Road pleas fall on deaf ears

Consistent pleas for safety work along a deadly stretch of the Galway to Headford road continue to fall on deaf ears – despite repeated warnings from local Councillors that they are fatal accidents waiting to happen.

Instead a traffic count is to take place along the main N84 to determine the number of vehicles using the stretch from Ballindooley to Clonboo – even though the local Councillors say they are well aware of the increased volumes using this road in recent years as well as where the main danger points are.

An animated Cllr Mary Hoade told a meeting of Tuam Municipal Council that local voices had been ignored over the years – and she was furious that two junctions in particular, at Grange Cross and Balrobuck, were not included in the new roads programme.

“It is very disappointing given that this has been raised time and time again. What do we have to do to be heard?” she asked

“There needs to be an immediate safety audit carried out that these two junctions along with consultation with local residents in order to see how dangerous they are,” a visibly irate Cllr Hoade added.

Cllr Andrew Reddington (FG) welcomed the appointment of a Road Safety Inspector specifically for the section from the outskirts of Galway City to Clonboo and has been in regular contact with her.

He also welcomed the traffic count – but he said that this situation has been dragging on for years, and going nowhere.

“It is positive that the Safety Inspector has visited the junctions but much more needs to be done before there is a fatality,” he said.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.

Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App

Download the Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App to access to Galway’s best-selling newspaper.

Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.

Or purchase the Digital Edition for PC, Mac or Laptop from Pagesuite  HERE.

Get the Connacht Tribune Live app
The Connacht Tribune Live app is the home of everything that is happening in Galway City and county. It’s completely FREE and features all the latest news, sport and information on what’s on in your area. Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.