New Walkability Study planned for busy Clare town to examine accessibility issues

Clare County Council is to carry our a Walkability Study in Ennis over the coming months, it has been confirmed.

The Study will be led by Clare County Councils Age Friendly Programme Manager with input from the Ennis Municipal District.

Details of the study were revealed during the May meeting of the Ennis DM in a response to a motion submitted by Cllr Tom O'Callaghan.

In his motion, Cllr O'Callaghan, called on the local authority to "conduct an immediate review of pedestrian infrastructure including footpaths condition, crossing point and accessibility for people with disabilities".

In a written reply, which was circulated at the meeting, Patrick Tiernan, A/Senior Executive Engineer, stated that a Walkability Study for Ennis was carried out, in 2019, by Clare County Council's Age Friendly Development Officer in conjunction with the Older People’s Council.

"This report highlighted certain accessibility issues especially for those with reduced mobility. A series of actions and upgrades was proposed within the report. Many of these issues have since been addressed by Ennis MD via various projects," he stated, adding that engagement has taken place with the Older People’s Council on an annual basis with respect to progress.

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"It is now proposed that a further Walkability Study will be carried out. This will be led by the Clare County Council's Age Friendly Programme Manager and will have significant input from Ennis MD. The Older People’s Council and those with reduced mobility and wheelchair users will be encouraged to participate," he added.

In his reply, Mr Tiernan moved to remind elected members of the Connecting and Co-Creating project which was undertaken by the School of Architecture at the University of Limerick (SAUL) in 2020.

This project, he said, involved students from SAUL studying the town and walking the streets.

"A key goal of the project was to establish impediments to accessibility within the town. Over the course of the study period the students identified a range of projects which should be considered to improve conditions for pedestrians and those with mobility issues. Over the past three years Ennis MD have been incrementally carrying out these suggested improvements and to date over 20 junctions have been upgraded with raised pedestrian crossings having been installed."

According to Mr Tiernan, a further four junctions are planned for this year and it is envisaged that work will continue to implement the proposals within the Connecting and Co-Creating project over the coming years.