Vol. 447 No. 11
119 Mr. Power asked the Minister for the Environment if his attention has been drawn to the hazardous conditions for pedestrians and motorists at Shaw Bridge, Kilcock, County Kildare; and if he will make funding available to Kildare County Council to have the necessary work carried out.
I am aware of the dangers to pedestrians and motorists using Shaw Bridge. As this bridge is located on a regional road, responsibility for its maintenance and improvement is a matter for Kildare County Council using its own resources, supplemented by the annual discretionary grant allocated to the council. I will notify the council of its 1995 grant allocation as soon as possible.
It was open to the council to apply for funding for Shaw Bridge in 1995 under the EU co-financed scheme of specific improvement grants for non-national roads, having regard to the conditions governing the scheme and the level of commitment arising in respect of council projects approved in 1994. In the event, no such application was submitted to my Department.
In view of the estimated cost of widening the bridge, £800,000 and the other demands on the resources available to the county council for roads, my Department asked the council in November 1994 to consider the feasibility of providing a pedestrian bridge, at an estimated cost of £100,000-£150,000, as an alternative means of overcoming the hazards for pedestrians and motorists at this location. I understand that the council is investigating this option.
