The Kerryman (South Kerry Edition)
Council to crack down on overgrowing hedges
KERRY County Council will simply cut back hedges overgrowing the Ring of Kerry Road and bill landowners if they fail to respond to an initial notice, council bosses have warned.
Their vow to tackle the growth unilaterally came after a number of bus drivers and tourist interests warned them of the danger now posed by the problem of overgrowing hedges and trees on the Ring of Kerry road - particularly the impact on the county’s rising ‘supercoach’ trade.
Bus drivers Pádraig Kearney and Mossie Brosnan (who work relief for big coach companies in Kerry) together with John Mulvihill of The Red Fox Inn near Caragh Lake addressed the South and West Kerry Municipal Authority in Killorglin on the matter last Friday.
They also highlighted traffic congestion problems on the narrow cliff road around Slea Head, calling for a traffic-light system to be introduced there.
Mr Kearney told the Council the proliferating growth is a ‘big threat’ to the supercoach business and passenger safety in general. “Some of these new coaches cost upwards of €200,000 and a single broken wing mirror could cost around €2,000 alone.”
The need to cut back the growth has never been more urgent as the coach business improves every year with up to 40 such coaches on the Ring on any given day at the height of the season, he said.
“The danger is that you can’t drive on the left hand side of the road in many places because of the growth, moving into the centre of the road.”
The greatest threat to the tall coaches comes from heavy branches overhanging the road to a height of ten foot and more - not just from the lighter growth on the roadside.
County Councillors unanimously supported the men in their case, urging council management to respond immediately.
Waterville-based Fianna Fáil Councillor Norma Moriarty sounded a dissenting note however: “I’m no fan of these super coaches. They come in, the passengers get out and pull out every morsel of food already with them and don’t spend any money. I would like to see them contribute more if we’re going to support them in this way.”
“Whoever is responsible must cut these before the start of the season,” Mr Kearney warned.
Senior Engineer Pádraic Teahan said the Council would no longer simply ask landowners to cut their overgrowth. “We will issue notices to landowners there (the Ring) and if they don’t cut we will cut them and bill them.”