A new school, but an old problem for Kilkenny: Traffic turmoil seems inevitable

There is no escaping it in the shops around town — back to school in Kilkenny is only weeks away and preparations are well under way for a new school term this September.

The uniforms, the books, the new school shoes, mixed emotions for many, excitement, joy and some hesitancy of others.
Over the past few weeks, much of the local conversation in one area of Kilkenny has centred around the community surrounding the new CBS secondary school.

While the school is both hugely welcome and long overdue, the celebrations are tempered by growing concerns about the traffic chaos it may bring.

Parents and residents are already sounding the alarm over what they fear will be ‘traffic carnage’, as hundreds of cars descend on narrow roads that are already heavily congested. The area — now home to a major new school development — lacks the proper road infrastructure to support such a dramatic increase in traffic.
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This regrettable outcome stems from a failure in planning and governance. Locals raised concerns and were assured action would be taken, yet those promises went unfulfilled highlighting the need for greater accountability in local government.

The development around the new school site and nearby housing estates forms part of what is now effectively Phase 2 of the Kilkenny Central Access Scheme (KCAS) — a project that was deeply controversial from the outset.

The construction of the Central Access Bridge, completed in 2017 as Phase 1, was sold to the public as a solution to city centre congestion. However, in reality, the KCAS has done little to relieve traffic, and arguably worsened it by pushing flows into already-burdened areas without delivering the broader infrastructure it depended on.

The critical point here is that a key condition attached to the planning approval of the KCAS as directed by An Bord Pleanála was that Phase 2 would not proceed until the Northern Extension of the Ring Road was completed. Unfortunately, it would appear that the ring road extension could be many years off yet.

Yet despite this condition, one that was meant to protect local communities from being overwhelmed by traffic, development in the area has accelerated. A large new school is opening. Housing is under construction. But the road that was meant to serve as a bypass, to take the pressure off local routes, is still caught in planning limbo.
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The Northern Ring Road has featured on council commitments for very many years and its timeline appears to be movable feast.

Yet, in reality, it may well be in the 2030s before that road is open. Preliminary design work may be underway, but planning isn’t expected before 2026. That’s far too late for the families and workers who will be stuck in dangerous traffic in the next few weeks.

The easy thing to do now is point fingers at bad planning and political decisions, but that will not solve anything in the short or even medium term as housing is to be progressed in the area in the near future.
But we need to know, what emergency measures will be in place to protect students and residents this September?

I have been in contact with the council and I appreciate that they are liaising with local stakeholders and have secured additional bus services, but with potentially an extra 800 cars in the area in the morning will they not just get stuck in traffic?

The catchment for the school is quite rural so walking and cycling infrastructure whilst commendable and welcome may not be of much use to those coming into town.

I urge for openness from all stakeholders, especially in the early weeks of this new school term, to ensure safety and unimpeded access to and from local communities and to the hospital for emergency vehicles.