Councillor William Durkan

I: Clane-Maynooth MD: October 2026

Author: William Durkan

  • Clane-Maynooth MD: October 2026

    The following motions and questions were raised at the 02/10/2026 meeting of the Clane-Maynooth Municipal District.

    Motion – Councillor William Durkan
    That the council review the traffic management at Centra, Moyvalley to consider additional filter lane provision.
    Report: The council notes that the development at Centra, Moyvalley, permitted under Planning Reference 21/1733, has only recently become operational. Traffic management and road safety considerations formed part of the planning assessment process, and a number of conditions relating to these matters were attached to the grant of permission, including a requirement for a Stage 3 Road Safety Audit.
    The development was required to be carried out in accordance with the terms and conditions of the planning permission and has been completed substantially in accordance with the permitted plans. A Stage 3 Road Safety Audit was undertaken following completion of the development.

    The audit considered the increased number of turning movements associated with the filling station and identified a potential risk of vehicles attempting to overtake traffic slowing or waiting to turn into the premises. The audit recommended that the warning centre-line road markings on the eastern approach be extended. It did not recommend the provision of an additional right-turn filter lane.
    As the development has only recently become operational, the Council will monitor the operation of the access and associated turning movements. Should operational or road safety concerns be identified, the Council will consider whether any further traffic management measures are warranted.

    Any proposal to provide an additional right-turn filter lane would be subject to a separate technical assessment. This would include consideration of traffic volumes and turning movements, road geometry, available road width, visibility, drainage, land availability and the interaction of the access with the nearby R148/R160 junction. Any proposed revised arrangement would also be subject to an appropriate Road Safety Audit.

    Motion – Councillor William Durkan That the council identifies a suitable funding source to provide an extension of footpath to Prosperous United grounds from the existing footpath.

    Report: There is currently no funding in the Road Maintenance Budget to provide a footpath at this location. The existing verge width in places along the road is not sufficient to meet the current standards required, therefore land take would be required.

    Question – Councillor William Durkan Can the council provide an update on all projects covered under Category A and Category B Junction Improvements in the municipal district, indicating what progress has been made to date, when completion is expected on a case-by-case basis, and when additional junctions will be considered for inclusion?

    Report: The Roads Capital Projects Team is in the process of appointing a contractor to install traffic lights in Allenwood Village. A timeline for the works will be provided once available. A contractor is working on the Phase 1 works at Blackwood Cross at present. Works are expected to be complete shortly. The next junctions to be progressed will be Blackwood Cross Phase 2 and Watchhouse Cross. Options reports have been received for the other seven (7) junctions however, no works are being progressed at these locations at the present time as part of this project. Further engagement will take place with the Transport SPC to agree how to consider what junctions are to be included in future phases of the project.

    Question – Councillor William Durkan
    Can the council provide an update on the potential for lighting upgrades at Clonkeen Cross, Carbury including an indicative costing of works?

    Report: The request for additional lighting at this location has been assessed under the Kildare Lighting Infrastructure Priority Schedule (KLIPS). The location falls within Category B (Areas of Low District Brightness), where infill lighting is only considered where infrastructure is readily available or where engineering solutions for vulnerable road users are being implemented. A public lighting design and indicative cost estimate of €66,765 (excluding VAT) have been prepared for the location. However, when assessed against the KLIPS scoring criteria, the proposal did not achieve a sufficiently high ranking for works to be considered or now.

  • Clane-Maynooth MD: September 2026

    The following topics were raised at the September meeting of the Clane-Maynooth Municipal District:

    Motion – Councillor William Durkan
    That the council undertakes renewal of road markings at Broadford National School, following recent works in the area.

    Report: The Municipal District Office has engaged Kildare County Council’s line marking contractor to renew road markings at this location where required. This will be carried out in the coming weeks

    Motion – Councillor William Durkan
    That the council inspects and carries out repairs to footpaths in Broadford Village.

    Report: The Municipal District Office will carry out a technical assessment of the footpaths in Broadford to identify any remedial works required associated with existing defects and trip hazards. Any works deemed required will be considered for inclusion in the 2027 Roads Maintenance Works Programme.

