Traffic diversion ”organised chaos’

RECENT traffic diversion to accommodate works on the Ennis to Kilrush road was condemned as “organised chaos” by a local councillor.
Councillor PJ Kelly made the claim at Monday’s council meeting, where he criticised the use of people redirecting traffic at roadworks sites in West Clare. He urged the council to put a practical traffic management plan in place for future road repairs.
“Traffic was diverted in the interests of safety and within an hour, there was an accident at the site. The people who were put in charge of managing the traffic were non-Irish nationals who hadn’t a clue what was happening.
“It was organised chaos. There is no point in putting up detours when it doesn’t say where the detour goes and no one seems to know.We need to adopt a hands-on approach dealing with this issue. Local council workers should be used, even if the job is on contract,” he said.
Traffic management was also highlighted by Councillor Gerry Flynn, who said he could have encountered problems only for his local knowledge of the area.
Mayor of Clare, Councillor Christy Curtin, told councillors that the standard of the work on the Ennis to Kilrush road was a testament to the council and the National Roads Authority (NRA). However,  he acknowledged the council should take heed of Councillor Kelly’s advice.
Acting director of services, Nora Kaye, said traffic management plans are a key feature of all roadworks and their implementation is governed by health and safety legislation.
“For the most part, traffic management regulations are quite specific and must be complied with. The council endeavours to comply fully will all traffic management requirements – whether the works involved are being carried out by direct labour or by contract.
“In most cases, this is reasonably straightforward where it is established in advance that traffic diversions are not necessary. It becomes somewhat more complex in situations where temporary traffic diversions are necessary, especially where diversions have to be long and unwieldy because of scarcity of suitable alternative routes for large vehicles.
“In such situations it becomes extremely difficult to accommodate every motorist’s needs once they are diverted,” she said.