Councillors fear a 'winter in darkness'

Serious concerns were raised at the May meeting of the Municipal District of Mullingar Kinnegad over prolonged public lighting failures across Mullingar estates, and councillors expressed worry that some residents could be facing a third winter without adequate lighting.

The issue was discussed following a motion from Cllr Ken Glynn calling on the council’s Transportation Section to provide a work programme and timeframe for repairing the growing number of public lights that remain out of service across the town.

In response, Transportation Section officials said routine lighting faults are generally repaired within 14 days once reported, but acknowledged that more complex faults can take significantly longer where lights are supplied directly through ESB Networks infrastructure or older concentric cable systems.

Officials said these cases often require extensive civil works, system upgrades and coordination with ESB Networks.

The council confirmed that a number of estates have been identified for potential public lighting upgrades, subject to funding, including College Hill, Brookfield, Sherwood Park, Raithín, Newbrook Road, Newtown Lawns, Belvedere Hills, Ardilaun Heights and Oaklawns.

However, councillors said the delays are becoming unacceptable.

Cllr Glynn asked that Ashfield be added to that list, going on to state that the issue has been escalating for two to three years since it emerged that because of cabling issues, some works would have to be done by the ESB and not the lighting contractor.

He acknowledged the work of council staff member Neil Egerton and district officials in progressing repairs in estates including Chestnut Drive, Green Park Meadows, Green Park Avenue and Cara Grove.

But he warned that unless further action is taken, other estates are likely to become emergency cases in the coming months.

“You’ll have lights in some of these estates out for over two years, which in this day and age is unheard of,” he said.

The councillor said residents are becoming increasingly frustrated, particularly elderly people and families living in dark cul-de-sacs.

“One householder recently advised me that outside her house the light is gone, and the difference it makes to their little cul-de-sac, how pitch dark it is, is hugely frustrating,” he said.

Supporting the motion, Cllr Emily Wallace warned that the issue extends beyond Mullingar and is also affecting towns and villages across the district.

She said many areas have now endured outages for more than two years and warned of growing concerns around public safety, anti-social behaviour and the wellbeing of older residents.

“If it becomes known there’s a section of an area that is in darkness, it is an attraction – not just for anti-social behaviour – but a threat to the security and safety of residents,” she said.

Cllr Wallace also suggested the council may need to explore alternative approaches, including solar lighting or temporary redistribution of functioning lights to improve coverage in badly affected areas.

Cllr Aoife Davitt said virtually every councillor had been contacted by worried residents and suggested the council introduce a clearer communication system to reassure the public that faults have been reported and are being addressed. She proposed placing notices or stickers on faulty lights to indicate that repairs are pending.

Cllr Julie McCourt also supported the motion and suggested the council use its website, local media and social media channels to keep residents updated on ongoing repair efforts.

Senior executive officer Mary Goldsberry acknowledged the seriousness of the issue and described the delays as “extremely frustrating”.

She said all concerns raised by councillors would be relayed to the director of transportation and indicated that alternative solutions may need to be explored.

Ms Goldsberry also said the issue may warrant discussion at full council level given the scale of the problem across multiple districts.