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New traffic plan needed for NCW
A NEW traffic plan for Newcastle West which has been mooted for over a year needs to come into force sooner rather than later, according to local councillor Patrick O'Donovan, and this should start with the removal of the traffic lights at the bottom of Bridge Street.
For a number of months the lights have been permanently switched to flashing amber, a move that Cllr O'Donovan feels is "an admission that they don't work."
"I find it very disappointing that six years after I asked them to be taken away, they're still there. Limerick County Council are very reluctant to admit that they made a mistake putting them there," Cllr O'Donovan said. "I was initially told that they would be staying there, and then the gardai intervened and said that the tailbacks on both sides on a national primary road were unacceptable, and the Council then admitted that they would review the situation as part of a general traffic plan for the area. But we haven't heard anymore about that plan for over a year now."
Cllr O'Donovan said he believes that despite the problems with the lights at the bottom of Bridge Street, the County Council are still "planning to put in two new sets of lights in town, at the bottom of Sheehan's Road, and another by the creamery on the Cork Road side." He added that the need for a place for pedestrians to cross over from the Church would be accommodated by a zebra crossing.
Senior engineer Jimmy Condon said that a new traffic plan for Newcastle West was in "at a fairly advanced stage" before budget cuts forced the plan to be shelved. "The current position we're in means that we just can't afford to hire consultants. The funding was stopped, and everything has had to be put on hold. Unfortunately, we're totally dependent on central funding coming from Dublin, and we won't have a real idea of what will be coming for next year until January."
Meanwhile, three road works projects linked to damage caused in the Newcastle West floods last August are due for completion this month. Road works at Rathcahill West/Templeglantine East are due for completion on Friday November 13, and the road closure that has been in place since October 12 will be lifted at that time. The works are to facilitate the rebuilding of a bridge on the L7052 near the local Gaa club, and to replace a culvert and parapet at Rathcahill West that was damaged in a landslide.
Likewise, a section of the Bruff Line at Clooneyscrehane, Newcastle West, will be closed until November 27 to allow repairs to a bridge near the sewage treatment plant. Diversions will be in place for that time along the Dromcollogher Road through Castlemahon village.
The L1302 at Lower Grange, Knockaderry, will also be closed from next Monday, November 9 until November 20 to facilitate the rebuilding of a wall along the edge of the road after it was scoured by the nearby stream during the flood. Works are also ongoing at two other sites, Rathcahill East and Duncaha, Shanagolden, but these do not require the council to put any road closures in place.
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Saturday 04 February 2012
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Light rain
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