    Question – Councillor William Durkan

    Can the council provide an update on progress to date with the serviced sites scheme in Clogherinkoe?


    Report: The advertising began on the week ending 31st July 2026 and the application portal opened on 12th August, initially for 3 weeks, this was then extended to 31st December. The social media campaign is running until 31st December 2026. We have received very little communication from prospective applicants. To date there has been a total of 10 applications: 2 applications are complete; however, one application does not fit the requirements. 8 applications are in draft including 6 applications which are 9% complete.

    Question – Councillor William Durkan

    Can the council give an indicative timeframe for the preparation of the Clane Settlement Plan?


    Report: As previously advised to the members the Clane Settlement Plan is not currently on the Planning Department’s 2026 Work Programme. Further updates on upcoming variations to integrate settlements into the County Development Plan will be provided in 2027 once Variations 6 (Sallins), 7 (Monasterevin), 8 (Kilcock) and 9 (Celbridge) have been complete and/or substantially progressed. No indicative timeline is available for Clane at this time.

  • Full Council Meeting: July 2026

    The following item was raised for discussion at the 27/07/26 meeting of Kildare County Council:

    Na Comhairleoirí – Councillors William Durkan and Ivan Keatley
    That the council begins the readvertisement of the pilot Serviced Sites Scheme from September-December 2026, with a view to reactivate and progress the scheme as a matter of urgency.


    Report:     The serviced sites at Clogherinkoe will be advertised for two weeks starting on Tuesday, 28 July 2026. The application portal will open on Wednesday, 12 August for three weeks. The details of the scheme will be available on the Kildare County Council website.

    Update: KCC have agreed to extend the portal application window beyond the initial 3-weeks as required and to facilitate more applications

  • Clane-Maynooth MD: July 2026

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  • Clane-Maynooth MD: June 2026

    The following items were raised for discussion at the 05/06/2026 meeting of the Clane-Maynooth Municipal District.

    Motion – Councillor William Durkan
    That the council inspects the road surface adjacent to the R148 outside of BBC United soccer grounds, Moyvalley, with a view to making significant improvements.
    Report: The Municipal District office will carry out a road inspection of the area adjacent to the R148 at BBC United soccer grounds. This area is off the public road, so funding will need to be identified for any proposed works. The Municipal District office will arrange for maintenance repairs where required.

    Update: It was agreed to meet on site in the coming month to get a costing for improved surface dressing to allow budget identification for works.

    Question – Councillor William Durkan
    Can the council confirm if it has undertaken a recent evaluation of the R160 Ballynadrumny to clear drainage cuts and improve overall water drainage on this stretch of road?

    Report: The roads maintenance crews are currently preparing roads for the summer works programme. The local crew has been advised of this work and will schedule it in once there is availability.

    Question – Councillor William Durkan
    Can the council confirm if there are plans to provide an additional bin in Johnstown Bridge, adjacent to the existing north-bound bus stop?

    Report: There are no current plans to install any additional bins at this location.

    Motion – Councillor William Durkan
    That the council urgently contacts Uisce Éireann regarding the ongoing water supply issues at Allen Reservoir, due to significant public impact.


    Report:     This is a matter for the members to agree.

    Update: Following significant discussion of all members it was agreed to contact Uisce Éireann expressing concerns with current service provision and requesting a meeting with members.

  • Full Council: May 2026

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  • Clane-Maynooth MD: May 2026

    The below items were raised for discussion at the 01/05/26 meeting of the Municipal District.

    Question – Councillor William Durkan
    Can the council provide a costing for the provision of streetlights at Clonkeen Cross on the R402 to include the junction, footpath and bus stop areas?
    Report: The request for the provision of public lighting at Clonkeen Cross on the R402, including the junction, footpath and bus stop areas, has been assessed in accordance with the council’s Public Lighting Policy. Clonkeen Cross is classified as a Category B location, being a rural area of low district brightness that is currently unlit. Under this category, public lighting is not provided as a standalone measure and is only considered where it forms part of a broader engineering scheme to address identified road safety issues.

