality of firstly installing gateway traffic calming infrastructure and signage without delay, to reduce traffic speeds of vehicles travelling through this built up area."

Residents of the Balrath area, who are concerned at the frequency and severity of accidents in the area, recently expressed their anger that the work still hasn't been carried out.

They are terrified that more lives will be lost on the road, which has already been the scene of one fatal accident.

“There have been a lot of accidents in the last six months and the frequency and severity of accidents is increasing,” says Dáire Shields, chairperson of Balrath Residents Association.

The community has been campaigning for traffic calming measures and a footpath for 60 years. The residents had submitted a petition, signed by every resident from each occupied residence between The Rhine and M3 roundabout, to Meath Co Council and Transport Infrastructure Ireland.

Mr Shields says action needs to be taken before someone else is killed and residents want a footpath.

“A lot of people walk the road, but it is terribly dangerous. It would take just 1km of footpath to link the existing paths."

A recent traffic survey showed 5,000 traffic movements a day with an average 700 vehicles every day travelling at greater than 84km/h through the community, which has a legal speed limit of 60km/h. Meanwhile, last week's meeting of Kells Municipal Council heard.