Communities on Wexford Wicklow border left feeling neglected as roads omitted from council’s programme

By Simon Bourke, Wexford People

Residents on the Wexford-Wicklow border are increasingly of the opinion that their county council doesn’t care about them as their roads continue to deterioate to an almost “impassable” state. While Wexford County Council (WCC) continues to wait for news of emergency funding to address roads badly damaged during Storm Chandra, district engineers have released the list of roads to be repaired as part of the annual maintenance programme.

And in the Gorey Kilmuckridge Municipal District (GKMD) that list, according to Councillor Nicky Boland, does not take into consideration the needs of those living in the uppermost reaches of north county Wexford.

“I’m very disappointed to see that the Rathpierce, Kilanerin area isn’t included in this, there’s no funding been allocated to roads on the Wicklow border,” he said. “When the emergency funding is announced could you take a look at this and include some of those roads?”

With no update on that emergency funding, district engineer Joanne Kehoe was left to explain how she and her crews were essentially operating with one hand tied behind their back.

“The programme is based on the surveys of our road network, not on the requests we get for work to be carried out,” she said. “We get 10 pc of the funding we require and we have to spread that money around the entire district and try and get the worst roads and the busiest roads done.

"This leaves an awful lot of roads that people want done, and that we know need to be done, not being done.”

Pointing out that the Ballintlea road and the road between Coolgreany and Inch were part of the 2026 programme, Ms Kehoe said that if and when additional money is secured she would try and address the areas Cllr Boland was referring to.

Cllr Darragh McDonald was slightly more forceful than his colleague.

“These roads are impassable, I get that there’s funding issues but I don’t think we have a leg to stand on here, it’s an utter disgrace,” he said. “It’s very difficult for people to see main roads being resurfaced while their local roads are left undone; we’re not engaging with these communities property, they need some reassurances, because at the moment it looks like we don’t care about them.”

Accepting that there is a level of frustration within these communities, Ms Kehoe said all the roads on the existing programme are “in bits” and that there are none “which could be removed”.

On the issue of national roads, which may not necessarily require extensive repairs, being given priority, she explained that WCC received separate funding tranches which could not be transferred over to regional roads.

“I know it doesn’t make sense but that’s how the programme works,” she said.