30km/h speed limits proposed by Council

Image: KCC.

All Kilcullen housing estates that are taken in charge by KCC, and the main street from Conroy Park to the Market Square entrance north of the bridge, will be subject to a 30km/h speed limit under proposals being considered by Kildare County Council, writes Brian Byrne. The limit would also apply on the R413 west as far as Castlemartin gates and east as far as the top entrance of the Valley Park.

The Supplementary Special Speed Limit Byelaws for Built-Up and Urban areas 2026, as proposed, are now open to public view until 28 August, as part of a consultation process. They can be accessed online or at the Council’s offices in Naas. 

After public consultation, the Elected Members will consider adopting the byelaws, possibly with amendments, and they will take effect upon adoption. 

The byelaws are detailed in five volumes of maps, each covering a different Municipal District. Submissions can be made online in accordance with the Department of Transportation Guidelines 2025.

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KCC launches Biodiversity Action Plan

Cathaoirleach of Kildare CC, Cllr Tim Durkan, with Dr Méabh Boylan, KCC Biodiversity Officer, and Catherine Casey, Head of Climate Change, The Heritage Council.

Kildare County Council has launched its Biodiversity Action Plan 2026–2031, setting out a five-year framework to protect habitats, restore ecosystems and support nature recovery across the county.

The plan follows wide consultation with council staff, community groups, farmers, landowners, environmental organisations, state agencies, schools and the public. Its priorities include protecting biodiversity-rich habitats, restoring wetlands, peatlands, grasslands and river corridors, supporting threatened native species, improving ecological networks and strengthening biodiversity monitoring.

The Council says the plan reflects the urgency of biodiversity loss and aims to embed nature protection into everyday policy and land management. 

The full plan is now available on the KCC website.

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M7 night-time closures next week

Image: Google Maps.

Night-time closures of the eastbound M7, between junctions 9a and 9, will take place from Tuesday 4 August to Monday 10 August, to facilitate resurfacing works.

The closures will be between 10pm and 6am. Diversions will be signposted. 

Emergency access and restricted Local Access will be maintained

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Placenames workshop for Heritage Week

A free drop-in workshop on local placenames will take place at Teach Diarmada, Main Street, Castledermot, on 19 August from 2pm to 7pm. The event focuses on recording minor local placenames – such as field names and crossroads – on the Meitheal Logainm website, helping to preserve valuable insights into the local landscape and its past. 

Visitors can call in at any time during the afternoon for a chat and a cup of tea, learn how to register placenames, and contribute entries on the day. 

Organised by Kildare County Council as part of National Heritage Week 2026, under the theme “Heritage at Risk”, the workshop offers a practical response to the loss of unrecorded placenames. No experience is necessary. 

For further information, contact Kildare County Council, 045 980200 or email heritage@kildarecoco.ie.

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Positive council responses to Kilcullen road safety issues

Cllr Tracey O’Dwyer has welcomed positive responses from Kildare County Council to two local safety and infrastructure issues, writes Brian Byrne. They relate to repairing a speed bump outside Scoil Bhride and a poor surface at St Brigid's Avenue.

Following her representations at today's Kildare-Newbridge Municipal District meeting, the Council has agreed to assess a damaged speed bump outside Scoil Bhríde on the busy Newbridge–Kilcullen Road (R413), with a view to carrying out urgent repairs. The critical traffic-calming measure, which slows vehicles directly outside the school gates, has developed a dangerously sharp edge, a concern for local motorists, due to heavy wear and tear. Cllr O’Dwyer has asked that works be prioritised and, where possible, completed during school holidays to minimise disruption.

Separately, the Council has committed to interim pothole repairs on the rear access road serving residents of St Brigid’s Avenue, Kilcullen, following another motion from Cllr O’Dwyer. The heavily deteriorated surface, which has not been fully resurfaced since the estate was built, will receive patch repairs to tackle the worst potholes. At the same time, officials continue to seek funding for full resurfacing. 

Cllr O’Dwyer said the commitments will provide immediate relief for residents and road users while longer-term solutions are pursued.

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Call for 'urgent measures' at 'lethal' Kinneagh junction

Image: Tracey O'Dwyer.

Following a serious crash today that makes three in just a few months at Kinneagh Cross, Cllr Tracey O'Dwyer says she is seeking urgent interim measures to make the junction safer, writes Brian Byrne. Kinneagh Cross is notorious for its blind approach — particularly for drivers pulling out or approaching from the Newbridge side.

The councillor says the junction approaches are high speed and therefore a crash results in high impact. "It’s lethal, and the speed at which an impact happens is a real worry," she told the Diary, adding that the issue is similar to that at Thompson's Cross, near Kilcullen. "High speed, huge impact."

She says that she has been consistently raising the Kinneagh issue with the Council. "It is now on the list for upgrade works, and I would hope those works can start as soon as possible," she said after today's incident, which held up traffic in the area for some time. "The speed review is also currently underway, and if possible, I will be looking for the speed to be reduced at the approach to this junction."

