Trip assessment to be carried out in estate

Kildare County Council is to carry out an assessment of the footpaths in Mount Carmel Estate, Newbridge, to identify potential slips, trips, and falls dangers.

Cllr Chris Pender requested the audit via a motion at the recent meeting of the Kildare-Newbridge Municipal District.

The councillor acknowledged that work had been done in this regard some years ago, but the situation needed to be addressed again. 

"I'm asking for the council to deal with the worst aspects of the situation," he said. "Especially because there are several people with disabilities in the estate, it's essential that we prioritise this before something happens and we have to deal with an insurance claim." He added a warning that "something will happen".

He was supported in the motion by cllr Peggy O'Dwyer, who said that half of the estate had got new footpaths, but the other half needed to be done. 

She acknowledged that the location was a difficult place to work in. 

"The estate was built on what originally would have been a bog, and it's one of those places that you don't know what you'll find when you put a bucket in the ground."

Cllr Pender asked that, when a site meeting is arranged, he and cllr O'Dwyer would be invited to attend to see what needs to be done.