    Update: Discussion noted the need for a specific costing to consider these works under a different funding programme, and will be provided for consideration.

    Motion – Councillor William Durkan
    That the council invites Local Authority Waters Programme (LAWPRO) to provide an annual briefing to members within the municipal district on progress to date regarding the ongoing River Basin Management Plan works in this municipal district.
    Report: This is a matter for members to agree.

    Update: This was agreed by members in the MD

    Motion – Councillor William Durkan
    That the council identifies any publicly owned or underutilised premises within the municipal district that may be repurposed to provide safe, accessible youth-friendly spaces, in line with the recommendations of the recent Kildare and Wicklow Education and Training Board (KWETB) report ‘Nowhere to go…. Plenty to say’.
    Report: The Community Department received the referenced report on April 20th and is reviewing the report.

    The KWETB report is available here:
    kwetb.ie/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/KWETB-Report_WEB.pdf


    The KWETB report contains a recommendation: “Liaise with local authorities and statutory and voluntary agencies to identify publicly owned or underutilised premises that could be repurposed to provide safe, accessible youth-friendly spaces.”
    The needs of young people are varied and multi-faceted and require a collaborative inter-agency/multi-agency response that includes stakeholders such as parents, community members, service providers (statutory and community and voluntary), local representatives and others – local and national.

    Reflecting this, Kildare Children and Young Peoples Services Committee (CYPSC) is the local structure that brings the key stakeholders together to agree shared priorities and actions to improve outcomes for children and young people in Co. Kildare.
    The Council contributes to the development and implementation of the CYPSC 3-Year Plan, along with other member organisations, which include KWETB, Tusla and In Sync Youth and Family Services, HSE, An Garda Síochána, among others.
    Kildare CYPSC is in the process of developing the next 3-Year Plan (2027-2029), which will involve cross-sectoral consultation. There will be an opportunity for Kildare County Council staff and elected representatives to highlight concerns, gaps, needs as part of this process.

    The motion calls for a survey, by the Council, of “any publicly owned or underutilised premises within the District”. It should be noted that mapping of existing services and related gaps forms part of each 3-Year Plan, and recommendations from local research, such as the recent KWETB report will inform the Plan. Kildare County Council welcomes the opportunity to explore through the CYPSC structure, along with inter-agency partners, how to progress the recommendations from the KWETB report. It is also noted, as flagged in the recently adopted Sports Plan, that schools were identified as under-utilised community facilities and it is suggested that in the consideration of suitable facilities for youth services across Kildare, as part of the CYPSC Plan that this should form part of consideration regarding suitable spaces. This clearly offers efficiencies and economies of scale in terms of public expenditure.
    The Council, via the Community Department currently own 7 properties in this District that are managed by a range of caretaker groups but can be booked by other groups and agencies for programme delivery, including for youth related services, subject to availability. Indeed, some of the groups referenced in KWETB report are already using some of these facilities.

    These properties are listed here: kildarecoco.ie/AllServices/Community/communitycentres/

    Question – Councillor William Durkan
    Can the council provide an overview of all renewable energy infrastructure with an active (including under appeal) or granted planning application within the municipal district, to include solar and wind turbine infrastructure?

  • Full Council: April 2026

    The below was raised at the meeting of Full Council on 27/04/2026.

    Motion: Na Comhairleoirí – Councillors Evie Sammon, Ivan Keatley, Paul Brooks, Fintan Brett, Tim Durkan, Tracey O Dwyer, Peggy O Dwyer, Declan Ryan, Kevin Duffy and William Durkan


    That the council requests an urgent meeting with the National Transport Authority (NTA) and Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) to discuss the design and provision of cycle lanes, sustainable transport and bus shelters.

    Report: This is a matter for the members to agree

    Outcome: This matter was agreed, with both NTA and TII invited to attend an upcoming briefing on the range of matters raised.

