No plans to extend footpath in Meath amid accessibility concerns
There are no plans to extend a footpath deemed not “suitable for wheelchair access”, Meath councillors have heard.
At the November meeting of Kells Municipal District, Sinn Féin Councillor Peter Caffrey submitted a motion seeking to extend the existing pathway from the Whitehills estate, past Currans Garage on the Kells Road, to meet the L28082 Stoney Road, while also widening the section in front of the garage and adjacent grass verge.
According to the councillor, the current footpath arrangement is “not suitable for wheelchair access at the moment, and it is being used every day by individuals with limited mobility.”
However, in its written response, the council’s Active Travel Section said it has no plans to deliver the requested works, stating that the proposal is “not practical” due to a number of physical and technical constraints.
Among the challenges cited were the steep gradient, an 80-metre stretch of garage forecourt that pedestrians would have to cross, and a 75-metre gap in footpath between Currans Garage and Castle Garden Supplies.
“A footpath at this location does not provide accessibility to a school or another public amenity,” the local authority said.
“Meath County Council is generally focusing its resources on developing better footpaths in more urban areas.”
They added that the Transportation Department has undertaken and presented an assessment and prioritisation of footpath schemes linked to rural schools and community facilities to the Transport Transport Strategic Policy Committee (SPC).
“The recommendations to the SPC will inform the footpath programme in the years ahead,” the council said.