Traffic grinds to a halt in Carrick Road delays
THERE were major delays along the busy Carrick Road on Monday morning as pipe works by Irish Water led to severe disruption.
Motorists travelling into the town were caught in a log jam as roadworks being carried out close to the Louth Civil Defence centre and Clarke Railway Station reduced traffic to just one lane at times.
Local councillor Maria Doyle said she was contacted by many people who experienced major delays along the route.
‘ The Carrick Road which already has high volumes of traffic generally was at an almost total standstill on Monday morning during the busy rush hour.’
She told how many motorists couldn’t even get out of their homes or out of the estates.
‘With Mount Avenue closed off due to works there, all traffic coming into town had to proceed as far as the Garda Barracks, but temporary lights at the junction of St. Malacy’s Villas and the Carrick Road meant that the traffic was virtually not moving.’
She added that such were the extent of the delays that many people had to park up and abandon their vehicles before walking into town.
‘It is my understanding that the Gardai had to do point duty in order to get the traffic moving,’ said Cllr. Doyle.
She said she had made contact several times with the consultants overseeing the works. ‘ They have assured me that measures will be taken so it doesn’t happen again, and confirmed that the issue was as a result of temporary traffic lights erected on the Carrick Road at peak time.’
Cllr. Doyle said she welcomed the lights being subsequently removed after complaints by motorists.
‘ They did confirm that work will be carried out on this section during today (Tuesday) and possibly Wednesday, however, temporary traffic lights will not be in use.’
The Argus contacted Irish Water, which issued the following statement about the delays: ‘Irish Water is taking every measure to ensure that traffic disruptions are kept to a minimum while we carry out water mains rehabilitation work in Dundalk. On Monday, traffic lights were put in place on the Carrick Road to facilitate the water mains project which caused traffic congestion in the area. Feedback from the community was immediately taken on board and to avoid traffic congestion reoccurring the traffic lights were removed and the road will remain open to traffic in both directions at all times.’
‘We apologise to customers for the traffic delays this morning and thank them for their patience while we carry out the water mains projects in Dundalk. The replacement of ageing water mains will reduce leakage in the network and provide a securer water supply for customers.’