Locals raise alarm over 'lethal' Kildare junction
The meeting at Punchestown was well attended
KILDARE County Council has come in for heavy criticism from locals in Punchestown over serious road safety concerns in the area.
A crowd of around 100 people, including garda representatives, elected representatives, and a representative from the RSA, met last week in Punchestown Racecourse to discuss the notorious Beggar’s End five-road junction.
Local residents organised the meeting, which was chaired by Sergeant Seamus Muldowney.
The nature of the traffic problem and its impact were clear from the meeting.
Garda Mo Nerney presented statistics regarding the junction, including that 21 road traffic collisions have been recorded at Beggar’s End since 2016, with some classified as near misses with the potential for loss of life.
The garda noted that there are many accidents that people do not report and said that the junction is “lethal, absolutely lethal”.
Gardaí have noted that the junction is among the busiest in the county due to its proximity to the N7, N81, and M9, with drivers seeking to avoid these routes.
The area around the junction is busy due to key local amenities such as sports clubs and community facilities, with the roads experiencing significant use by families and children.
With new housing developments planned in Naas, along with a proposed solar farm at Swordlestown, traffic levels are expected to rise further.
Gardaí emphasised that the current layout presents a high risk of 'T-bone' collisions.
The layout causes confusion for drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians, which increases the risk.
There was consensus among both Gardaí and residents that previously carried-out safety improvement works have had a limited impact.
There is serious concern in the community that, without urgent intervention, there will be a fatality.
One of the issues is the excessive use of the road by heavy goods vehicles. One local woman speaking at the meeting said that she and a group of fellow locals recorded 250 trucks on one of the local roads in one day.
Two local women spoke about accidents they had been involved in, bringing emotional resonance to the meeting.
One of the women has seen her life permanently altered by the collision she was involved in at Beggar’s End, suffering ongoing pain and sustaining lasting kidney damage. She can no longer drive.
Another concerning case described was that of a one-year-old child involved in a collision, who was described as extremely fortunate to have reached their second birthday.
A mother of young children also spoke and became emotional as she outlined her concern over the danger that Beggar’s End poses.
Cllr Bill Clear was present and raised the lack of available road accident data as an issue but sounded optimistic that changes in this would improve the situation.
It was clear from the meeting that Beggar’s End is not the only road safety issue in the area.
Cllr Evie Sammon said that there have been two crashes in the last six weeks on Perry Street in Ballymore Eustace – an issue she also flagged earlier in the day at May’s monthly meeting of Naas Municipal District in Áras Chill Dara.
The matter of accountability, for what some locals see as negligence over Beggar’s End, was raised at the meeting.
Cllr Sammon said that there has been significant turnover in staff in the roads section of the council but named two council officials concerned with the matter.
A speaker at the meeting accused Kildare County Council of negligence and suggested some officials should be arrested.
The speaker noted a case in 2010 in which Wicklow county manager Eddie Sheehy was taken into custody as part of an investigation into the deaths of two firemen. No charges were ever filed against Mr Sheehy although Wicklow County Council subsequently pleaded guilty to health and safety offences.
The elected members of the council were also not immune from criticism at the meeting, with one woman saying that cllr Clear was not interested in helping her when she doorstepped him over the matter.
Along with councillors Clear and Sammon, Naas Municipal District leas-cathaoirleach Ger Dunne and county council cathaoirleach Carmel Kelly were also present.
There was also representation from the Houses of the Oireachtas in the form of Senator Aubrey McCarthy and Kildare North TD Joe Neville.
Sergeant Muldowney said that there “is not going to be a quick solution” to the matters under discussion at the meeting.
The path forward appears to lie, firstly, in the form of a road traffic assessment, which was requested by Cllr Fintan Brett more than a year ago.
Cllr Sammon asked the council about this long-awaited assessment in February and was told it had yet to happen.
The councillor said that it may happen in the summer but suggested that it could be better to wait until next autumn/winter for a more accurate assessment of traffic volumes.
Cllr Sammon noted that none of the council’s engineers or other executives were at the meeting, striking a tone of frustration and disappointment.
The councillor said that she had spoken to Minister Martin Heydon earlier that day, who said that the council had yet to make a request to the government for funding for the traffic assessment.
The contacted the council after the meeting and asked for an explanation regarding the lack of council executive presence at the meeting, with the council not offering an explanation for this in its response.
The council was also asked to respond to the criticism levelled at it and to outline what stage it is at with the road traffic assessment.
The council response said the local authority is currently working on schemes to deliver upgrades at other junctions and will move on to Beggar’s End when these schemes are delivered.
Deputy Joe Neville of Fine Gael said that it is incumbent on him and the government to get the council to act on the matter.
Locals are looking for a comprehensive redesign aimed at improving visibility, traffic flow, pedestrian safety, and speed control.
Local safety campaigner Sinéad Moore said: “This is not a request for minor improvements; we are seeking decisive action to protect lives and safeguard the future of our community.” Since the meeting, Cllr Sammon has written to the council outlining the concerns raised at the meeting and emphasising the urgency highlighted by Gardaí.
The council gave the following response when contacted by the Kildare Nationalist in the aftermath of the meeting:
‘Kildare County Council notes that a public meeting was recently held in respect of the junction at Beggar’s End.
‘Kildare County Council has a significant number of junctions earmarked for upgrade under a junction improvement programme. Ten junctions are currently prioritised, and Kildare County Council is progressing schemes for the delivery of these works. Beggar’s End has been identified as a location for works once this initial tranche of schemes is delivered.
‘Several other locations are also being upgraded with funding from the Department of Transport under Safety Improvement Works on Regional and Local Roads. Kildare County Council will continue to work closely with the Department to identify further locations of interest and prioritise them for future safety improvements.’
