Good news for the Sallins bypass last week as consultation recommenced on the exact route and interchanges. The County Council are currently inviting submissions on the proposed route and the plan includes a new motorway interchange at the Millenium ring road which would also provide Naas residents with an alternative motorway exit in between Maudlins (the ball) and the “bundle of sticks” (Newhall) interchange. Take a look at the proposed route here and any feedback, drop me a line or get back to the council directly via this link
Category Archives: Transport
Clamping Relief for Sallins Commuters
Have you read the small print?
If you were parking at Sallins train station over the past fortnight you may have been in for a nasty new year’s surprise if you came back to find your car clamped on your first day back. It turns out NCPS car parks who operate the Naas side station car park, increased the fees from one to two euro daily over the break but forgot to let people know about it. Not only did they not give adequate notice of the price increase, they then began to clamp people who hadn’t observed it!
It seems a few labels were placed on the parking meters but people who had being used to paying the previous fare for the past two years and who are typically parking in early morning and running to catch their train, not surprisingly, had not stopped to notice the changes in small print on the machine they had been using daily for the past two years.
Calls for Pedestrian Safety at Kill Village
Pictured in photo are Mia Flynn, Ben Flynn, Alex Foley, Mr. Foley, Larry Byrne, Liam Kelly, Pat Reid and James Lawless.
Local Area Representative James Lawless is supporting local residents calls for a pedestrian or zebra crossing to be installed in Kill village. The volume of cars through the village makes the road hazardous for shoppers, school children and elderly residents who all struggle to find a break in the traffic and get across. Locals are calling on the council to take action before the worst case scenario arises and someone gets injured or worse and James is supporting them.
“Since I was appointed as a local area rep in the Summer there are some issues that have been raised repeatedly and this is one of them” said James. “Local residents have told me how difficult it can be to get across the very busy main street and I have seen it with my own eyes as well. The cars coming in off the motorway barely pause for breath before flying through the village, especially on a Friday evening” said James. “I am calling on the council to look at putting in a basic pedestrian crossing before the situation deteriorates or an accident occurs. They could allocate some of their roads budget to Kill village and it is badly needed here” concluded James.
Good News Maybe on Horizon for Osberstown Junction
The vexed junction at Osberstown in Sallins may finally be in for some good news as James Lawless, local Fianna Fáil representative, has been advised by the National Transport Authority that a survey recently commissioned will report shortly with a verdict.
“The issue has dragged on for years” said James “The junction is patently dangerous and there has been a number of near misses and actual collisions there already. It is only good luck to date that no one has yet been seriously hurt”. The junction sees traffic from Oldbridge estate, Caragh and surrounding areas exit onto the main Sallins-Naas road and is notorious for a lack of safe exit for right turning traffic.
Bike security at Sallins station
James Lawless, Fianna Fáil Naas Area Representative and Spokesperson with Naas and Sallins Rail User Group has asked Irish Rail to look at security for bikes parked at station and is still lobbying for a second rain shelter at the stop.
“Irish Rail have rolled out a pilot programme on some DART stations to facilitate secure cycle parking in a kind of special ‘bike locker’” explained James. “There is a cost to the user and it is operated by a third party but I have asked Irish Rail if they would consider equipping Sallins station with such functionality as part of the upgrade works ongoing at the station”.
James explained that there have been issues with security at station and some bike thefts and he has also asked Irish Rail to improve security with other straightforward measures such as stepping up the CCTV presence at station and on bike racks.
“I’m still pressing for that badly needed second rain shelter as well” said James “After many discussions over the monsoon Summer Irish Rail management did assure me a second shelter would be provided but we’ve yet to see it” said James.
“I’ll be keeping the pressure up on all these items, especially as public transport prices increase again, we at least need to get value for our money” concluded Mr. Lawless