Traffic reverts to two-way after residents mount protest

Two-way traffic is set to be restored on Lough Atalia Road and College Road from next Friday.

City Council Chief Executive Brendan McGrath told councillors this week that some further works and snagging are being carried out, but the one-way restrictions and ban on turns at Moneenageisha junction will be lifted on June 19.

A report will then be prepared for councillors on how the traffic system performed.

Around 50 residents and business owners from Lough Atalia, College Road and Forster Street staged a protest outside City Hall this week during a meeting of the local authority.

They expressed anger at the Council’s extension of the one-way system for a further three weeks.

Residents complained of excessive speed, dangerous manoeuvres, loss of bus routes and danger to the elderly and young and cyclists being forced onto footpaths.

They added concerns over the ability of the emergency services to respond to emergencies. In a fire last month on College Road, Gardai were forced to divert traffic into the Sportsground.

Earlier this month, this newspaper reported how cycling campaign group Cosáin recorded cars travelling at speeds of up to 99km/h – Garda speed checks have now become a daily feature at Lough Atalia.

For more on this story, see this week’s Galway City Tribune