  • Clane-Maynooth MD: April 2026

    Please see below the motions and questions submitted to the April 2026 meeting of the Municipal District.

    Motion – Councillor William Durkan
    That the council renews line markings at ‘Nan Brennan’s’ junction on the L-1002, Calfstown, (Carbury).

    Report: The line markings at this location will be assessed and renewed if required.

    Motion – Councillor William Durkan
    That the council takes urgent action to expediate the delivery of planned bus stop upgrades throughout the municipal district.

    Report: Kildare County Council has over 500 bus stop locations across the county and are limited by resources and funding in how many bus stop upgrade project we can deliver per year. Having said that, Kildare County Council’s Sustainable Transport Department currently have 9 bus stop upgrade projects at completion or at practical completion in the Clane/Maynooth Municipal District for 2026. There is also 1 Bus shelter project set to commence within the next 6 weeks. Future bus stop and bus shelter upgrade works are currently being designed and will be progressed through the National Transport Authority (NTA) approval, Road Safety Audit and Section 38 procedures as required for delivery in 2027 and beyond.

    Question – Councillor William Durkan
    Can the council provide an indicative timeline for the completion of scheduled road improvement works at Dunfeirth Cross, L1004?
    Report: A section of the L1004 from Johnstownbridge to Dunfeirth cross is scheduled for resurfacing works in the road works programme 2026. It is excepted these works will be carried out during Quarter 3 2026.

    Question – Councillor William Durkan
    Can the council provide an update on the status of the Serviced Sites Scheme in Clogherinkoe?
    Report: Further to the response issued at the January meeting regarding the Variation to the County Development Plan (CDP) and more specifically page 41-42 of the document, seeking to insert a table specific to serviced sites. The table sets out that an applicant must provide proof of residence for a 10-year period and be within a 10 km radius. The Members will consider submissions made to the proposed material alternation at an upcoming meeting. We will endeavour to advertise the serviced services site as soon as possible thereafter.

  • Clane-Maynooth MD: March 2026

    The following topics were raised at the 06/03/2026 meeting of the municipal district:

    Motion – Councillor William Durkan
    That the council undertakes a cleaning of all storm drains in Clane Town.
    Report: The Municipal District office currently has a jet vactor in the district cleaning all gullies. The road gullies in Clane will be cleaned during these works.

    Motion – Councillor William Durkan
    That the council increase their current capacity to provide sandbags to private residents in cases of potential flooding throughout the municipal district.
    Report: The Clane Maynooth Municipal District has in excess of 2,500 sandbags stored at 4 depots across the municipal district. Where a request for sandbags was received, the relevant General Services Supervisor for that area attended to assess if sandbags were required. We distributed approximately 500 sandbags on pallets as a precautionary measure to a number of locations. Based on the recent event and the response there is sufficient capacity.

    Question – Councillor William Durkan
    Can the council provide an estimated timeline of works for the provision of School Zone Markings at secondary schools throughout the municipal district?
    Report: The installation of road markings is weather dependent and in general require road surface temperatures to be above 8 degrees and dry, with little or no night time frost to ensure longevity. It is proposed to progress the school zone markings during Quarter 2 and Quarter 3 of 2026.

    Question – Councillor William Durkan
    Can the council outline a potential timeline for the provision of new town signage in Johnstownbridge, given recent LPT allocations?
    Report: The LPT allocation was approved at the February Municipal District meeting. The approved projects have been added to the Road Works Programme for 2026.
    It is planned to order these signs in Quarter 2 with the installation carried out within a couple of weeks of them being delivered.

  • Full Council: February 2026

    The following was raised and discussed at the February Full Council meeting on 23/02/2026.

    Na Comhairleoirí – Councillors Evie Sammon, Kevin Duffy, William Durkan, Brendan Wyse, and Ivan Keatley
    Given the imminent cessation of APCOA’s contract, that the council considers moving to a model of Community Wardens, where wardens would have broad enforcement powers in the areas of parking enforcement, litter fines and enforcement of responsible dog ownership, similar to the model in place in Cork City Council and Dublin City Council.


