Children from St Patrick’s Primary School in Celbridge will block morning rush-hour traffic on Friday, as the only safe access route to school is a locked gate
Concerned parents in Celbridge have said ‘enough is enough’ and are calling on relevant parties to ‘open the gate’ and provide safe access to school for their children.
Children from St Patrick’s Primary School in Celbridge will block morning rush-hour traffic on Friday in protest of the lack of a safe access route to their school.
A designated pedestrian gate at a safer location was conditioned in the original planning permission by Kildare County Council and is deemed the only safe access point to the school.
However, the gate remains closed.
Children walking to and from school are forced to walk or cycle on an open pathway adjacent to the R405, a busy regional road with a speed limit of 60kmh.
The road also has considerable commuter traffic, as it services the commuter town Celbridge, as well as traffic from surrounding areas and those using the Hazelhatch train station.
Three Dublin bus routes also travel on the R405, and it has been noted that construction vehicles from a large development are about to start using the road.
In January 2024, a mother and child were hit by a van and required emergency medical attention.
Parents and others are worried as there have been numerous near misses, and are calling for the gate to be opened.
Protestors will gather on Friday at the junction of Hazelhatch Rd. (R405) and Willow Avenue at 8.15am, and the protest will run until 8.50am.
Speaking on this morning's Kildare Today programme was JP Nerbun, a parent from the school, who explained how parents have been told "good luck" when trying to resolve this issue with the school.
He said that this has been an ongoing issue for the past year and a half, which has lead to the protest taking place.
He and other parents recognise it will disrupt commuter journeys, but the situation has reached a point where they can no longer stand by and wait for a child to be killed on the road.
Kfm has contacted St Patrick's Primary School in Celbridge for comment.
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