— Planned measures which were the target of misinformation are “crucial to achieving sustainable mobility” says head of Kildare County Council.
The Office of the Planning Regulator has warned that two proposals from councillors to remove 34 walking and cycling permeability measures and three cycling links from the draft Maynooth Local Area Plan are “clear breaches” of legislative provisions and national, regional, and local policy.
After a sustained local campaign against the permeability measures, councillors proposed the two ‘material alterations’ to remove the measures from the Draft Maynooth and Environs Joint Local Area Plan 2025 – 2031.
The campaign against what are basic walking and cycling provisions included misinformation, including in some cases, claims that the permeability would be for more than just walking and cycling or that there would be no further consultation.
The permeability measures include opening gaps in walls and fences so that, for example, travelling a distance of around 100 metres between houses isn’t turned into a 20-minute walk at which stage most people will drive instead of choosing walking and cycling.
These will still require a further process, which would require public consultation, and cycling links through green areas would also require similar processes.
As IrishCycle.com reported in October, the councillors who have motions against the walking and cycling measures were Cllr Aidan Farrelly (Social Democrats), Cllr Angela Feeney (Labour), Cllr Naoise Ó Cearúil (Fianna Fail), Cllr Tim Durkan (Fine Gael), and Cllr Peter Melrose (Social Democrats).
After outlining the issue and the policy provisions, including local policy to promote walking and cycling and the local climate action plan, both of which councillors have agreed with, Anne Marie O’Connor, deputy regulator and director of plans evaluations at the Planning Regulator, said: “The Office is therefore concerned that proposed MA 33 and MA 39, which propose the deletion of a significant number of active travel measures, are not consistent with the policy requirements outlined above.”
In a letter to Kildare County Council, she said that the Planning Regulator “generally considers the approach taken has been robust and evidence-based” but highlighted issues related to permeability and cycle connections as well as unrelated issues connected to flooding and the masterplans at Moygaddy.
The office said that it welcomed what it called the ambitious mode share targets that require at least half of all journeys by new residents to be on sustainable modes.
But, on the three issues, O’Connor wrote: “Recommendations issued by the Office relate to clear breaches of the relevant legislative provisions, of the national or regional policy framework and/or of the policy of Government, as set out in the Ministerial guidelines under section 28. As such, planning authorities are required to implement or address recommendation(s) made by the Office in order to ensure consistency with the relevant policy and legislative provisions.”
On the permeability and cycling links, O’Connor said: “The Office notes that the Chief Executive was opposed to these deletions and highlighted in the CE’s Report that the proposed permeability and cycle networks are crucial to achieving sustainable mobility, reducing car dependency and promoting active travel.”
She added: “Having regard to above, it is of particular concern that a number of the measures proposed for deletion would inhibit the delivery of active travel infrastructure to serve the Railpark Key Development Area, and also prevent the upgrade of active travel infrastructure along Carton Avenue which is a key access route connecting housing, services and new development areas direct to the town centre.”
The Friends of the Irish Environment also made a submission to the consultation on the draft local area plan.
The environmental campaign group outlined the need to rapidly stop using greenhouse gasses and how active travel could play a role in this.
Tony Lowes, director of the group, said that the Draft Maynooth and Environs Joint Local Area Plan “should be made to serve the common good by adherence to statutory requirements.”
“There is increased broad public support for policy and action, including active travel options, to mitigate and adapt to Climate Change. This burden falls on the whole of society, and a degree of equity arises when everyone must progress with the low-hanging mitigation opportunities rather than externalise them to unspecified other sectors or locations without identifying reasonable alternatives,” said Lowes in the submission.
Lowes said: “Legitimate concerns about proposing improvements or new accessibility projects should be addressed at the consultation stages of projects in order to balance the need for climate action and concerns local to the proposed sites. Deleting the objectives at the JLAP stage is not consistent with proper planning and sustainable development or the requirements for climate action.”
He added: “This submission calls for the Elected Members of the Clane-Maynooth Municipal District not to make Proposed Material Alterations that delete objectives for permeability to create or improve connections for sustainable active travel (walking and cycling) infrastructure in the draft JLAP. The retention of the permeability objectives, which were advanced from research, evidence, and public consultation on the Maynooth and Environs Transport Strategy, would make the JLAP consistent with the hierarchy of national, regional, and county policies, which is a requirement of the overall binding statutory concept of proper planning and sustainable development.”
There have been multiple articles on the maynooth jlap, it’s very telling that not once have these addressed the actual concerns of the local population to the proposed measures
Hi Dara, the article above your comment includes fears / misinformation about the walking and cycling links being opened to more than just walking and cycling.
The previous article included the following two paragraphs:
Some residents have expressed their fears to councillors on increasing anti-social behaviour but planners say well-designed permeability links increase footfall and improves safety.
Concerns were also raised about increasing non-residents parking in estates close to the train station in the town.
https://irishcycle.com/2024/10/20/councillors-look-to-cut-pedestrian-and-cycling-links-from-maynooth-local-area-plan/