Frank O'Rourke (Kildare North, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Ceann Comhairle for selecting this issue this afternoon. I thank the Minister of State, Deputy English, for attending to respond. I wish to raise with him two issues that relate to the recent local area plan for Celbridge. One has to do with lands zoned or highlighted in the plan, at Hazelhatch train station in Celbridge. The other is to assist positively in helping to deliver the second bridge for Celbridge to allow the town develop and grow further as the population grows. It is currently over 22,000.

With regard to the lands at Hazelhatch train station, the reference in the local area plan is section 4.6. The lands are right beside the train station. The plan identifies them as key and strategic development lands. There is a master plan to be implemented as soon as possible to allow for the delivery of houses in the area because, as referred to in the local area plan, it is an area of key and strategic development. It is important to note that all the stakeholders involved in this area are ready to go but need to partner with the local authority or Department to make that happen. They are ready to go to make progress on the master plan to allow for the delivery of housing, which we all know is urgently needed.

The Minister of State probably heard recently from my colleague, Deputy Durkan, that the land in question is right beside the train station. It is about a two-minute walk from it. It is within a few minutes' walk from Celbridge GAA Club, Celbridge Tennis Club and a school. There is easy access to the M7, M8, M9 and M50. There are flooding issues in the area, on which works are under way, thanks to the assistance of the Minister of State's colleague who just left the Chamber, the Minister of State, Deputy Moran, who has been working with me positively on this. There is a site owned by the Department through Kildare and Wicklow Education and Training Board that has been identified as a location for two permanent schools.

This is all very positive. The lands at Hazelhatch beside the train station fit all the criteria and are not dependent on infrastructure to be developed. What is the process to get this started, to allow the master plan to be agreed with the relevant stakeholders and to progress to the delivery of the required housing and the services that go along with it?

I will now turn to the second bridge for Celbridge. The land that is zoned in this regard is referred to as 12.2.5 KDA 5 - Simmonstown in the local area plan. These lands have been zoned following a submission made by the Department to the recent local area plan. It will ultimately lead to approximately 1,300 houses being constructed. The difficulty is that this side of Celbridge cannot grow or be developed further because of the lack of infrastructure. The infrastructure required in this area is a second bridge in Celbridge to cross the Liffey and to alleviate congestion, reduce gridlock and help people go about their daily lives in an easier and more efficient way. We have been seeking this for 20 years or more and this is an opportunity to find out if it can happen.

I have had a very positive meeting with the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Deputy Ross, on this project. I ask the Minister of State to engage with the Minister, Deputy Ross, and then consider if he can give Kildare County Council the approval and funding it needs to allow it to proceed to route selection. That is the critical phase that will ultimately decide where the structure will be and the access roads to it. Then a design detail will be done and it will go to tender in time. However, we cannot consider that aspiration until the route selection is completed, which I am given to understand can take up to 15 months. It requires the commitment of the Department. Given that it is tied to the development of the town and particularly in view of the submission from the Department regarding the lands outlined for zoning, I hope the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government can work with the Minister, Deputy Ross, to give approval to Kildare County Council to get that done.

The bridge in Celbridge currently serves 19,000 vehicles per day. That is more than the traffic on most national secondary roads and some national primary roads in Ireland.

See this speech in context