RESIDENTS on the Ennis Road in Limerick City have hit out at excessive and dangerous levels of bad parking on Corrib Drive.
One irate resident contacted the Limerick Post to point out that this publication ran a story last year where Fine Gael councillor Olivia O’Sullivan said the Council had solved the parking issues in Clareview. The person, who asked not to be named, said this is not the case.
“A new business has opened its doors on this same junction and has drawn a whole new level of dangerous parking/driving in the area. This business is open until 10pm most nights and this level of bad parking is constant,” the resident told the Limerick Post.
“We have asked councillors to help, we have asked Gardaà to help, to no avail. Does a serious accident have to occur before anything is done about the dangerous parking and driving in this area?”
According to the Corrib Drive resident, on one occasion, a car mounted the footpath as his partner was bringing their two small children to the crèche, and wanted them “to vacate the footpath to facilitate the parking of her car”.
“The driver refused to move, even when my partner rang the GardaÃ. The Gardaà told us, if we report it, then it would most likely come down to a ‘you said, she said” situation,” the resident claimed.
Cllr Olivia O’Sullivan said she has tried to help solve the parking issue at Corrib Drive and back in April 2024 got agreement from Limerick GAA and the TUS Gaelic Grounds to allow parking overflow from the nearby premises into the Gaelic Grounds car park.
“I had spoken with management of the business and they had parking markings repainted at their premises, and had put up signs to encourage customers to park respectfully in this residential area, and to encourage customers to park in the Gaelic Grounds when the gates are open. They committed to trying to do what they could to help the situation,” she insisted.
Cllr O’Sullivan explained that she has also spoken with Council engineers to see what else can be done.
“This issue is ongoing and has been exacerbated in recent months with a second business opening in the area so additional cars seeking to park.
“The parking can be very difficult for local residents around this area, particularly for those with wheelchairs, mobility aids, pushing buggies, the elderly, and families that need the footpaths to be free of cars. There is an ongoing issue of footpaths being blocked, and it is dangerous for individuals who get pushed out onto the road,” she concluded.
There was no response from Limerick City and County Council at the time of going to print.