‘Traffic is choking Mallow’

COUNTY councillors will hold a crunch meeting with senior local authority officials on Friday to discuss the current traffic problems in Mallow town.

The issue has been much highlighted over recent months, with motorists facing long delays when coming through the town and over the bridge, particularly at peak times.

With little sign of a resolution to the problem on the horizon, the chair of the Kanturk/Mallow Municipal District committee, Cllr John Paul O’Shea, has instigated Friday’s meeting to see what action can be taken to address the issue.

“If anything the situation has gotten much worse over the past three months, with the traffic lights at the bottom of the town being the main cause of the problem. It is my view that the original synchronizing of the light from the plaza to the bridge never worked and this needs to be re-done as quickly as possible,” said Cllr O’Shea.

He said that turning off the lights had provided a small measure of respite, but this was only a temporary measure while council officials search of a more permanent solution.

“Friday’s meeting has been arranged to ask officials how this was allowed to happen in the first place, why it has been allowed to go on for so long and what steps are now being taken to rectify it,” said Cllr O’Shea.

“The local business community along with the people living and working in the town are suffering immeasurably as a result of the traffic gridlock that is choking the town on a daily basis. It is our sincere hope that Friday’s meeting will help to bring some conclusion to this matter,” he added.