15 minute town

I disagree with TM O4 ("Support the use of gas...") appearing when there is no objective to specifically support active travel, given that it is the primary policy (TM P1).

TM A3 (Identify filtered permeability measures...) should be mirrored or replicated in the housing section of the CDP to ensure it is considered in housing decisions.

I am confused as to why there is a list of Priority Road and Bridge Projects in Table 5.4, and a list of Regional Roads Identified for Improvement in Table 5.5, but no similar lists for active travel? This gives the impression that the council is ready and waiting to work on road projects as funding and resources become available, and that active travel projects are done on a case by case basis, waiting for the NTA or other bodies to provide motivation and options.

TM O71 does not support our emission-reducing objectives. Improving orbital roads for private motor transport will only induce demand and increase journeys by car.

I am happy to see no objective or action related to the widening of the M4.

30kph should be the default speed limit in all our urban areas. It’s not only a road safety issue, lower speed limits also:

* Ensure that traffic moves more smoothly with minimal effects on journey times

* Reduce air and noise pollution

* Reduce carbon emissions by increasing the number of people walking and cycling

* Encourage young people to move about independently and encourage parents to permit their children to do so

* Help combat rising levels of obesity by encouraging people of all ages to walk and cycle and by encouraging children to play outdoors

* Transform our urban and village streets and residential estates from car dominated through-roads to vibrant living ‘people-friendly’ spaces

* Bring us into line with the rest of Europe where 30km/h, (20 mph in the UK) is fast becoming the default urban speed limit.

(from https://www.love30.ie/why-30kmh)

These new limits should be demarcated clearly to alert drivers that they have entered an urban area - with extreme road narrowing, for example. Speed limits should be enforced by automatic cameras, both for road safety and to reduce noise pollution. KCC should lobby the DOT for the right to prosecute offenders in this regard.

The ‘Roads’ department (as cited on the KCC website) should be renamed Transportation, to reflect a broader approach which prioritises active travel.

There should be a levy on car parks that don't provide an equivalent number of secure bike stands (i.e. Sheffield stands), including space for disabled and cargo bikes. These should be close to the door or amenity for passive surveillance, with segregated access.

Discourage car use in every way possible - limited parking, pedestrian priority on village main streets, liberal use of zebra crossings. Main Streets should be for people, not cars. Put parking for town centres at the periphery, with cycling and walking prioritised in the core and parking limited to blue badge holders and loading bays.

Community facilities should be built with minimal parking - blue badge holders and loading bays only preferably, with coach parking if appropriate. Currently there is a funding to build a playground in Leixlip, coupled with car parking. Why is this funding not spent on building cycle tracks that are suitable for children to reach the playground instead? These facilities are by their nature used mainly by local residents, who are within walking or cycling distances.

The principle of induced demand is well understood by now, so any new through roads should be counterbalanced by removing access elsewhere - e.g. the new Celbridge-Hazelhatch bridge is designed to remove congestion from Celbridge village. Thus Celbridge village should be pedestrianised with a high quality two-way cycle lane, with deliveries allowed before 11am or similar arrangements. With the large amount of people who walk in the grounds of Castletown House, this will encourage them to walk through the village also and shop and eat there. This would also be a boon for air quality and the safety of students at St Brigids. Likewise with Maynooth relief roads and any ring roads in Naas.

KCC should have a Biodiversity Officer role, and preferably an environmental officer in every Municipal District.

We have a lot of protection for trees and hedgerows on agricultural land, but little for our towns and villages. Felling in urban areas should be limited and licensed only if necessary. Plant pocket forests and greenery on every space patch of land - roadsides, public lawns, etc. - to promote biodiversity and carbon capture. Existing tress and hedgerows should be preserved as much as possible, to protect biodiversity as well as the carbon already sequestered therein.

Dedicated wild/green areas are needed across the county. Not just grassy greens, but wild forest areas of native species with a few paths that are mostly left to go wild and act as lungs for the county. Protection for existing trees and hedgerows - felling in urban areas should be limited and licensed if necessary. Plant pocket forests and greenery on every space patch of land - roadsides, public lawns, etc. - to promote biodiversity and carbon capture. 

Within new developments, guidelines should be set for native pollinator-friendly species to be used in landscaping. As well as a public open space, there should be dedicated biodiversity areas within developments for wildlife and pocket forests as amenities. For every tree felled as part of construction, at least one more should be replaced on the finished site, but as much of our existing natural heritage should be retained and protected.

The end of peat extraction from our bogs means there is a huge opportunity to repurpose them as biodiversity areas, carbon sinks and a natural amenity for residents and tourists alike. There is potential of using existing Bord na Mona railways as “peat-ways” to link greenways and blueways is incredible. They could also to act as a network of green roads across the midlands linking rewetted cutaways and transforming them into a de facto national park stretching across Kildare and Offaly, showcasing the bogs and our industrial heritage.