No money to repair footpath endangering walkers near Laois church

Repairs are desperately needed for an “antique footpath” in a Laois village which is endangering pedestrians.

Cllr Ollie Clooney called on Laois County Council to repair the footpath adjoining St Bridget's Church and Cemetery in Attanagh.

Speaking at the Borris-in-Ossory / Mountmellick MD meeting this September, Cllr Clooney explained that the path is on the side of a bad bend and road which is “very dangerous.”

“If you have to walk off that footpath then you move onto the road and you’re in danger. I don’t think there’s been anything done with this footpath in the past 50 years. If there was a prize for an antique footpath, this would win it,” the Independent Councillor told the Council.

However, the MD Office stated that the 2026 footpath repair and maintenance budget has been fully allocated to specific, pre-approved locations. No further non-budgeted works can be undertaken until these priority projects are completed.

Once the scheduled works are finished and the final budget balance is determined, this section of footpath in Attanagh will be assessed for inclusion pending the available budget and resources.

Cllr Clooney said this response was “very disappointing.”

“It’s a very old footpath and there hasn’t been a shovel put to it since it was installed. It’s a lovely village but they get very little funds. I would like to see this footpath done.”

Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme