Roads a ‘death trap’ and a ‘rat pass’
Safety concerns on two Cavan roads were highlighted at a recent meeting of the Ballyjamesduff Municipal District - one of them labelled a “death trap” and the other a “rat pass”.
Tabling the motion, Fine Gael Councillor Winston Bennett stated both the Ballinagh to Arva Road and the N55 to Gowna posed significant safety threats to road users.
Speaking about the Ballinagh to Arva Road, he revealed how he had received “a lot of calls” as there is often “a foot of water on the road”.
Cllr Bennett asked the council executive to arrange to put road markings on the edges of the road as it is a “death trap”.
He says the road carries a lot of traffic and, as a result, should be maintained to a higher quality.
100 lorries a day
Moving on to the N55, Cllr Bennett outlined there are “four or five factories in Gowna” and the road often carries “100 lorries a day”.
“It’s a rat pass,” he contended.
“Is it in the headlights for something to be done to it in the coming years?”, queried Cllr Bennett
Supporting the motion, fellow Fine Gael Councillor Trevor Smith said: “As a taxi driver, I drive that road every month.”
He urged the council executive to “start shouting louder” in order to secure more funding to upgrade roads.
Agreeing, Cllr Bennett added: “It’s the funding we need to be looking for, there’s desperate bends on that road”.
Responding to their concerns, Senior Executive Engineer John McGahern said he “fully supports doing these roads”.
Cllr Bennett queried if the council could request an “extra allocation of funds for a bigger job” to be done on the roads.
Mr McGahern explained the funds would have to be secured under the Restoration Improvement Grant, the funds from which are already earmarked to upgrade Assan Bridge next year.
However, in regards to straightening the bends on the road, Mr McGahern explained: “I don’t see that happening in the near future”.
“We took a bend out of a road at Enagh and the moons had to align” for that to happen,” revealed the engineer.
“It really did impact the funds we have to do other roads,” added Mr McGahern.
Cllr Bennett said, while he understood, the road markings need to be done on the road.
“It will be done,” confirmed the executive.