Junction likened to Bombay bottleneck

KILRUSH resident Paddy Honan is asking local people to sign a petition, which will be used to help persuade Kilrush Town Council that a roundabout is necessary at a busy junction on the Ennis–Kilrush road, at the top of Vandeleur Street. He has likened the traffic situation at the location to that of Bombay.

The junction in question has traffic coming onto it from Griffin Road, O’Dea’s Road, Limekiln Road, the N68 and Vandeleur Street.
“This has been a dangerous junction for years. For a long time the Griffin Road intersection in particular was a big danger, where drivers had to cross the white line by over a metre to see the Ennis Road traffic. In fairness to the council and the executive engineer, they did eventually lay a footpath, giving emerging traffic improved ability to see the oncoming main road traffic,” Mr Honan told The Clare Champion.
“The town layout is designed to funnel people through The Glen from the Square, with Vandeleur Street being one-way. Traffic coming through The Glen is always backed up and entering the Ennis Road is dangerous. In fact, but for drivers on the main road giving way, it would be impossible to get onto the Ennis Road at peak times,” he maintained.
“But the real issue for me is becoming more obvious by the day, especially at busy times. Even though merging traffic at the Limekiln Road and at Griffin’s Road can now see oncoming vehicles, they struggle to enter the road. Also, traffic attempting to enter Griffin Road from the Ennis Road, must wait until some oncoming driver stops and lets them turn. This bottleneck is ridiculous and dangerous,” Mr Honan added.
He believes that a roundabout should have been put in place when Tesco came to Kilrush in early 2008.
“At the time that Tesco was planning to set up in Kilrush, I thought that infrastructure impact, particularly at this junction, was an obvious point to bring up in discussions between the council and Tesco. As this either never happened or bore fruit, we have a situation that can only be described as mayhem. It would seem that Bombay road rules apply at times at the junction,” he claimed.
The issue was raised by Kilrush Town Councillor Paul Moroney at the September 2009 meeting of Kilrush Town Council. He asked that the council “would look at the legality of the junction of Griffin Road and the Ennis Road, as you have to go over the broken line to see if there is any traffic coming in the Ennis Road”.
In reply, Kilrush town engineer, Derek Troy said that the sight lines and sight distances at this junction are “very restricted due to the location of the shed/garage that adjoins the last property on Griffin Road as you exit onto the N68 Ennis Road”.
The executive engineer added that the he wasn’t sure who owns the building in question.
“The exact ownership of this property is currently unknown. Road users must act in an appropriately safe manner when using this junction, as is the case at all public road junctions. Realignment works to improve the sight lines are ongoing at this junction. Works proposed consist of widening the footpaths at both sides; re-marking and re-aligning the road carriageways on the N67 and re-locating the stop line. Further investigation into the ownership of the property in question is ongoing,” Mr Troy added.
However, Mr Honan says that Mr Troy’s suggestions won’t solve the ongoing problem.
“I note that the executive engineer’s report last September pointed out that ‘road users must act in an appropriately safe manner when using this junction, as is the case at all public road junctions’. With all due respect, while this is true, that is not good enough, alone. We are paying massive road taxes here. Adequate roads are not only well deserved but in this case, absolutely essential,” he stressed.
The online petition can be accessed at www.ipetitions.com/petition/kilrushroundabout
“I would ask people to sign our petition and or do something to create some momentum towards a much-needed solution at this junction,” Mr Honan concluded.