‘I shouldn't have to pay’ - Frustration over Laois estate's footpaths

Footpaths in the Doonane estate have been described as “very dangerous”

Published 21st Sep 2026, 17:30 BST Laois County Council in Portlaoise. Footpaths in the Doonane estate have been described as “very dangerous” A local councillor has argued he shouldn’t “have to fix” Laois County Council’s mistake in a Laois housing estate.

Cllr Ben Brennan called on Laois County Council to upgrade the footpaths in the Terrace housing estate in Doonane.

Sign up to our Laois Live newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know you can manage your profile, and explore all of the available newsletters from Laois Live within your account.

Speaking at the September meeting of the Graiguecullen / Portarlington MD, Cllr Brennan explained that the footpaths in the estate were previously done in tar and chip but now it is “proving very dangerous especially for elderly residents.

The Senior Executive Engineer for the MD, Tom Drennan, told Cllr Brennan that the Roads Office will carry out an assessment to determine the extent of any civil or footpath upgrade works and have these works priced.

When cost estimates have been established, Mr Drennan said an update will be provided to Cllr Brennan.

Anger at decision to scrap safety plans at site of fatal crashes in Laois However, the Independent Councillor was unhappy with the answer from the Council and resented that some of his discretionary funding may have to go towards rectifying what he said was the Council’s mistake.

“That job was done by Laois County Council, now I’ve to go back to fix that. I shouldn’t have to pay for that, that was a bad design. Some of it was in concrete and more was in tarmac and then tar and chip. It’s the tar and chip that’s not good,” he told the Council.

“There’s older residents walking there. It’s an old estate and it’s a pity that it’s been thrown back to me to fix the Council’s mistake.”

The Senior Executive Engineer assured that the footpaths in the estate will be reviewed and the Council will establish what needs to be assessed and completed before acquiring a cost estimate.