Category Archives: Sallins

Accessibility at last for Sallins station

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Good news at last for disability access at Sallins train station as accessibility works have finally started this week.

The works have been sought for some considerable time, practically since the station re-opened a decade or so ago and whilst newer stations such as Adamstown got accessibility access from the off, we had to wait for the upgrade works to commence and there were a number of false dawns along the way.

Still better late than never and it’s great to now see the construction phase begin, the machinery is finally on site and the project is commencing. The accessibility access issue has been the most pressing item in terms of station works for some time. It will be a huge relief primarily for disabled passengers of course and am sure it will also be welcomed by anyone who has ever had to push a buggy or cart a load of shopping over the existing stairway.

The works will not put in an elevator as I understand it but rather a set of footbridges and ramps. This is probably not ideal as an elevator would be more convenient but this seems to be the model Irish Rail are going with now as it is lower mainteance and less vandalism prone given lesser complexity and fewer moving parts.

I do think longer term the station has a lot of development potential – there are a fine set of buildings there and there is a lot more that could be done in terms of facilities including an enhanced ticket office, waiting area and even a little café in the future. But we’ll certainly welcome the accessibilityworks for now as a basic requirement of the station’s users and an essential first priority for any station upgrades.

Fine Gael and Labour Cllrs Have No One Left to Blame

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Chairperson of Sallins Fianna Fáil, James Lawless has called for urgent action on roads at various locations across Kildare and says that the Fine Gael / Labour ruling bloc can no longer shift the blame onto national government or claim they have no control over spending.

“For years Fine Gael and Labour have it both ways by controlling the council yet playing the blame game that Fianna Fáil were in power and that they had no control. But that ignores the reality that Fianna Fáil have not held a majority on Kildare county council for over twenty years. And now that Fine Gael and Labour Ministers are undeniably holding the purse strings at both national and local level they can not hide behind the excuse of being powerless any longer” said James. “What’s more even as recently as last January 2011, when Fianna Fáil were in power nationally, one of the last acts of the outgoing Fianna Fáil Minister Pat Carey was to allocate a funding of 900 Million from the Department of Transport to be allocated for regional road works by local authorities. This money was made available and ring fenced even in a time of scarcity and that money should now be put to use by the Kildare County Council on the many urgent projects long outstanding throughout the constituency.” James explained.

“So the blanket response of no money is not accurate on a number of levels. In the current council budget an allocation of 25 million is contained for road and transportation improvements. Resource are scarce but there is funding available and these scarce resources need to be prioritised to those urgent projects most in need”.

“A critical example close to home is the Osberstown junction on the Sallins – Naas road. This junction sees huge volume of traffic traverse the main thoroughfare whilst traffic from the neighbouring estates and side-road struggle continuously to find a break in fast moving traffic. Traffic from Caragh also uses this junction and the volumes of throughput have only multiplied in recent years. Yet despite being an accident waiting to happen we have yet to see any action at this junction barring the farcical situation where traffic lights were erected and then taken down again almost as quickly, all in the space of a crazy three weeks at the midpoint in the crisis” according to James.

“Scarce resources need to be targeted to those areas most in need and this junction is surely one of them” James continued. “The excuse of no funds is a blanket one that is not entirely accurate and the council needs to prioritise this and many other outstanding works for the welfare and safety of people at all these locations“ concluded James.

Grand Old Duke of York and Osberstown Junction

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Duke of YorkThere’s something almost farcical about the way the traffic lights were erected and installed and then dismantled and taken away again all in a bit of a blur that odd first Summer at Osberstown…

Unfortunately there is nothing funny about the situation for residents who have to battle daily with increasingly intense traffic volumes to get out at the junction. The safety issues are obvious not least from the frustration that builds up being stuck at the junction again waiting for a break in traffic.

On the flip side I do welcome the recent road surfacing just gone in at the road from the junction mouth up over the old railway bridge and down the far side to the creche and almost to the canal bridge. I successfully lobbied to get the pavement extended along same stretch of road almost two years ago.

The traffic volumes are only growing however and it is hard to see any start being made on the bypass in the current climate and conditions. Regardless of longer term plans however, there is still every argument for proceeding immediately with works at the Obserstown junction anyway. My own view is that a roundabout may be the most appropriate fit, given the many traffic lights already lining the main flow through Sallins and a roundabout would both slow approaching traffic as well as provide a right of way for road users to exit the junction from the Osberstown direction.

The council keep saying they’ve no money but in reality they’ve €25 Million in a fund for road and transportation safety works for the current year, allocated from the Kildare County Council budget. As well as the fund at local level, one of the last actions of Minister Pat Carey before leaving office in February was to create and ringfence a fund of several hundred million euro for regional and local road upgrades around the country. So there is money there, it’s just a matter of the right projects being prioritised.

I will keep on this one and I would welcome any feedback / views also.

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Submission on Sallins Traffic Changes

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The council is currently holding a public consultation on traffic movements and proposed changes to flows within Sallins village.  The details can be seen on council website here and here. I attach the text of my submission below.

Traffic Management in Sallins

 

 

 

 

Submitted: James Lawless

 

 

Date: 29th July, 2011

1.           Introduction

This document is submitted as feedback on the current public consultation re traffic management / pedestrianisation initiatives in Sallins village. It draws on content from other previously submitted documents which dealt with overlapping issues. As such it may sketch a slightly wider scope than the immediate focus of the consultation.

2.           Background

Sallins village has grown rapidly in recent years and the village infrastructure has been under strain for some time. Traffic flows in and around the village currently struggle to cope with the volume of demand. Parking issues also continue to cause exacerbation.

This document highlights current issues with suggestions for improvement where practicable. It is expected the relevant planners can enhance these proposals with solutions based upon their professional knowledge and experience of simliar situations.

3.           Kerdiffstown Road and Canal View

Canal view and the Kerdiffstown road in particular come under strain as traffic to school, church and N7 motorway must use the same narrow egress.

Current difficulties are illustrated in the below diagram.

Traffic flows in the diagram are illustrated with block arrows. The area covered is the block between the canal, church and railway station.

These routes are heavily used by traffic for school, church and access to N7 motorway. A one-way system is currently in force around the canal bridge area.

Whilst the streets were always busy and occasionally congested, the situation was worsened a while back by creation of parking spaces along the street shown in diagram as purple boxes. Whilst being sympathetic to the need for extra parking in the village centre, at points 3 & 4 in above diagram, the parking spaces resulted in narrowing the carriageway to the point where only one car can pass at a time. This had the unintentional effect of creating a de facto one way street.

This in turn means that traffic wishing to turn right along the canal from the main street sometimes must travel up onto the canal bridge and take a right turn across a lane of oncoming traffic and down the ramp off canal bridge (point 1 in above diagram). Due to the humpback bridge this is effectively a blind turn and in my view is highly dangerous.

Much of this is school traffic with young children being brought to school. Also commuters use this path to access the motorway in mornings.

 

Traffic coming from the Kerdiffstown road into the village theoretically has the option of joining the main street at point 2 however this is a very narrow corner junction and is in no way suitable as a primary traffic corridor.

The corner parking space was removed and subsequently double yellow lines were introduced onto the road along by point 4 in diagram (Church Avenue). Whilst excessive parking certainly created issues for such a busy but narrow carriage way the double yellow lines have not proved an effective solution and have negatively impacted the ability of local residents and businessse to park outside their own premises.

The ultimate solution must take into account practicalies such as the need for local parking and “seasonal“ peaks (such as mass times and school run) whilst ensuring a constant smooth flow of traffic to avoid excessive hold ups and knock-on safety issues.

 

4.           Parking Constraints

There are a number of traffic & parking constraints currently applicable within the village area bordering the canal (as descibed above). Spill-over parking from the Railway station negatively impacts upon residents and business owners in the immediate vicinity i.e. on the streets canal view, church avenue etc. It is also problematic that this small road takes a large volume of traffic from the village to the school and out onto the M7 motorway.

These issues can be summarised by the following goals:

  • Ensure available parking exists for residents and commercial users of the location.
  • Address inappropriate all day parking which deprives residents of spaces and clogs road.
  • Ensure roadway is clear especially at peak times and ensure appropriate access for traffic volume.

A suggestion would be that available spaces be allocated to residents on a permit basis and that a short-term parking window be granted for customers and casual users. Excessive / All day parking should be prohibited at all street parking locations in village. Parking regulation should take into account traffic patterns also, e.g. more parking required at mass times but less through traffic.

  • Target available parking at residents and businesses through a permit system
  • Prohibit excessive / all day parking at all on street locations
  • Ensure roadway clear and appropriate for traffic volumes
  • Account for patterns such as school run, motorway commute, church times
  • Single yellow line to enable flexibility outside core hours e.g. weekend mass times
  • Address safety issues by providing smooth, managed flow of traffic

5.           New Junctions

The new traffic junction should consider flows from Osberstown estates, railway station and church avenue as well as existing (and essential for school) pedestrian crossing facility. It is suggested to relocate this crossing just slightly to come in line with the existing junction, to regulate access for motorists entering the Main street from either side and also to enable pedestrian traffic cross to the school, church and train station in safety from the other side. I understand detailed consultation on this will occur at a later date.

Another junction requiring control measures is also required from Osberstown cottages onto R407 where a set of lights have been erected but not enabled and then removed. This junction should be incorporated into the overall traffic management scheme with alacirty to enable residents here access the main road and avoid an accident.

6.           Main Street and Canal Bridge

Traffic volumes along the main street are magnified by vehicles using the village as a rat run between the N7 and N4 motorways.

The current canal bridge can also be hazardous for pedestrians due to narrow footpath on one side and no footpath on other.

Pedestrian traffic from the Osberstown side of the village has no footpath to cross the bridge on that side. Whilst it is possible to cross at the traffic lights, it is necessary then to recross the main road further down the village in order to cross back onto that side. Access to the canal is thereby impaired for walkers, people with buggies or in wheelchairs.

Provision of a pedestrian foot bridge on one or both sides of canal bridge could address this hazard whilst enhancing the aesthetic character of the bridge (ala Newbridge footbridge across Liffey) .

7.           Longer Term Solutions

It is appreciated the current consultation is a short-term initiative with a particular focus. Nonetheless the following suggestions are propsed with an eye to the longer term view.

It is hoped the Sallins bypass will take a major volume of traffic off the village streets and address some of the current difficulties. However internal village traffic accessing school, train station, church and motorways will still intersect and conflict at key points.

One way system with new canal bridge

One longer term solution to manage traffic flows around the village is the creation of a one way system as illustrated in below diagram:

sallins_traffic_oneway

The solution above would require construction of an extra bridge across canal and is understood to be a longer term solution. However it may be the best long term approach.

Traffic flows in above diagram are indicative as is exact location of new bridge, many permutations on above theme would probably work in practice.