Council set its sights on 'rat run' near Limerick village

THE ongoing, rush hour traffic congestion in Adare is continuing to force drivers to use small, county roads from Anhid Cross to Lees Cross as a rat-run.

And these cars, according to Cllr John O’Donoghue, are travelling at speed.

“People along the road can’t get out their own gate because of the volume of traffic, particularly on Friday evenings,” he said.

And his fear is that the proposed improvement of Lees Cross and of Chawkes Cross on the Bruff Line will only make things worse.

His comments came following a report on the upgrades of both junctions from senior executive engineer Gerry O’Connor to a meeting of Adare-Rathkeale councillors.

A topographical survey of the junctions had been carried out, he said and had been passed on to the designers. A draft design was currently being developed, Mr O’Connor said, and an initial design had been drawn up.

“We have asked for some alterations,” he said. The preliminary designs and cost estimates would be presented to the councillors when ready.

There was no guarantee that funding for the two junctions would be forthcoming from Transport Infrastructure Ireland, Mr O’Connor said.

“We are promoting two extremely dangerous, five-legged junctions,” he said. But, he conceded to Cllr O’Donoghue: “It is not going to solve the speed problem.”

Calls to repair 'tricky' Limerick bridge which has been struck twice

Meanwhile, Cllr Stephen Keary and Cllr Adam Teaskey were also exercised by the hold-ups to traffic caused by pedestrians in Adare who don’t use the designated crossings but instead step out on the road, forcing traffic to slow down.

Cllr Teskey argued that an overhead pedestrian crossing was the only way to solve the problem.

“If the actual pedestrian crossings were properly indicated, then they would be more used,” Adare councillor Bridie Collins said and she reminded her fellow councillors that 17,000 vehicles a day pass through Adare and this figure rises to 24,000 at weekends.

She proposed a review of speed limits in Adare, with a reduction to 30kph “to ensure safety while we wait for the bypass”. Unfortunately, she said, the decision on the by-pass had been pushed out, yet again.