The installation of a 3.5km new cycle route on a road in south Kildare has drawn the ire of local farmers, residents and cyclists.
Some combine drivers have had to divert from using a stretch of the R448 between Moone and Timolin this harvest as a result of a reduction in the width of the road because of the project, the chair of a local action group has said.
The cycle route is being installed along a 3.5km stretch of the road at a cost of €1.6m by Kildare County Council and Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII).
Chair of the Moone Timolin Positive Action Group Mark Hilliard told the Irish Farmers Journal that combines are struggling to use the road because of the works and that larger combines have had to divert from using the road completely.
“Last week, two articulated lorries passed each other and both of them lost wing mirrors, costing €1,200 per mirror to replace.
“A delivery driver who was driving a van to a local café has lost a tyre because of the high kerbs,” he said.
He said that the cycle route is being put “in the middle of nowhere”.
'North Korean-style' project
“Nobody asked for it and nobody will use it. It’s a North Korean-style capital project,” he said.
Hilliard questioned who exactly will use the cycle way.
“By anybody’s standards, it’s a complete and utter white elephant. We’ve had no help from elected representatives – it’s a disaster.
“It’s our desire that the roadway is put back to the way it was or, at the very least, engagement from Kildare County Council. This has been rammed down our throats,” he said.
Hilliard also said that the road is one of the finest roads in the country as it was formerly the main Waterford to Dublin road (N9) before it was bypassed by the M9 motorway.
The cycle route along the R448 in Kildare. \ Mark Hilliard
In a submission to Kildare County Council when the route went to public consultation, the Irish Cycling Campaign, a network of cycling advocates across the country, said it was “generally disappointed at the poor quality of the consultation material presented and the dearth of background context”.
It asked that the council and TII revisit the general proposed designs for the route and to give the public a clear idea of “why this trial is being proposed”.
In response, Kildare County Council said that the project is a pilot scheme being trialled by the council on behalf of the Department of Transport and TII.
“The pilot seeks to provide safe cycle facilities for use by all abilities of cyclist through reallocation of existing road space with limited or no widening.”
Kildare County Council was contacted for comment in response to the issues raised by the Moone-Timolin Positive Action Group. The group will hold a protest at the cycle route next Friday 15 August.
For more, see next week’s Irish Farmers Journal.
The installation of a 3.5km new cycle route on a road in south Kildare has drawn the ire of local farmers, residents and cyclists.
Some combine drivers have had to divert from using a stretch of the R448 between Moone and Timolin this harvest as a result of a reduction in the width of the road because of the project, the chair of a local action group has said.
The cycle route is being installed along a 3.5km stretch of the road at a cost of €1.6m by Kildare County Council and Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII).
Chair of the Moone Timolin Positive Action Group Mark Hilliard told the Irish Farmers Journal that combines are struggling to use the road because of the works and that larger combines have had to divert from using the road completely.
“Last week, two articulated lorries passed each other and both of them lost wing mirrors, costing €1,200 per mirror to replace.
“A delivery driver who was driving a van to a local café has lost a tyre because of the high kerbs,” he said.
He said that the cycle route is being put “in the middle of nowhere”.
'North Korean-style' project
“Nobody asked for it and nobody will use it. It’s a North Korean-style capital project,” he said.
Hilliard questioned who exactly will use the cycle way.
“By anybody’s standards, it’s a complete and utter white elephant. We’ve had no help from elected representatives – it’s a disaster.
“It’s our desire that the roadway is put back to the way it was or, at the very least, engagement from Kildare County Council. This has been rammed down our throats,” he said.
Hilliard also said that the road is one of the finest roads in the country as it was formerly the main Waterford to Dublin road (N9) before it was bypassed by the M9 motorway.
The cycle route along the R448 in Kildare. \ Mark Hilliard
In a submission to Kildare County Council when the route went to public consultation, the Irish Cycling Campaign, a network of cycling advocates across the country, said it was “generally disappointed at the poor quality of the consultation material presented and the dearth of background context”.
It asked that the council and TII revisit the general proposed designs for the route and to give the public a clear idea of “why this trial is being proposed”.
In response, Kildare County Council said that the project is a pilot scheme being trialled by the council on behalf of the Department of Transport and TII.
“The pilot seeks to provide safe cycle facilities for use by all abilities of cyclist through reallocation of existing road space with limited or no widening.”
Kildare County Council was contacted for comment in response to the issues raised by the Moone-Timolin Positive Action Group. The group will hold a protest at the cycle route next Friday 15 August.
For more, see next week’s Irish Farmers Journal.
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