As the Chair of the Baltinglass and District Forum, a voluntary organization working to improve the living and environmental conditions in our local community.
Despite the growth in residential population there has been no increase in facilities in our town and with the increase in vehicular traffic the inadequacies in our roads are becoming a matter of serious worry. It may be that we shall have to wait until a fatal incident brings enough attention to bear before something is done to correct this.
Not wishing to be over-greedy and bearing in mind that the expenditure of a sizeable sum is anticipated during the up-coming Autumn and Winter periods on re-vamping of the town center and the introduction of traffic regulation, pedestrian crossings and improved pavements, to make it more user friendly for older and impaired residents, it is clear that there is a lack of understanding of the problems facing the community.
Over the last number of years the number of new dwellings in the town has increased with the construction of the estate at Whitehall, the extension to Whitehall Estate, the apartment block at the river and the conversion of the unused commercial premises (4) at Edward street to residential, the 54 houses at the new Health center, the apartments in the re-vamped Convent building and the planning permission for 94 more dwellings off the N81. All in all no small addition to the local populace.
However, with the exception of the new Health Centre (which does not have any x-ray equipment) there has been no growth in facilities in the town. No improved shopping availability , no improved transport service, still no bus shelters, very little employment and a reduction in financial services. The accommodation of several families of displaced or refugee persons in the town, while welcome, will only serve to further exacerbate the situation.
Mai Quaid, Chairperson,
Baltinglass & District Forum
The town needs to attract one of the major retail supermarket outlets. At present it is only served by two small and non-competitive stores with the resultant higher prices. This has the effect of causing most mobile residents to shop in Tullow, Blessington and Carlow.
Reducing the need to travel, especially long distances, by private car, and increasing the use of sustainable and healthy travel alternatives, can bring multiple benefits to our climate, local environment and communities.
This avowed principle of WCC is totally negated in Baltinglass. We have four bus services per day (each way) to Dublin. Not sufficient for any meaningful purpose.
We do not have a regular service to the nearest major town (Carlow) to connect with Trains, Secondary colleges, a swimming pool, a cinema or a major shopping outlet.
One traffic problem is the junction of Belan Street, the N81, Main Street and Edward Street which is a major cause of frustration to commuters and other road users. Belan Street, which is outside the area which will improve under the current planned improvements, is now the main link route for HGVs travelling to the ferryport from the Midlands and for those from Dublin looking to avoid using the M50 and M11.
Travelling on Belan Street and wanting to avoid the junction drivers take the Bawnogue lane option and they travel on an undersized lane commonly used by walkers and cyclists and face several narrow points where two vehicles cannot pass.The probability is that there will be a serious and fatal accident along one/ all of these unsuitable roads. This lane is inadequately lighted. Part of the lane has no street lighting.
Incidentally it is constantly remarked by visitors that they always know when they cross the Wicklow border as the road markings disappear.
Baltinglass is lucky enough to have the river Slaney flowing through it. Unfortunately there is limited public access which inhibits it's benefit to the community. There are areas which could be converted to create viable public amenities, which to date have been ignored.
Despite the government's policy of extending Internet connectivity to the whole country parts of Baltinglass have no reliable service as yet. This is partly to blame on the policy of employing outside agencies to carry out the work. If a problem is encountered then the contractor can at times just walk away. If alternative solutions are available then they should be offered.
In terms of Community Development a sadly lacking facility is a Community/Sports Centre. Specific organisations such as the GAA and the Soccer Club have dedicated pitches but there is no provision for Basketball,Table tennis or other indoor pursuits. The lack of such a premises was very apparent during the recent pandemic.
There is no doubt that in time the newly opened Health Centre will be a great addition to the wellbeing of all residents however as mentioned in the covering letter there are no x-ray services available there. Their reason is apparently that the HSE will not sanction the installation of x-ray equipment within a designated distance from another installation. They maintain that the local hospital has such a service despite the fact that this has been changed to a care facility for older citizens and the equipment is no longer staffed or used for the last two to three years. The result is that anyone in our area requiring an x-ray must travel to either Naas or Tallaght hospital.
With the infrequent transport service to Tallaght and the non-existant local service to Naas this probably requires using private cars or taxis contrary to the governments' policy to reduce their use.
With the evident increase in population and the lack of sustainable transport it's obvious that a substantial permanent employer has to be introduced and initially supported to provide employment and training and a reasonable anticipation of financial security, otherwise any increase in residential numbers will be purely temporary.
The most critical item affecting the growth of Tourism and Recreation in the town of Baltinglass is the lack of suitable accomodation. There is no Hotel and very limited B&B establishments. The town has a huge variety of historic and archaelogical sites to interest visitors and one of the best 18 hole golf courses in Wicklow with stunning views and great variety of holes to play. The River Slaney provides some good fishing opportunities and there is an abundance of forest and hill walks/trails to tempt tourists to stretch their legs.
Without somewhere acceptable to stay there is little incentive for visitors to remain in the area.