Update on €200k footpath project, as Clare council look for another €70k to finish

UPGRADES on a road footpath and lighting project in Clare have been given, after an allocation of €150k was increased to €200k.

Clare Cllr Clare Colleran-Molloy questioned whether funding could be secured to finish the final section of a footpath in Ballybeg loop walk for Ennis residents to connect with the Kildysert Road.

The motion was put forward by Cllr Molloy at the latest Ennis Municipal District (EMD) meeting, where she acknowledged the "superb work" done on the upgrades to the Ballybed road.

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In response, senior executive engineer Paddy Tiernan said that while phase two has been completed, it will "prove difficult to secure alternative funding" to complete the works if the National Transport Authority (NTA) deny an extra €60k or €70k.         

"An allocation of €150,000 was committed by the National Transport Authority (NTA) for this project in early 2023 and this was subsequently increased to €200,000.  

"A further 150m of footpath remains outstanding at the Kildysart Road end of Ballybeg. Ennis MD, together with our colleagues in the Active Travel Team, intend to put this project forward to the NTA as a priority for funding under the Active Travel Scheme for 2024.

"We expect the NTA to make a call for this funding in the coming weeks. Should the NTA not fund this scheme it will prove difficult to secure alternative funding to complete this important project. We estimate the cost to complete the scheme to be in the order of €60,000 - €70,000."