Traffic carnage in the offing

Angry councillors are being asked to vote on Monday on a project which will have serious implications for traffic in Galway – closing one of the main arteries into the city for up to two months.

The councillors are due to vote on plans to lower the road under the Lough Atalia railway bridge, in order to facilitate heavy goods vehicles, even though the plans had not been circulated to the elected members by last night.

They will involve the closure of a section of the road for two months.

The vote comes on a night when councillors are also due to make submissions regarding the €126 million plan to redevelop the nearby Galway Port, a project which is also set to have a major impact on traffic in the area during the construction phase.

An element of the Galway Harbour Company plan, which refers to a 43 month “working period” for the upgrade of Lough Atalia Road, has caused alarm among some businesses and residents in the area.

Despite these concerns, the City Council Director of Services, Tom Connell, said yesterday there was no question of closing off the road for three and a half years.

The 43 month period is referred to in the Environmental Impact Statement, which is part of the 4,000 page planning document which the Harbour Company has submitted to An Bord Pleanála.

For more on this story, see the Galway City Tribune.