Obviously this would be very welcome but we have had false starts before. This is probably the most concrete update I have had though so hopefully it will happen this time.

On a separate note I am trying to get the station cleaned up for the Tidy Towns at present. Am sure all readers of this blog are model citizens with regard to litter etc but if everyone could make a special effort as the tidy towns judging is running at present and the station cost them points last year.

Good news this week as I have kept onto our Dáil reps and the council officials and got word through Deputy Fitzpatrick’s office that Killeenmore will now be granted a flood relief allocation of 20,000 this year, with work due to start in May.

This is badly needed and we will keep a watching brief to ensure delivery.

The map above shows some the areas affected. The Morrell river flows under the canal and alongside the railway. When it overflows the culverts under railway see it spill over onto nearby fields & houses.

We discussed the root causes which included increased drainage demands from infrastuctural developments ranging from the M7 upgrade to the railway tracks. Some work was done at the time of the motorway upgrade, including upgrading of bridges and some banking of ditches but a lot more is now needed. In a sense the problem is constantly moving downstream as the issues at Johnstown are now manifesting in places like Killeenmór and the neighbouring Turnings townland. The Painestown and Morrell rivers intersect and both join the Liffey eventually.

A comprehensive drainage landscape survey is required and I understand from Deputy Fitzpatrick’s office, that this is underway involving both the Office of Public Works and Kildare County Council. The full course of the Morrell has been walked by officials and a report should be drawn up shortly to see what’s needed.

A report was drawn up some years ago but never implemented, or at least only partially, however I feel the political will is onboard now to make something happen. I will stay close to it and keep the pressure on.

I spoke to the program makers, on camera, for about thirty minutes, however I did not feature in the eventual program. I did show them around the local landscape and bring them to the site of the culvert etc where they interviewed both myself and Brendan McCauley (who did make the program for about 5 seconds!).

The technical information was not bad however the program gave the impression of a state of inertia. I feel that whilst there were many faults preceding the situation (principally lack of any maintenance on the culverts) there has been progress since which was not reflected. In the immediate aftermath, a number of meetings were held and a dedicated committee was setup to progress the engineering issues with the council. That committee had a meeting with the council before Christmas and I understand all sides viewed it as positive. Since then the council have begun a drainage survey of the surrounding lands and I believe the target is to have an upgraded culvert in place by month end.

So things do appear to be happening, albeit at a slow pace. I do not imagine there will be further public meetings however I expect the committee that was formed arising from the initial meetings will be getting together and furthering their work with the council. As I have further updates, I will post on here.

One remark that was most unhelpful was that from the Minister, John Gormely TD.  He remarked, almost flippantly at the end, that the estate was “built on a flood plain” and what would the residents expect? A casual remark, in my view and an uninformed one at that. I have stated in the past exactly why I believe the Waterways flooded and a flood plain does not come into it. I have raised this with Deputy Fitzpatrick and he is seeking a clarification with the Minister so the correct facts can be put on record from the department.

View Shortcut to Motorway in a larger map

On related note, the Kerdiffstown road is still closed whilst they figure out what to do with the culvert. I know it is causing some inconvenience to the residents along that road, which unfortunately will be the case until is is sorted permanently, however for the casual commuter, there are other options to get out onto the motoray. I have documented one of these above, an alternate route for Sallins motorists, in particular, to get out onto the N7 without needing to go anywhere near Naas or the Monread road etc. Just follow directions above.

A delegation comprised of residents reps and the area councillors has been in talks with the county council about solving the problem longer term. As mentioned in previous post this will involve an upgrade of the drainage infrastructure in particular increased capacity at the two culverts to the rear of Waterways.

Relief efforts are ongoing meanwhile and a number of tradesmen came down to the Waterways on Saturday morning to lend their time and skills to what repairs or maintenance they could help with. Electricians, carpenters and general workers were involved. The houses are really back to square one in most cases, with interiors stripped back to wooden frames and concrete floors. It will be a long road still before everyone is back home again. There is some more activity planned for this Saturday and tradesmen/volunteers are encouraged to leave their details at the bottom of this post (or just mail me on james@jameslawless.ie) with a note on your availability and what you would like to contribute (e.g. electrical work, plumbing, general help out, whatever). Thanks.

