SLIGO-DRUMCLIFFE COUNCIL ROUND-UP

Call for N15 Sligo to Bundoran speed limit to be lowered

Describing it as a move that would make him very unpopular with many drivers, a Sligo councillor said the speed limits on the N15 Sligo to Bundoran road will have to be reduced to ensure there are no further fatalities there.

Cllr Dónal Gilroy told members of the Sligo-Drumcliffe Municipal District he had recently raised his concerns about the number of fatalities on the N15 Sligo to Bundoran Road with Minister of State Jack Chambers at a private meeting he had with him last week on the fringes of a conference both were attending. He followed this up with a letter to Minister Chambers listing the number of fatalities which occurred on the road which runs directly past five schools from Rathcormac to Cliffoney.

He told him how the traffic count on the road was the second highest in Sligo and has more traffic at the county boundary at Bunduff Bridge than there is on the N4 between Collooney and Castlebaldwin.

“Safety measures are essential. What we need is safety measures on that road and it will involve speed limits [being reduced] and I know that won’t make me popular with some people but if it saves one person or one child’s life, I don’t care. “We are going to have to address the crazy idea that you have to have a 60 mile per hour buffer outside villages on the national primary route and up that to 80.

“Two weeks ago, in Cliffoney a car rear-ended another car right beside me, people turned on me once everyone was OK and said the speed limit would have to be changed. When I pointed out the driver wasn’t doing 80 and was doing more than 100 miles per hour, that was the issue and that is why there was an accident,” he said.

He said he was thankful that so far there had been no fatalities on the N15 but cautioned that in 2022 it was “Ireland’s worst road” in terms of fatal accidents.

Cllr Gilroy made his comments in support of a motion from Cllr Tomas Walsh asking Sligo County Council for an update on the speed review for County Sligo and if a number of roads can be nominated for review in advance of a county wide review.

Cllr Walsh said he understood that they could nominate certain local roads where there was a serious issue with speed in addition to the overall county wide review which was being conducted.

In a reply the Council stated that a review of Sligo’s speed byelaws is to be carried out in 2024.

This review must be carried out in tandem with Department guideline documents for setting and managing speed limits in Ireland.

It is expected the update to the guidelines will be published by the Department of Transport in late 2023 and any commencement of the Sligo review prior to the publication of the guidelines would be premature.

Cllr Marie Casserly said she welcomed the review, “everyone knows the statistics, the slower people drive the less people are killed.”

She said as she understood it the local authorities were going to have more autonomy in terms of the speed limits on local roads, which she welcomed.

She said the number of people contacting all councillors in relation to speed limits and issue with speeding on local roads was unprecedented. She added: “I’m hoping there will be a little more flexibility in each county because local engineers who are the experts should be able to increase or reduce a speed limit on a local road as they see fit.”

She stressed the need to expedite the proposal quickly to allow a review in advance of the county wide review, as proposed by Cllr Walsh.

Cllr Gilroy questioned how quickly they would have the proposals put in front of them if the review was only going to start in 2024.

Cllr Walsh said he knew that every councillor in Sligo could raise issues about speed in their areas and it was important that the review got underway as quickly as possible. “The number of road deaths is a national and local issue and I welcome that the review will take place in 2024,” he added.

Cllr disappointed by response on parking

A Sligo councillor described a recent response he received from Council officials about parking facilities at Rosses Point beach as “saying something and saying nothing”.

Cllr Thomas Walsh had tabled a motion at the reconvened meeting of the Sligo-Drumcliffe Municipal District asking the Council to make an application to the Town and Village Renewal Fund to carry out design work for the restructuring of parking facilities at Rosses Point Beach. When he asked for the official response from the Council he was told: “The suitability of an application to the Town and Village Scheme for a project of this nature would need to be determined. Notwithstanding this, any proposal for restructuring the parking facilities at Rosses Point Beach would require identification and clarification”. Pausing before responding to the reply he commented the response was hard to figure out, that it said something and nothing at the same time.

Cllr Thomas Healy, who seconded the motion, said he agreed with Cllr Walsh, that it was hard to know what way to interpret the response. Undaunted, Cllr Walsh, elaborating on his proposal, said Rosses Point beach parking facilities have been raised numerous times. He welcomed the provision of bollards there earlier this year. He was disappointed this was not included in the regeneration plan that went out to consultation last year.

“I think the beach front should have been included. We have issues with a lack of public lighting, not enough parking, not enough safe parking.

“Facilities at what is probably one of the busiest outdoor facilities in the county are not adequate, they do not match what is required there,” he said.

