Concern about footpath project

Attempts to have Kildare County Council build a footpath on the New Abbey Road might 'suck' funds from the planned link road between Knockbounce and the Curragh Road.



That was the concern expressed at a recent meeting of Kilcullen Community Development, in a discussion on correspondence from Valley trustee Jim Collins.

Mr Collins had put a proposal to Kildare County Council that a portion of the Valley property on the New Abbey Road might be donated to the Council to facilitate the provision of a footpath on a dangerous section of a road used regularly by people going to Kilcullen's graveyards.

The correspondence included a letter from Labour councillor Paddy McNamara that the Naas Area Committee had asked that the proposal be costed by the Council.

The KCA meeting heard that there was no allocation in the 2008 budget to carry out such work, but that Jim Collins had been told that efforts would be made to incorporate it in the 2009 allocations.

J J Warren then expressed his concerns that any funding for the footpath might 'suck funds from the link road project.

Kieron Forde said he thought that the link road funds already allocated were 'ring fenced'. J J responded that if something like this 'jumped over' the link road in priority, it 'might cause difficulties'.

He said that the New Abbey Road footpath would be a 'big structural job' and would be expensive. "It could well cost more than the whole link road," he said.

Brian Byrne.