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Road closure Mile Mill-Grangemore on Monday

A reminder that the R‑413 will be closed TODAY, Monday, 13 July 2026, between Mile Mill Cross and Grangemore, Brannockstown, during the day for surface dressing works. 

A signed diversion will be in place, local access maintained, and motorists should expect some delays.

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Designated bathing area sought for Kilcullen

File photos: Kilcullen Diary.

Waterways Ireland and Kildare County Council have carried out a risk assessment on potential designated bathing areas in the Liffey at Kilcullen, writes Brian Byrne. This follows requests from local swimming enthusiasts to have an official swimming location established.

The initiative is one of a list of project ambitions produced by Kilcullen Community Action earlier this year. Cllr Tracey O'Dwyer, who says it is 'a worthy project worth pursuing', has previously walked the Liffey area with representatives from the Kildare Sports Partnership, "to start the discussion about various locations."

Following the recent assessment visit by Waterways Ireland and KCC, the next phase in this project is an environmental impact analysis, followed by a water quality analysis to ensure there is good water quality if people are going to swim. At that point, a detailed design would be done and costings assessed.

The matter has come into sharp focus with the current and earlier heatwave spells, with scores of mainly young people cooling off at what were traditional swimming places in the river, but which are now fenced off from public access. 

KCA's Tony Gahan, a keen swimmer, is leading the call for Designated Bathing, suggesting that a pontoon structure that would rise and fall with the flood could be located on the Riverside Manor bank side of the river. The location had a temporary wooden dock for many years while the new Kilcullen Canoe Club premises were being constructed as part of the Market Square development in the late 2000s. It fell into disrepair when it was no longer needed by the club and was dismantled for safety reasons several years ago.

A request that KCC designate a generationally popular swimming spot at Carnalway, made by Cllr O'Dwyer last year, didn't succeed. Identified bathing waters are monitored, managed, and assessed under the requirements of the 2008 Bathing Water Quality Regulations. The regulations followed the transposition of the Bathing Water Directive (2006/7/EC) into Irish law in 2008, aimed at enhancing the protection of bathers' health and introducing stricter standards for water quality. Local authorities are required under the legislation to identify such locations.

In 2024, KCC sought public assistance in identifying such locations so a profile of each could be developed, including an assessment of the risk of pollution and what action would be taken if pollution occurs. Among details requested from the public were how swimming areas have been used up to now, how many people use the site, what facilities (eg, signage, parking, toilets, etc.) exist at the site, how accessible it is, and what safety issues exist. 

To our knowledge, there are as yet no Designated Bathing Waters in County Kildare.

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Local roads motions for MD meeting

Local roads issues are the focus of two motions put on the agenda of the next meeting of the Kildare-Newbridge MD by Cllr Tracey O'Dwyer, writes Brian Byrne.

The first is a request for Kildare CC to carry out repairs to the speed bumps at Scoil Bhride. The second is seeking consideration of the back access road at St Brigid's Avenue for resurfacing in 2027, and in the meantime, fix the potholes there.

The meeting will be held at 10 am on Wednesday, 15 July 2026, in the Council Chamber, Áras Chill Dara, Devoy Park, Naas. 

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'No budget' for paint amnesty this year

Kildare County Council says there is currently no budget provision for a countywide paint amnesty this year, but the last event it ran in September 2024 cost €38,000, writes Brian Byrne. At that event, the council collected 37.3 tonnes of waste paint. 

The amnesty was delivered in partnership with the Regional Waste Management Planning Office and received contributory funding under the Anti-Dumping Initiative from the Department of Climate, Energy and the Environment.

The council says that if funding becomes available for a future paint collection event, it would support the recycling centre in Athy, with the issue possibly to be considered again in the 2027 revenue budget.

The matter was raised at the June full meeting of the council by Cllrs Mark Leigh, Kevin Duffy, and Rob Power, who asked that the council establish a countywide paint amnesty and enter into a formal agreement with the paint recycling scheme at the Circular Economy Centre in Athy to support the recycling of water-based waste paint into reusable paint.

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Council says it is adequately prepared for heatwave response

Kildare County Council says it is adequately prepared to deal with heatwave events as part of its emergency planning, writes Brian Byrne, while warning that prolonged hot weather can put pressure on health services, water supplies, transport networks and vulnerable people. The matter had been raised on the agenda at yesterday's full June meeting by Cllrs Pádraig McEvoy, Angela Feeney, Tim Durkan and Brendan Wyse.

In a report to the councillors, the council said it will respond to extreme temperatures under the Framework for Major Emergency Management and the Met Éireann Weather Warning System.

The authority said its Severe Weather Assessment Team monitors yellow, orange and red heat warnings, and can meet when warnings escalate, or local impacts become too severe.

It said the team can recommend activating the Severe Weather Plan and escalating matters to the Chief Executive and Crisis Management Team if needed.