Cllr Healy agreed that it was difficult to know what to take from the response offered by the Council. He said he saw little change on Rosses Point car park since the 1970s. “The car park hasn’t changed, but tourist numbers have changed, we should be investing in places like this. This is on our doorstep, and we should be investing big time in areas like what we have in Rosses Point. We must improve the infrastructure,” he said.

Cllr Marie Casserly said she and other councillors had been in touch looking for a short-term solution for now which keeps people safe. Some were not happy with the bollards which were put in place, but the majority who spoke to her were happy with what was done as a short-term measure.

Cllr Dónal Gilroy commented that he believed that because any work undertaken was going to be located in a Special Area of Conservation (SAC), any application would have to go to An Bord Pleánala and would be bounced three years down the road if that was the case. He was told that if planning was involved it would have to go to ABP.

Cllr Gilroy added: “if that happens this will be a long process before anything happens.”

Board due to rule on Rosses Point development

A decision on proposals for a new outdoor sports water facility at Rosses Point sent to An Bord Pleanála (ABP) can be expected from the planning body by December 23. In response to a request for an update sought by Cllr Thomas Walsh, officials relayed the December 23 deadline to him at a reconvened meeting of Sligo-Drumcliffe municipal district on Friday.

Sligo County Council submitted the application to An Bord Plenála in July.

Welcoming the update, Cllr Walsh repeated a suggestion he made at a previous Council meeting that the plans should include the provision of a coffee deck.

He was told that while this wasn’t included in the proposal sent in July to ABP it was an option that could still be explored.

Welcoming the update, Cllr Dónal Gilroy however said he was less keen on the idea of a coffee dock as there were already existing businesses in the area offering coffee and more. “We need to be careful not to step on the toes of those people who have offered that service for years,” he said.

Cllr Marie Casserly said there was a remarkable level of interest in the facility. “It is a very popular facility as is, but it just needs to be improved.

I accept that a project like this takes time but it needs to be pushed through as quickly as possible.”

Cllr Thomas Healy said it was a very important facility and he welcomed the update.

Cllr Walsh said he had been approached by one or two businesses in Rosses point who had approached him asking for a power source to be provided as they were running their units with diesel generators which was not a long-term option.

Claims that cllrs are ignored by transport officials

Raising concerns he has with a series of dangerous locations on the N15 between Sligo and Grange a Sligo councillor has accused Transport Ireland Officials of ignoring local councillors who have made numerous requests to meet them. Cllr Dónal Gilroy said it was a “disgrace” that despite repeated requests he and other councillors were left waiting for years when they sought meetings with TII staff.

Cllr Gilroy listed a number of issues on the N15 which he had previously raised and sought action on. He sought work on safety schemes to be carried out such is the level of speed and the dangerous nature of the route.

He described one location as extremely dangerous.

He said the road from Sligo to Grange offers no opportunity to pass. Drivers then come across an opportunity to overtake and this is causing accidents.

He called on TII to come down and examine the road from Sligo to Grange. He claimed that TII officials ignore local councillors stating he had been told by an TII official that they don’t need to meet councillors. “It’s a disgrace, they need to come down here,” he said.

Issues with road verges near Ransboro Church

Sligo County Council have confirmed to Cllr Dónal Gilroy that an area engineer will inspect a section of the R292 between Ransboro Church and Strandhill Village to assess the need for this section of road to be included in future programmes of work.

Cllr Gilroy, speaking at his local municipal district meeting on Friday, said there was an issue with the verges on the sides of the road.

High volumes of traffic on this route had resulted in considerable damage, making the verges dangerous and difficult to walk on.

Foothpath works on Hazelwood Road

Footpath repairs will be carried out on Hazelwood Road by the end of this year or early in 2024 Cllr

Tom Fox has been informed by Sligo County Council.

Cllr Fox welcomed the confirmation from the Council adding that it was a busy road and was badly needed.

Decision to be made on Faughts Lane in Calry

The need to provide traffic calming measures at Faughts Lane, Calry, will be assessed by Sligo County Council on foot of a motion from Cllr Tom Fox to provide calming measures there.

Cllr Fox said he believed they were necessary as it was a very busy road being used by many people.

Need for signage will be assessed near Carrigans

If “deemed appropriate” new stop-go signage will be erected at the corner of Carrigans road, the L7221-0 and L72211-0 and also at the corner with the Fork in the road (beside the Horseshoe Cottage), Cllr Donal Gilroy, who recently raised the need for both, has been told.