Tag Archives: road safety

DANGEROUS trees along roadsides in East Clare are to be removed in the coming months, a meeting of the Killaloe district has been told.  The pledge was given on foot of a motion from Cathaoirleach, Councillor Alan O’Callaghan, who raised the issue at the January gathering. The Kilmurry man asked that “in light of yellow warnings for high winds … a survey to be carried out in this MD on roadside trees especially Ash where the die back has set in”. A written reply to the motion from Derek Troy, Acting Senior Executive Engineer (SEE) outlined that following the consultation with members of the public and community groups, the required assessment reports had been completed, and that removal of trees would begin shortly.  “In 2022, Killaloe MD identified a number of trees for Arboricultural Safety Assessment Reports to be undertaken by a Member of the Society of Irish Foresters (MSIF) Certified Arborist,” the response to Councillor O’Callaghan’s motion explained. “These …

Ennis tyre fitter, Pat Foudy’s efforts to help people during the pandemic were recognised at the Road Safety Authority’s Leading Lights Road Safety Awards, which took place at Croke Park on Tuesday. At the start of the first lockdown, Pat fixed a puncture for a woman and didn’t charge her. She was so grateful, particularly as she was very stressed that day, that Pat decided from then on not to charge for punctures or local callouts. He gathered all his staff to tell them of the new policy and initially it was only supposed to be for a few weeks but it went on far longer than that and at this stage, Pat and his team at Pat Foudy and Daughter Tyres in Cloughleigh have helped hundreds of people in their hour of need. Pat was nominated for the Road Safety Award by his daughter Mary, on foot of a series of videos Pat appeared in for The Clare Champion …

DEER are causing “extreme danger” on roads across East Clare, a meeting of Killaloe district councillor has been told.  The matter was raised by Councillor Pat Hayes who said there had been a number of collisions in recent weeks and that deer were creating “a high risk” for all road users. “Anyone living on the mountain edges knows that is a continuous and major issue that has now exploded,” the Caher man said. “I’ve heard from several people who’ve told me they’ve had deer running against them when they’re out on the road. This is a real road safety issue right across the region. “The Slieve Aughtys are a haven for deer and they have now moved down into the valleys. Many farmers have 20 to 30 deers on their land when they go out in the morning. We are all now owners of a huge deer population and there’s extreme danger when they move out onto the roads.” Councillor …

SAFETY at a notorious junction in East Clare was raised again when members of the Killaloe Municipal District met in Scariff this Wednesday. Councillor Pat Hayes appealed for greater efforts to address the issue and avoid a fatality at Henchey’s Cross. He noted that works have been done recently to improve visibility and alert drivers to slow down ahead of the road narrowing and the hidden dip. However, he scored the works “1/10” in terms of their impact on road safety. “We have campaigned a lot to get this much work done,” he said. “I welcome the recent work done, but to my mind, it has highlighted the issue even more. There is a far greater need now for further funding. “These are very localised and small works. In terms of an improvement in safety, they haven’t generated major change. They are, to my mind, confusing signs that create difficulties.” The Fianna Fáil member made his remarks almost a year …

CONCERN has been expressed over the speed of traffic travelling through the village of Quin, particularly on the busy approach from the Dromoland side.  With a number of routes leading into the village, an appeal has been made by Councillor Pat Burke for safety works to protect the many pedestrians that walk in the area, particularly those going to and from school. The Killaloe district councillor described the speed of many motorists as “unbelievable”.  “The Ballykilty/Dromoland Road, as it is known locally, is particularly busy,” Councillor Burke said. “Quin itself is a very busy village with a big and growing population. Between six and eight weeks ago, I was called after an incident where a car left the road and went through a boundary and into someone’s property. Thankfully, nobody was seriously injured, but it could have been an awful situation if there was someone walking in the area at the time.” The Fine Gael member pointed out that the …

THE Clare event of the nationwide Pass Wide & Slow Awareness Ride/Drive will be held in Ennis this September with horses and ponies being brought through the town to highlight road safety issues. The event is being hosted at the Ennis Showgrounds on Sunday, September 18 at 2pm with those taking part embarking on a 6km circular route around Ennis. One of the Clare organisers Máire Gleeson explains, “This year we are going to be walking and driving the horses and ponies around Ennis town, we have the support of An Garda, Clare Civil Defence and the Clare County Council. “This Awareness Ride/Drive is being held to highlight the road safety issues horse and pony riders, carriage drivers and motorists experience while out on the roads. “As equestrians we use the roads to transfer the horses from the stables to their paddocks and back again. We also use the roads to train and exercise the horses/ponies. Some have little to …

A TRAINING exercise is set to take place on the N18 over a number of hours on Wednesday evening and Thursday morning this week which will cause some disruption to traffic. To ensure ongoing resilience of this strategically important corridor, an exercise is planned with the emergency services, An Garda Síochána and Fire Services in collaboration with Clare County Council and Transport Infrastructure Ireland’s road maintenance contractor, Colas Joint Venture. This training exercise will temporarily implement emergency cross-overs and contra flow traffic arrangements required to manage serious incidents on the N18 between Junction 5 Cratloe and Junction 6 Bunratty. The operation will commence on Wednesday June 29 at 8pm until 6am on Thursday June 30. Drivers will experience temporary traffic layouts during this time under the management of the emergency services. Expect minimal disruption to travel times with an advisory 55kph speed limit in place. If you have any queries or require additional information you can email info@crjv.ie

THE Pass Wide and Slow campaign will be taking to the road on September 19, to raise awareness about the dangers associated with how drivers and horse riders interact on Irish roads. In Clare, this campaign will be brought to the public’s attention in Clooney, via a walk involving riders and their mounts, as well as cyclists, walkers and children from the local national school, close to which the walk will start. The main aim of the initiative is to promote road safety in the context of how drivers and horse riders must respect each other’s right to the road; one of the central messages of Pass Wide and Slow is to do just that- leave at least two metres between vehicle and animal. Spokeswoman for the event, Máire Gleeson, said: “As soon as a driver sees a horse on the road, they should slow to a maximum of 15km per hour. We have been working for two or three …