Crossing not fit for purpose, says Aird

The level crossing on Fr Browne Avenue in Portlaoise is not fit to pass a safety audit, declared Cllr Willie Aird recently, calling on Iarnrod Eireann to give an update on proposed improvements to the crossing.

“It’s affecting business, I’m getting it every day from people using tractors, hitches can break and damage is done. There’s a huge amount of articulated lorries using that road and they hit a hump,” he said, during the last meeting of the Portlaoise Municipal District.

“How did we get permission for that? How did it passed a safety audit? It cannot pass, in my opinion,” he continued. “It’s time for action. It shouldn’t just be us (the councillors), engineers should be insisting that there are proper footpaths there.”

Cllr Aird concluded by saying that the footpath was not “walking friendly”.

“It’s a serious issue,” agreed Cllr Catherine Fitzgerald. “As you’re coming up the Knockmay side there’s all this muck and silt there and people are slipping in it, people making a run for it and slipping. It’s very dangerous.”

Cllr Fitzgerald said it was one of a number of issues the local authority had to raise with Iarnrod Eireann, another being car parking spaces at the station.