Section of Belgard Road to be temporarily closed

A SECTION of the Belgard Road will be temporarily closed for a number of weeks due to excavation and pipe-laying works for the Tallaght District Heating Network.

The works, which started last week, will see the temporary closure of the section of road between the Belgard Road roundabout at TU Dublin’s main entrance and the roundabout at the junction of Belgard Square North and Belgard Square East.

According to South Dublin County Council, traffic, including buses, will be temporarily diverted from the section affected by works via Belgard Square East.

The council also confirmed that a “small number” of conifer trees on the Belgard Road roundabout will be destabilised by the pipework and will require to be removed “in the interest of public and traffic safety”.

“These trees and other planting affected will be carefully replaced when the works are completed,” the council said.

Tallaght District Heating Network, trading as Heatworks, is Ireland’s first publicly owned, not-for-profit energy company, which will provide low carbon heat, sourced from an Amazon data centre on the Belgard Road, to local community buildings.

Heatworks, which will primarily use excess heat from an Amazon data centre, is expected to begin supplying heat in 2022, with the council and TU Dublin Tallaght campus being initial customers.

The Council buildings to be heated by the system initially will include County Hall, County Library Tallaght, the council’s Innovation Building and 135 new affordable apartments.

When Phase 1 is completed, it’s estimated that the project will reduce carbon dioxide emissions in the South Dublin County area by nearly 1,500 tonnes per year.

The system will initially heat 47,000 m2 of public sector buildings, 3,000m2 of commercial space, and 135 affordable rental apartments.

The council said that it “regrets any inconvenience to the public and every effort will be made to minimise disruption”.