Market traders accuse City Council of ignoring flooding problem

Galway City Tribune – Galway’s weekend market traders have launched a campaign to force the City Council to undertake drainage work and a surface upgrade ahead of next year’s expected influx of tourists.

Conditions at the market at Churchyard Street have deteriorated to such an extent that some stallholders must stand in two inches of water during heavy rains while they watch tourists fall flat on their faces after tripping on lose paving stones and uneven ground.

For the past two years, traders claim they have been unable to secure a meeting with Council officials to press their case and feel largely ignored despite the value of the market to locals and visitors alike.

It was when they learned that the area was not going to be resurfaced as part of the major upgrade along the pedestrianised spine of the city that they decided to move their campaign up a gear, explained market trader Rachel Allkin.

“Obviously we would like to get electricity points, but our main two things are the drains and the resurfacing. The drains haven’t been cleared in a few years and you’re just standing in puddles of water when it rains – some stalls have two inches of water when it’s bad.

“And because of the uneven surface the water just sits there. Then we are seeing customers trip all the time – it’s such a regular occurrence and it’s not a nice thing to happen. Why can’t they resurface Churchyard Street now when the workers are on site?”

Rachel and her husband Adrian Allkin run the stall, Away With The Fairies. She says it takes away a bit of the magic for customers if they witness unpleasant materials emerge from the drains while shopping for fairy doors.

Spokesman for Galway City Council, Gary McMahon, said Walsh Waste undertook a clean of 70 metres of sewers along Lombard Street in the last month.
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