Safety concerns over proposed signage

MEMBERS of the North Clare community will meet with a delegation from the National Roads Authority in the coming weeks in relation to the erection of signage throughout scenic areas and Special Areas of Conservation along the N67.

More than 40 people attended a public meeting in Ballyvaughan last Friday night to discuss the signs that are being put up along the route.
The thrust of the local objections to the signs have been on the grounds of safety, with many claiming some signs will be too close to the road in places causing a hazard to pedestrians, cyclists and even motorists. Other objections centre on the size and density of the signs, the posts for which were planted just before Christmas.
After attending Friday’s meeting, Clare Fianna Fáil TD Timmy Dooley arranged for a delegation from North Clare to meet with a representative of the NRA within the next two weeks to discuss the situation with the signs. Deputy Dooley acknowledged the concerns raised by local residents and said he believes it would be appropriate for a more cautious approach to be taken by the NRA in relation to erecting signs in the Burren.
“Our primary concern is safety,” said local resident, Deborah Evers.
“There are safety issues at certain bends and junctions that are bends. At the meeting 18 locations were identified where the proposed directional signage will have some safety issues attached,” Ms Evers commented.
“Safety signs such as chevrons in yellow pointing left or right on bends are totally acceptable but direction signs on bends and bends which are junctions are not. They will cause tourists and visitors to stop on these bends and there will be accidents. At junctions the signs proposed for the left and right of the junctions obscure the view of oncoming traffic as well as having signage opposite the junction, which will cause people to stop. It is necessary to have signage at bays or bay type stops in as far as is possible or as people travel along a wide and straight road in as far as it is possible. This is not being done in this area.
“In addition, in some cases the signs are too close to the road edge and will result in someone on a motorbike or in a car hitting them. There is no doubt that the massing and the density of the signs at these junctions and bends will lead to accidents happening. It is unnecessary, inappropriate and a serious cause for concern for persons’ safety. The positioning of some poles for signage is potentially dangerous and in some cases obscures other safety signs,” Ms Evers claimed.
A Clare County Council official confirmed that people have been in touch with it in relation to the signs but that the NRA is the body responsible for signage on the road.
“All signage on national routes are NRA designed and the NRA is therefore the client in this matter…it’s an NRA job designed by the NRA and any queries from the public should really be directed to them, as Clare County Council is not the client, for this work,” he said.
The NRA had not responded to Clare Champion queries at the time of going to press.
The Ballyvaughan Development Committee confirmed that a meeting has been arranged and that it hopes this can resolve the issues outlined by residents in the area.
“Fianna Fáil deputy Timmy Dooley arranged the meeting and has said it will happen within two weeks between the National Roads Authority and a small number of people from Belharbour, New Quay and Ballyvaughan. We would anticipate a positive outcome to the meeting,” said Patrick O’Donoghue, chairman of the Ballyvaughan Development Committee.
Deputy Dooley believes a compromise can be reached between the NRA and local people in relation to the issues raised at the meeting.
“I attended the meeting and could fully understand the concerns of the locals that were raised. There are two important issues here and the first is the safety aspect of the signage.
“Some of the signage is placed too close to the road edge and may be a hazard for pedestrians, cyclists or indeed some vehicles. In addition to that, the Burren is a unique area and there is a necessity to have a more sensitive policy to any signage that goes there,” Deputy Dooley said.
“It is widely accepted that road safety signs are important and must be highly visible and no one has any issue with that. However, some of the directional signs are of a size and scale that are not necessary considering the character of the road.
“The bottom line is that it is a relatively narrow winding road for which the operating speed is well below most national primary routes and as such the signage does not need to be of the same scale as it would be on a wider road where the operating speed would be significantly higher,” the Fianna Fáil TD continued.
“There also needs to be a recognition that the Burren is an exceptional scenic area, has a worldwide status and obviously has planning restrictions in relation to what gets built in the area. For that reason I think it would be appropriate for a more cautious approach to be taken by the NRA.
“In conjunction with local groups I have arranged a meeting with the NRA in an effort to find a compromise that meets the needs of visitors to the area, meets the safety concerns of the NRA while at the same time maintaining the exceptional scenic amenity that exists along that route. I am hopeful that a compromise can be reached and will be working to facilitate that,” he concluded.