Victory for Kill residents as temporary pedestrian crossing will be installed after weeks of campaigning

Photos courtesy of Diana Maynard

By Kim O’Leary

Local residents in Kill Village are celebrating after Kildare County Council announced that the village will get a temporary pedestrian crossing following a 5-week long campaign after a young school child was knocked down last month.

Yesterday evening residents marched in protest outside Kildare County Council offices whilst the monthly meeting of the Naas Municipal District meeting was also taking place.

Two local councillors Labour Cllr Anne Breen and Fine Gael Cllr Fintan Brett had tabled motions urging the council to install a pedestrian crossing for Kill village.

Kildare County Council has said that permanent crossings will be built as part of the NTA funded Naas to Kill cycle scheme and that the project is at the detailed design stage.

Speaking to KildareNow following the announcement of a temporary pedestrian crossing, campaigner and concerned mother of four children Diana Maynard said: “We’re really happy with the outcome so there will be no ‘slow drive’ on Friday as a result of the council’s decision. But as there is no date yet for the temporary crossing to be installed, we’re going to keep putting pressure on the council until the crossing is in the ground. The campaign did very well we had over 1,100 signatures by the end of it.”

Meanwhile, Naas Cllr Anne Breen is tabling a motion at next week’s meeting of the Naas Municipal District calling on the council to ‘provide a pedestrian crossing on the Main Street of Kill Village as a matter of urgency, for the safety of pedestrians and particularly children, crossing the road.’

Cllr Anne Breen said that she was ‘very pleased’ to hear that a temporary pedestrian crossing is to be installed for Kill Village.

She said: “I was very pleased to see so many people outside Kildare County Council offices and that a temporary pedestrian crossing will be installed, it’s very important for the people of Kill to have the crossing. I actually tabled a motion several years ago for a crossing at Behan’s Eurospar but nothing ever materialized from it. I am also pleased that the situation of lorries parking and damaging the road at exit 7 on the N7 Kill has been addressed after the motion was raised two months ago."

Meanwhile, Labour General Election Candidate Emmet Stagg described the news that a temporary pedestrian crossing is to be installed as ‘a great victory for the community of Kill’.

He said: “The commitment and work resulted in the successful conclusion to the campaign and Paula Mills, Diana Maynard, Aurley Keenan, Fiona O'Sullivan and other members of the group who led the campaign are to be congratulated on their success.”

Meanwhile, there are currently no plans yet for pedestrian crossings for Sallins and Johnstown as residents launch a similar campaign for both areas.