‘A fear this could go on for years’: Kilkenny road upgrade delayed by Waterford Council inaction

Piltown Municipal District councillors expressed concern over the long delay to the roadworks

Published 5th Feb 2026, 17:30 BST Abbey Road/Fountain Street Junction in Ferrybank Piltown Municipal District councillors expressed concern over the long delay to the roadworks Sign up to our Kilkenny 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 Kilkenny Live within your account.

Planned roadworks to improve Ferrybank’s Abbey and Belmont Roads have been held up due to a prolonged wait for Waterford City and County Council (WCCC) to sign off on important documentation.

Preliminary design drawings have been discussed between the two councils but because part of the work would take place in Waterford, a section 85 agreement needs to be signed to allow Kilkenny County Council to complete the upgrades in a different local authority.

According to Area Engineer John Tennyson at Piltown Municipal District’s monthly meeting on Wednesday, the plans have been delayed for a couple of months due to WCCC’s failure to complete the section 85 form.

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The delay comes at a time of strained relations between the two councils as the dispute over the Ferrybank Shopping Centre redevelopment prompted WCCC to initiate a judicial review in an attempt to stop the project in Kilkenny.

Cllr Pat Dunphy (FG) highlighted the urgent need for the upgrades to be progressed saying the Abbey Road is “such a bad road and getting worse all the time” and that “there’s a fear this could go on for years.”

It was suggested by Cllr Ger Frisby (FF) to write to WCCC to get the section 85 as quickly as possible while Cllr Fidelis Doherty (FG) said that “it’s in everyone’s interest to have a good road.”

Related topics: Ferrybank Waterford Piltown Municipal District Waterford City and County Council Roads Sign up to our Kilkenny 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 Kilkenny Live within your account.