    Report: Kildare County Council administers and enforces parking bye-laws and traffic regulations throughout the county by means of bye-laws operating in seven pay parking bye-law towns i.e. Athy, Celbridge, Kildare, Leixlip, Maynooth, Naas and Newbridge which are regulated by our contractor APCOA Parking Ireland Limited, and three maximum stay bye-law towns; Clane, Kilcock and Sallins, which are regulated by Kildare County Council wardens who also regulate the rest of the County outside of the pay parking bye-law towns.


    The model of enforcement of parking regulations by community wardens was in operation a number of years ago and did not prove to be an efficient use of resources. This matter was discussed and addressed at the Transportation and Public Safety Strategic Policy Committee in 2016.


    The key objective of regulated parking is to encourage the turnover of parking spaces at key central locations, allow for easier parking options for drivers with additional needs and make cheaper parking available in car-parks for commuters and longer-stay visitors while encouraging visitors to towns to consider using more sustainable means of transport such as public transport or walking and cycling. Enforcement of parking regulations requires a consistent full-time on-street presence to ensure compliance with parking byelaws and road traffic legislation, particularly during peak times. It was previously established that the model of community wardens carrying out enforcement did not work as a combination of duties vis-à-vis litter fines, dog fouling and other duties, invariably leaves a substantial gap in the visible on-street presence that is necessary to ensure compliance with a managed parking service.

    The community wardens in the Environment Department are fully engaged in litter management enforcement.
    The scale of the parking operation in County Kildare is not at the scale of larger urban authorities such as Dublin and Cork, however, at a national level, Kildare is considered a best practice model. The transfer of engagement from a private contractor to a community warden-based system would have considerable implications including:

    procurement of cash collection services

    procurement of a systems to manage payment services

    Investment in hardware and software systems to manage and regulate parking

    The introduction of a community warden system would also necessitate an increase in administrative staff to manage the back-off process, currently carried out by our service provider.
    In accordance with best practice, Kildare County Council are in discussion with the Office of Government Procurement (OGP) who are currently preparing a framework for parking services. Once this framework is in place, the Council will undertake a procurement process ensuring the best value for money for the Council. The Council are of the view that this is the most economically efficient means of delivering the service and best practice of managing parking services in bye-law towns for the foreseeable future. Surpluses generated from pay parking are used by municipal districts for the improvement of local and regional roads, footpaths, public lighting and road safety measures. The budgeted estimate for these improvements in 2026 is €1,106,752.

  • Clane Maynooth MD: February 2026

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  • Clane-Maynooth MD: January 2026

    The following motions and questions were raised for discussion in the Jan 09th meeting of the MD:

    Motion – Councillor William Durkan
    That the council conducts an identification of all sites within the municipal district that can benefit significantly from a town gateway project to slow traffic and clarify boundaries and provide an estimate of costing.
    Report: Strategic Projects and Public Realm (SPPR) have published several Town and Village Masterplans, most of which include the provision of ‘Gateway’ signage on approach roads. Their inclusion in the Masterplan provides leverage to funding applications for Town and Village Schemes, RRDF schemes etc. The Gateways are designed ‘in house’, working with the Community and our Municipal District Engineer to determine an appropriate location – what is acceptable and what works in each area given that they are situated on the road network. In 2023 Gateways were delivered on approach roads in Prosperous and Kilcock. Prosperous had signs erected on both sides of the road at 2 locations – Allenwood to Prosperous Road and Prosperous to Clane Road (Curryhills). The process was carried out under Section 38 of the Roads Act in consultation with An Garda Síochána and the Transport team of Kildare County Council. A mini tender competition also took place for the civil works required for the installation piece.
    The total cost for 4 signs at Prosperous was €100k of which €75k was received through Town & Village Funding and €25k through LPT. Project proposals within the Masterplans do not have funding assigned to them, SPPR actively pursues funding through grants or LPT requests. Given our extensive work programme for 2026, SPPR do not have the resources or funding to complete a survey of all sites in the Municipal District area. Our priority will be to pursue funding to aid the delivery of the project proposals included in existing Town and Village Renewal Plans.

    To Note: Further discussion on this topic requested the identification and costing of specific projects that may be delivered in the short-medium term. It was noted that upcoming speed limit reviews in urban centres is an ideal opportunity to revisit this topic, and this will be raised in the coming months

    Question – Councillor William Durkan
    Can the council confirm if it has explored the provision of a playground in Coill Dubh, and provide an update on potential suitability?
    Report: Coill Dubh was not included as a location for a playground in the 2018-2028 Play Strategy and therefore no work has been done on locating a playground in the village.

    Notes: Further discussion on this topic requested a briefing of progress on the current Play Strategy projects to identify remaining projects. It was also noted that as an updated Play Strategy will be formulated in the coming years, this specific project will be suggested for inclusion at that point.

    Motion – Councillor William Durkan
    That the council reopens the submission portal for the Clogherinkoe Serviced Sites scheme to facilitate a new round of expressions of interest in January 2026.
    Report: Under the Ready to Build Scheme, local authorities will make serviced sites in towns and villages available to potential individual purchasers (self-builders).
    These sites will be available at a discount on the market value of the site for the building of a property for occupation as the principal private residence of the purchaser. For more details on the scheme please visit the council website here.
    Kildare County Council has previously made 7 serviced sites available in Clogherinkoe. These sites were initially advertised for sale in November 2024.
    Due to a poor response, the sites were readvertised on 27 January 2025, again there was limited uptake.
    Prior to advertising the sites, considerable work was carried out to raise awareness and interest in the sites such as a leaflet drop, information sessions in the local school hall, radio campaign on KFM, local newspaper ads, advertising in the local parish newsletter, local GAA social media, Kildare County Council social media, as well as working with the Municipal District members. Part of the criteria for these serviced sites was that an applicant had to provide proof of living for 16 years within a 5km radius area of the Serviced Sites.
    The recently advertised Variation to the County Development Plan (CDP) and more specifically page 41-42 of the document available here, seeks to insert a table specific to serviced sites. The table sets out that an applicant must provide proof of residence for a 10-year period and be within a 10 km radius. It is hoped to bring the variation to the members to the January 2026 meeting.

    If the variation is approved by the members, it should open the sites to more potential applicants. The council can publish the statutory notice and open the portal in Quarter 1 2026. The council will again work with the Municipal District members to raise the awareness of serviced sites (including the updated requirements, if the members approve the CDP variation), we will also work with the Council’s Communications Officer to focus a social media campaign.

    Notes: Further discussion noted the welcome suggested changes to eligibility criteria and noted the importance of progressing a new application window in the coming month, pending variation approval. The importance of an intensive promotion campaign to accompany a new submission window was also stressed.

    Question – Councillor William Durkan
    Can the council provide an update on the award of tender process in the case of Clane Library?
    Report: Tender assessment completed with a preferred contractor ready for appointment. Next stage funding application has been submitted to the Department of Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht for consideration and approval. A contractor will be appointed for an intended start of early 2026 following receipt of department approval in the new year.

  • Clane-Maynooth MD: December 2025

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  • Full Council: November 2025

    The following was raised for discussion at the November meeting of Kildare County Council, held on 24/11/2025.

    An Comhairleoir – Councillor William Durkan
    That the council outlines how many streetlamps are under Kildare County Council management, how many have been replaced with modern LED lamps to date, and what plan does the council have to replace the remaining lamps.


    Report:     Kildare County Council currently manages 24,129 public lights. To date, 20,019 of these have been installed or retrofitted with energy-efficient LED lanterns, leaving 4,110 lights with older high-energy lanterns.
    The Council is currently undertaking a Public Lighting Energy Efficiency Project (PLEEP), which involves the survey, design and retrofitting all old high energy lanterns with energy efficient LED lanterns, under its control.
    The Council will continue to retrofit old high energy lanterns with energy efficient LED lanterns under the PLEEP and through our public lighting maintenance contract.