Irish Rail objection to cycle lanes on busy Portlaoise road
Portlaoise cyclists are getting a new stretch of cycle lanes all the way to a cluster of schools in Portlaoise, but they will still have to stop dead along the way to open and close railway gates.
Irish Rail's objected to new cycle lanes planned by Laois County Council on a "dangerous" Portlaoise road.
Fr Browne Avenue now forms part of the southern ring road around Portlaoise, and crosses an occasionally used rail line.
The rail company lodged an objection to the council's plans to build new dropped paths up to the line.
A compromise means that the railway gates will remain in place, until a separate plan is agreed and money found for it.
The new cycle lane plan for Fr Browne Avenue was formally approved by councillors at the December meeting of Laois County Council.
It was proposed by Cllr Willie Aird, who owns the farmland on the other side of the road.
"This is one of the most dangerous roads in Portlaoise. A huge amount of cyclists go up Fr Browne Avenue. It's very frightening because a huge amount of lorries use it, heading to one of the biggest plants at Glanbia.
"All day every day they are pounding up and down. It is so dangerous with small kids and the size of these lorries.
"It is difficult to open the gates. If there is something else we can do, you might have a look again. We have the cycle track but cyclists or any person with a buggy has to stop and open and close two gates," he said.
Cllr Catherine Fitzgerald seconded.
"It is a very busy road. It is great to see students using it as well. But it needs traffic calming," she said.
The cycling infrastructure upgrade of Fr Browne Avenue will see new wide cycle lanes and footpaths from Clonminham Industrial Estate entrance past O'Moore Park up to the roundabout on the Abbeyleix Road next to Parkside shopping centre.
It will provide a continual 1.5m cycle path to five primary schools on the Southern Circular Road including the Holy Family and Summerhill Campus schools, all the way to the Mountrath road, a busy residential area. The cycle path will be separated from the road by a grass verge and kerb.
Irish Rail had objected to the plan for a dropped path on either side of their rail line.
They said that the land is owned by Iarnród Eireann and so protected from compulsory purchase. They said that while much of the line was closed and abandoned in the 1960s, a section from Portlaoise train station to the M7 motorway is operational and essential for the nearby railway depot, a "significant source of employment in the local area".
They said that the council must fund an alternative design to widen the level crossing so it can suit dropped paths, rather than IE paying itself because the road is being developed by the council.
In response, Laois County Council said that it recognised the signifence of the crossing to the rail depot.
It said since the objection there had been further discussion with IE, and viable alternatives were found that will need a separate process and consents. In the meantime the section will be omitted from the current project.
The council says it will continue to work with Irish Rail on a design that will "meet their requirements, improve overall safety, and address the needs of both pedestrians and cyclists".