DELGANY ACCESSIBILITY SCHEME GETS THE GREEN LIGHT
RESIDENTS MUST WAIT AT LEAST 18 MONTHS BEFORE WORK BEGINS
MEMBERS of Greystones Municipal District Council decided this week to pass a scheme for ‘village accessibility’ in Delgany. However, they asked that engineers adapt the scheme to allow for vehicular access at Ivy Cottage.
At a special meeting convened at Greystones council offices on Monday morning, the members heard that it will take 18 months at the very least to get the scheme up and running, with funding yet to be secured.
With this stage complete, engineer Margaret Hartnett said that the plan will go on to detailed designs. She said that schemes which are ‘shovel-ready’ and able to proceed straight away, are more likely to be approved for funding.
The aim of the project is to provide safe and attractive infrastructure, improve facilities for cyclists and pedestrians, and to provide facilities for other road users.
The objectives of this project are in line with current national, regional and local policies to promote sustainable transport and encourage greater levels of walking and cycling within cities, towns and villages.
The area in question is along the R762, which is the main route into Delgany off the N11, and runs from the Bellevue Hill junction through the village and on to the Killincarrig roundabout.
A road user audit in 2012 identified a number of road safety and accessibility items to be addressed within the village. The report made a number of recommendations which were considered and incorporated where possible as part of the design of the current scheme.
The improvements include footpath build-outs, reduced corner radii at the mouth of the Glen Road/Bellevue Hill junction, and a raised table across the junction to reduce vehicle speeds.
The plan includes provision of a new disabled person’s parking bay, trees and bicycle stands.
The junction at Convent Road will be improved by the provision of footpath build-outs and reduced corner radii at the mouth of the junction.
There will be road widening to provide pedestrian facilities from Convent Road around the bend to Priory Gate. This will require third-party lands to be acquired.
The existing off-road cycle track east of Elsinore junction will be removed, while planting will be maintained to improve visibility and signs located in the pedestrian footpaths relocated to a position outside of the pedestrian desire lines. The existing ramped crossing to the east of the junction will be resurfaced and new tactile paving installed.
A shared surface for pedestrians and cyclists is proposed from Delgany National School to Delgany Wood Avenue junction, allowing access to the school from the residential estate. A new verge with landscaping is proposed between the shared surface and the edge of the carriageway.
A raised table is proposed over the junction of Church Road/Delgany Wood Avenue.
Footpath build-outs and reduced corner radii are proposed at the junction to improve crossing facilities and reduce vehicle approach speeds.
Segregated cycling facilities will continue on Church Road, up to the roundabout at Killincarrig. It is proposed that the cycle facilities will tie into shared surfaces for pedestrians and cyclists the existing footpaths and travel on shared space around the roundabout. On the south side of the road, cyclists will be ramped down from the shared surface to the eastbound cycle track.
Raised entry treatments, tactile paving and reduced corner radii are proposed at side road junctions along the road to provide improved pedestrian crossing facilities and reduce vehicle speeds at the junctions.
Ms Hartnett said that during the public consultation process, some of the concerns raised included the retention of historical street furniture, and the re-planting of any trees removed.
Cllr Gerry Walsh broadly welcomed the scheme. He said that the residents have been looking forward to it for some time.
He raised the issue of vehicular access at Ivy Cottage and his colleagues all agreed that they wanted access there so that the quality of life of the residents there could be maintained.
Ms Hartnett said that they will be applying for regional development funding for the project.
Cllr Grainne McLoughlin said that residents of Delgany have been waiting for this scheme for the past seven years.
‘ The centre of the village is such a mess. How a child has not been killed there is beyond me,’ she said.
She asked if the tasks in the overall scheme could be separated out into smaller projects.
District Engineer Ruari O’Hanlon said that with planning done for the scheme as a whole, they could potentially apply to other funding streams to complete parts of the works. Some forms of funding he cited included drainage grants, footpath grants, road improvement grants and discretionary funding.
He agreed that the village is in a detrimental state. He said that, previously, public monies would not be used for works when a larger scheme was expected down the line, as, for example, a path could be done only to be re-done the following year.
Cllr Tom Fortune pressed Ms Harnett on when, exactly the works might be done. She said that 18 months would be the best case scenario, in a situation where the plans are subject to funding.
Cllr Fortune wondered if funding streams for projects like this would be affected by the overspend relating to the National Children’s Hospital.
The members heard that with the planning process complete, the project would be moved up in terms of priority.
Cllr Jennifer Whitmore said that everyone in Delgany is really keen to see this happen. She asked if the positioning of the disabled parking space could be changed. Ms Harnett said there is nothing to say it couldn’t be moved.
Cllr Nicola Lawless, cathaoirleach of Greystones Municipal District, welcomed the scheme. She said that the issue with Ivy Cottage was a sticking point for all of them. The members did include a modification to the plan including access at the property.
She asked that some contact be maintained as detailed designs progress, both with the elected members and with Delgany Community Council.
Cllr Grainne McLoughlin asked if further works were planned for the area past the Horse & Hound and other parts of the village, and was assured that there were. Mr O’Hanlon said that other funding streams were being considered for those.
THE CENTRE OF THE VILLAGE IS SUCH A MESS. HOW A CHILD HAS NOT BEEN KILLED THERE IS BEYOND ME