2025
The past year has seen the completion or significant completion of two major schemes in and around Maynooth. The two are the Royal Canal Greenway between Leixlip and Maynooth and the Mill Street refurbishment. Both are a huge improvement on what was there previously.
We welcome the Greenway and its completion from the Dublin border to Athlone. We hope that the second half from Athlone to Galway will progress in the coming year. We welcome the fact that after many years, Kildare County Council is now providing access gates with the proper spacing in accordance with the National Cycle Design manual. However, it is frustrating that while the section closer to Leixlip has been finished with a high quality sealed blacktop surface, the other section closer to Maynooth is left with a dust surface. Next door, Meath County Council has just completed a new greenway which is totally sealed. Several years ago, the Danish authorities announced that as part of their efforts to decarbonise, that they would sealed “superhighways” in order to enable more cycling by 2030. It is not as if Ireland is projected to meet its targets in relation to climate change action and can afford not to maximise cycling and walking..
In 2026, we are looking forward to working with Maynooth Tidy Towns and Maynooth Sustainable Energy Community in 2026 on a sustainable transport project which also involves the Maynooth schools.
AGM
Maynooth Cycling Campaign held its AGM on 11th November in the ICA Hall, Leinster Street and a new Management Committee was agreed. We welcome Michael Murphy to the Committee and thank Karen Moore for her work over the past years. If any one else wishes to join the Management Committee, you will be more than welcome!
Funding for Local Climate Action
The Department of Climate, Energy and the Environment has given Kildare County Council an allocation of €897,000 for climate related projects by communities to improve their local area. The project themes include community energy and travel. KCC has published on its website a list of successful applicants from the first round. The most popular application involved solar panels on community premises which are very welcome. The only applications relating to transport were for cycle parking.
Bollards at Moyglare Road.
From some of the comments on social media about parking by non-residents in housing estates, you would think that this was the major parking issue in the town. An increasing number of drivers are ignoring the efforts by Kildare County Council to discourage parking by the addition of more bollards on the shared path opposite St.Mary’s Boys School. Drivers parking their car can take up over half the width of the path. Maynooth Cycling Campaign has lodged a complaint to the Leixlip Gardai and look forward to their intervention.
Cycling Without Age
Last March, we received a grant of €200 from Kildare Community allocation for servicing of the trishaw. Unfortunately, during the year the trishaw developed two problems which cost €265. We applied for the additional funding of €65 from the Community fund but were refused. Maynooth Cycling Campaign is not sustainably funded from our membership. The Council has already cost the Campaign nearly €500 as it declined to accept our existing insurance under the Irish Cycling Campaign. The trishaw is owned and insured by Kildare County Council. If we are not reimbursed for the €65, we will have to reconsider our involvement with Cycling Without Age.
Maynooth Cycling Campaign is an independent local lobby group for better cycling facilities in Maynooth and Kildare generally. If you would like to support our efforts, we welcome new members. Why not join us – you can find details here.









