INDEPENDENT councillor Elena Secas has called for the Golf Links Road/Dublin Road junction to be redesigned as a priority to ensure the safety for everyone, especially the children walking to the local schools.
According to the City East representative, the Golf Links Road/Dublin Road junction, in its current form, is failing some of the most vulnerable road users in our community — our children.
“We already had a fatality close to this junction, and improvements have been made to the bus stop left of the junction on the Dublin Road,” Cllr Secas told December’s Metropolitan District meeting.
Her request came following the findings of a Walkability Audit carried out this past September by the Milford National School, as part of the Green-Schools Global Citizenship Travel programme. The audit which involved students, staff, and facilitators, identified this junction “as the single biggest barrier preventing children from safely walking, scooting, or cycling to school”.
“Every day, many students go to the local schools from the Dublin Road direction, with this junction being unavoidable for many — and yet it is quite hostile and unsafe,” she told Council members.
“The audit findings highlight that the footpath is too narrow to safely accommodate the amount of people at any particular time, especially when children are walking in groups, or are using scooters, or are accompanied by parents with buggies.
“At peak times, people are forced dangerously close in to moving traffic. Vehicles regularly cut the corner at this junction, and without a physical barrier or some protective measures, drivers can easily swing into pedestrian space, creating thus a serious risk — especially for smaller children who may not be easily seen or who may not react promptly to this risk.”
Cllr Secas said “the audit’s proposed solutions are pretty straightforward, namely the footpath needs to be brought to standards as per the current footpath technical specifications to reflect actual usage, a barrier needs to be installed to prevent vehicles from cutting the corner, and the placement of poles must be reviewed as the footpath needs to be clear and accessible to all”.
“We are in no way talking about inconvenience here; this is all about safety, and safety must come first.”
The Council said the junction would be examined to investigate the issues raised. Small improvements, Cllr Secas was informed, will be made within the constraints of available funding.