The report also outlined actions including road monitoring, fire service support, liaison with Uisce Éireann, help for vulnerable tenants and displaced people, and the use of community support centres.

The council said it is satisfied with its emergency planning, risk assessment and governance arrangements, but accepted there is scope for more training, scenario planning and review of resources and capacity.

It added that the Severe Weather Plan is being reviewed for prolonged periods of extreme high temperatures.

The report noted that the HSE is the lead agency for public health impacts.

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Applications open for KCC education bursaries

Kildare County Council has opened applications for its 2026 education bursary schemes, with a deadline of 5pm on Friday, 18 September 2026.

The bursaries are designed for students from County Kildare who face significant barriers to third-level education. Available schemes include the William G Carroll Bursary (Community), the Kildare Education Bursary for People with Disabilities, and the Kildare County Council Memorial Bursary for DEIS School Students.

Applicants must live in County Kildare and provide supporting documents, including proof of income or disability-related evidence where relevant, an academic reference, a second referee, statements outlining their course choice and barriers, exam results, and bank or credit union details. Successful applicants will also need to show proof of registration before payment is issued.

Full details here. 

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Council urges weather awareness

Kildare County Council has urged the public to stay weather aware as high temperatures bring an increased risk of thunderstorms and local flooding.

The council advises people to stay hydrated, seek shade during the hottest part of the day and avoid strenuous outdoor activity. It also reminds the public not to leave children, vulnerable people or animals in vehicles, even briefly, and to check in on neighbours who may need extra support.

People are advised to move indoors if thunder is heard, stop outdoor activity if lightning develops, and avoid driving in heavy rain unless necessary. Also, never to drive, walk or cycle through floodwater.

Additional advice covers water and fire safety, including supervising children near water, checking local conditions and not lighting fires in woodland or open countryside.

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Movement on Hillcrest TIC

Forward movement on the long-running taking-in-charge process for Hillcrest estate in Kilcullen has been welcomed by Cllr Tracey O'Dwyer, writes Brian Byrne. This follows a question she raised at yesterday’s Kildare-Newbridge Municipal District meeting.

Officials said Hillcrest is part of the council's legacy portfolio of estates being progressed towards taking in charge, and that it hopes investigative works can be carried out later this year, subject to available resources. It was confirmed that engagement with Uisce Éireann will begin in relation to the estate’s foul and water network.

Cllr O’Dwyer said the update was a positive step and that she looks forward to seeing the matter move closer to completion.

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Busy Kildare-Newbridge MD agenda

Image: S&S Interiors.

Kildare-Newbridge Municipal District councillors will meet tomorrow, Wednesday, 17 June, with transport, road safety, local infrastructure and community facilities set to dominate the agenda, writes Brian Byrne. A large share of the meeting will focus on transport and mobility issues across the district. 

Motions call for extra public lighting at The Mill Lane in Roseberry, a review of disability parking locations in Newbridge, an assessment of an M9 motorway exit before Kilcullen to better serve Newbridge, and a request to Irish Rail to examine reopening Kildangan Train Station. Councillors will also debate traffic calming, resurfacing and road safety measures in areas including Maddenstown, Kildare Town, Standhouse Lawns, Mountprospect, Rathangan and Baronstown East.

Parks and community amenities will also feature, with proposals concerning Rathangan Playground, Abbotts Wood in Kildangan, and the future of Lakeside Park in Newbridge. Members are due to seek updates on housing and regeneration matters, including the Rickardstown site and the new Newbridge Library project.

Other items include water supply issues in Hillsborough, use of the official Irish name ‘An Droichead Nua’, plans for Moore Abbey in Monasterevin, taking in charge of Hillcrest Estate in Kilcullen, action on dog fouling in Newbridge, and possible future use of Liffey Lodge as a youth centre.

The meeting is scheduled to begin at 10am in the Council Chamber at Áras Chill Dara, Devoy Park, Naas.

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Planters-seats for new footpaths

Artist's impression for KCA of proposed planters-seats design by Omos Ltd.

High-quality planters incorporating seating have been ordered for the newly upgraded footpath areas in downtown Kilcullen, writes Brian Byrne. The recent meeting of KCA heard that they are being provided by Kildare County Council, the contractor, and a sponsor.

Noel Clare, chair of the group for the next six months, said that initially it had been understood there was no public budget for street furniture, but sponsorship had been agreed for one unit, which is on order from Omos Ltd, the Naas-based company that makes award-winning public realm furnishings. "Then the council came back and said they and the contractor were going to provide four and that they were also on order."

Three of the units will be placed on the section at O'Connells and the River Cafe, and two on the McTernans section.

The meeting also heard details of discussions with the area businesses about coordinating the design of their day-to-day street tables, and that a plan will be prepared for submission to the council for a licence for these. 

The next KCA meeting, which is open to everyone to attend, is scheduled for Monday, 13 July, at 8pm.

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