A benefit night will be held this Wednesday in Boss Byrnes lounge at 9pm. The night will consist of a table quiz (questions by yours truly:), music and there will be finger food provided. A good Christmas event for all and all sponsorship and support welcome.

Basically a canal feeder stream took water from the Morrell river and others, ran along the back of Monread road, took onboard Naas Town Council surface water, took on N7 motorway spilloff, seemingly took some Naas waters from as far away as Lakelands.

All of this followed a trajectory entering the canal past Sallins school and behind the waterways.

Where the water entered the canal there was a double culvert arrangement, with one drain under the railway line, and another under the Kerdiffstown road. The second of these became blocked last week with the result that this very large volume of water had nowehere else to go but spill over into the surrounding fields and farmland. In addition to the immediate vicinity miles of surrounding farmland lay undrained whilst the flow could not escape.

To tackle this, the road was dug with a temporary relief trench, as per last post and a fine job was done there. To prevent this happening in future this temporary fix must become permanent with a full fledged, adequate capacity four way culvert put in there before they close the road again. The railway culvert should also be checked and probably upgraded.

The question arises how did this happen? Whilst the drainage has been historically present (since the canal was built), unquestionably the strain on these culverts has increased every year, or every decade as more and more infrastructure (such as roads with surface water) and housing has sprung up in the catchment area. Ironically the Waterways itsef was not allowed feed into here as the drain was considered at capacity. It is clear these drains should have been subjected to far greater maintenance than they were (none?) but it is less clear who is responsible. The council probably but also Irish Rail, Waterways Ireland and other agencies are in the mix. A quick annual clean should have been a basic and uncontroversial task but upgrading or replacing such works crossed more lines perhaps why it was put on the long finger.

There has been speculation in recent days that the site was a victim of poor planning and or that inappropriate rezonings were involved. I’m not sure of this. In fact the site seems to have suffered from external factors being flooded by overflowing drains from much further afield. I believe there were some blocked gullies in recent weeks but nowhere near enough to cause the flooding without massive external overload.  The OS map shows flood drops, again however these are confined to one small triangle where the stream turns and which remains to this day farmland. The site itself seems an ideal location for development in many ways, being adjacent to public transport (Sallins Railway Station bang in the middle),  minutes from the motorway and in the heart of commuter belt. As a mixed use development the site also features much commercial activity and has brought welcome local employment.  It is an awful shame the site has not realised its potential and that some key anchor buildings remain unoccupied but fundamentally my view that it remains a good development and I hope to see it succeed as a residential, commercial and leisure hub eventually.

Our committee are meeting tonight and I will post updates as news and information comes through. We will be looking at next steps and what the immediate needs are now of the people affected. Information also on www.sallins.org

• Secure a playground within the village perimeter

• Provide lights or a roundabout at Oldbridge/Osberstown exit

• Provide 4 way signal controlled junction at Railway Inn / Osberstown Court

• Promote a secondary school option for Sallins / Kill / Johnstown together

• Address parking issues within village and prevent inappropriate all-day parking (whilst ensuring provision of adequate parking requirements at train station)

• Enhance security presence and locate a Garda sub-station within Sallins village

• Progress the 30 acre amenity and sports complex (GAA development) on the Clane road and support  the project as it advances through the stages ahead

• Support the parish development plans which include a new church, parish hall, community centre, new access roads to school and train station.

•  Provide a permanent home for youth club, possibly in one of above developments

• Accelerate Sallins bypass to take HGVs and through traffic off village streets

• Take in charge remaining estates and address snagging / finishing issues locally

• Provide cycle paths in village with walking and cycle trails along canal and Liffey

• Enhance pedestrian safety across village with barriers & footbridges across canal

• Preserve village character through planning and address derelict buildings/sites

• Provide footpaths to Bodenstown cemetery, and fully to Osberstown crèche

• Resurface Chapel Lane and other internal village roads

• Continue to improve rail timetable and provide village with bus service after 7pm

• Support local enterprise and explore a Chambers of Commerce for Sallins

That this Ard-Fheis commits to the comprehensive provision of public transport, both rural and urban, as an efficient environmental alternative to private transport, and further calls on the Government to increase the level of public transport service provision so that it becomes the obvious first choice for commuters and passengers. (Sallins Cumann, Kildare North) Related Motion: (Wexford CDC)

Opening

Minister, Teachta Daila, Senators, A delgaidi, etc etc,

It is a great honour to address this Ard Fheis. It gives me great pleasure to propose this motion on behalf of Sallins cumann, Kildare North and as a Wexford man living in Kildare to note that a similar motion was submitted by Wexford CDC. I shall endeavour to represent both in my address.

