MORE than 100 residents on the Old Cratloe Road in Limerick City have called on Limerick City and County Council to make their safety a priority during the ongoing roadworks in their area.
With works currently ongoing on the Old Cratloe Road to facilitate new construction, the residents group have called on the local authority to go one step further and install new safety features after a number of alleged incidences, “near misses”, and pets being hit and killed by speeding cars over the past number of years.
Works kicked off at the Old Cratloe Road in early August, and are due to continue until December 15. Diversions are in place via the newly constructed dual carriageway constructed as part of the Coonagh to Knockalisheen Distributor Road, which opened this past Friday (October 3).
This month, members of the Old Cratloe Road Residents Group handed over a 14-page petition, signed by 102 local residents, calling for “much needed adjustments” to address “real safety concerns”, a statement from the group said.
The group are calling for further safety features to be installed, including speed calming ramp, road safety mirrors, and solar radar speed signs.
“For those living on the Old Cratloe Road, it is evident that the volume and speed of traffic has vastly increased over the last two years,” a statement from the group read.
“The number of near misses experienced by residents simply trying to exit their house to do school runs, etc., is unacceptable when there is an obvious solution to the problem.”
The group said that “in the last two years, there have been incidents of resident’s pet dogs being hit and killed by speeding cars. This is devastating for the owners.”
“It would be such a waste of resources and time to make the much needed adjustments to the road without factoring in the real safety concerns from all residents. We dread to think the potential fatalities this issue could result in.”
The petition was put together by local residents Bernie Sherlock, Mike McLoughlin, and Joan O’Neill. The group said that the petition has been circulated to the Council’s director of services, adding that they are hopeful at least one of their demands – speed calming ramps – is implemented.
In response to queries from this newspaper around whether any of the group’s asks are being considered, Limerick City and County Council said that “as part of the Coonagh to Knockalisheen Road Project, a full reconstruction is being carried out on the old Cratloe Road. This upgrade will deliver a modern 6.5-metre-wide carriageway, complete with dedicated footpaths and cycle facilities to enhance safety and accessibility for all road users.”
“The project’s design team is actively reviewing potential traffic calming measures in accordance with the Council’s Traffic Calming Policy. This review is expected to conclude in the coming weeks,” a Council spokesman added.
“Once the recommendations are finalised, funding will be sought from the Department of Transport to support their implementation.
“The Council remains fully committed to ongoing engagement with local residents throughout the process of delivering this important infrastructure project.”
