Counties under rising commuter pressure

Major pressure to accommodate urban sprawl from the Greater Dublin Area is being exerted upon Cos Westmeath and Carlow.

Villages such as Kinnegad, which in the 1996 census had a population of 517 and which may grow to 5,000 in the next five years, are set for dramatic change.

At Rochfortbridge it is suggested the current population of about 500 may multiply six or seven times during the life of the forthcoming Westmeath County Development Plan.

While Mullingar, Moate and Athlone are the major county growth centres, drafts of the plan envisage towns and villages within a 50-mile radius of Dublin coming under severe pressure. Secondary growth centres include Castlepollard, Delvin, Clonmellon, Kilbeggan, Multyfarnham and Tyrellspass.

Recently a property development company, Menolly, sold 26 houses out of a scheme of 33 on the outskirts of Mullingar, 49 miles from Dublin, to young Dubliners prepared to tackle the commute.

Joanne Egan and Stephen Callaghan moved to their first home in Mullingar from Dublin last July. Joanne previously lived in Coolmine and likes Mullingar but says she still does most of her socialising in Dublin.

They drive to Coolmine each weekday and Joanne walks to work which is nearby, while Stephen takes the train from Coolmine into central Dublin. Commuting time is at least four hours a day and, according to Joanne, getting worse all the time.

Una Coughlan moved to Carlow town from Dublin last May in search of affordable housing. Working in Dun Laoghaire she rises each day at 5.10 a.m. and leaves Carlow town at 5.50. Because of increasing congestion she has to clear Newlands Cross by 6.45 a.m. and subsequently reaches Dun Laoghaire at 7.25 a.m.

With the co-operation of her employer she opted to condense her working week to four days, working until 7 p.m., and arrives back in Carlow at about 9 p.m. Despite all this Una says she likes Carlow and it is a good place to live.

But of her commute she says: "It is not the way forward. I am quite angry that I have to commute such a long way, but I would not have a house like mine if I had to buy in Dublin."