Intro

Baroness Margaret Thatcher once said “Anyone who is still using public transport by the age of 30 is a failure”

Delegates as an Irishman, a Republican and a Fianna Fáil activist it gives me great pleasure to disagree most vehemently with Thatcher on yet another issue…

I propose tonight that public transport in Ireland should be elevated to a position of service excellence which renders it the automatic first choice for commuters and passengers.

I believe public transport to be the most effective, environmentally friendly way to serve cities with large distributed populations such as Dublin and surrounds.

Furthermore I believe effective public transport an essential component of community infrastructure in rural and outlying areas weaving the social fabric of human interaction and preventing social exclusion for old and young alike.

Transport at national level must serve the needs of the nation, facilitating commerce, tourism and leisure journeys and providing an integrated network of joined up journeys across our land.

Delegates this government has seen unprecedented levels of investment in transport infrastructure.

Transport 21 sees €31BN Euro committed to a comprehensive level of transport provision and infrastructure building across the land. Along with this unprecedented level of investment I believe we must also strive to excel in service delivery, ensuring that passenger expectations are not only met but exceeded to the point where public transport becomes the obvious first choice.

Commuter

At commuter level we have seen unprecedented economic growth drive the population of the Greater Dublin area to record levels. The rail network has been overhauled and re-developed to meet these demands. Stretches of previously moss-covered tracks have reopened and formerly rural stations car parks are now full to capacity catering for the thousands of citizens daily commuting to work in the capital city.

The huge popularity of these services is a welcome development but forms a challenge for existing infrastructures and we must strive to ensure service provision of the highest standard.

Park and Ride facilities are required at all commuter stations and I am happy to report significant progress within my own constituency with Naas and Sallins due to open, Hazel hatch and Leixlip parking facilities opening ahead of schedule.

In addition to park and ride facilities the feeder bus service should be enhanced and expanded.

National

At national level the existing rail network continues to improve. Hourly services from Dublin – Cork with spanking new rail cars form the flagship of the new fleet.

The massive engineering projects of T21 hold great promise for future connectivity and a fully integrated transport network. The Interconnecter in particular is a vital piece of transport infrastructure which will serve as hub enabling both commuter and national journeys navigate the centre of Dublin from Southern and Western onto Rosslare and Northern lines

I call upon the Minister to ensure every priority is given to this valuable project and that it delivered with full alacrity…

Spencer Dock – first new station in over a century – benefiting Maynooth Line

It is essential contention can be avoided between national and commuter services to avoid bottlenecks, a development which is already underway in my own constituency of Kildare North, where progress on the Kildare Route project to four track the line along the commuter corridor is well underway.

I would call upon the Minister to examine similar initiatives on other routes particularly on the Wicklow/Gorey/Arklow commuter services where contention with the DART network currently poses challenges for timetabling and journey times.

In the context of social capital and connecting communities it is highly desirable to enable efficient, smooth and pleasant journeys along regional routes. The Celtic Tiger has brought a merciful end to forced emigration but economic mobility still sees many people living far from home and away from extended family. Fianna Fáil has always embraced family values emphasising the role of both immediate and extended family and comfortable, efficient service options for regional and national journeys will help bridge geographic gaps arsing from economic mobility.

Equally commerce and tourism derive significant benefit from national route development.

Local/Rural

At local or rural level the challenge of social inclusion can be addressed through provision of local transport and I welcome such innovations as the Rural Transport Initative and call upon the Minister to work with his colleague in Minister O’Cuiv in Community, Gaeltacht and Rural Affairs to extend this pilot scheme – to the areas of Kildare North and Wexford at least

End notes

Restate environmental benefits of public transport – aesthetics, emissions, less congestion etc
Pay tribute to private operators driving raising bar – AerArann, Private Coach Operators
List areas for improvement – reliability, comfort levels, frequency, ..
Road Safety –