Rising Laois van deliveries from Amazon and others present new road risks

A rise in deliveries to homes from Amazon, An Post and supermarkets has been flagged to Laois County Council as a new factor contributing to road dangers in rural areas.

Daily van deliveries by drivers unfamiliar with hazardous stretches of country roads was highlighted to council officials by Cllr Conor Bergin, Fine Gael, at a recent meeting with officials.

He tabled a motion calling on Laois County Council to address the road safety issues at Kirwan’s cross on the L-1619 at Cuddagh, Castletown as a matter of priority.

He highlighted the new phenomenon of deliveries when elaborating on the motion.

“It’s a very busy fast stretch of road. There was a serious incident there recently. A van from a supermarket collided with a car and landed in a garden and caused an awful lot of damage,” he said.

He said that further damage could have been caused as a timber lorry passed on the road soon afterward.

“Thankfully nobody was seriously injured but it could have been a much worse incident,” he said.

Cllr Bergin added that while the supermarket involved will address the damage caused, he said the speeding problem has not been addressed.

He was also concerned that while locals are familiar with the area and risks, including a problem with a right of way, other drivers such as those of commercial delivery vans would not be on alert to the dangers.

“There are deliveries coming every day of the week. There are vans from An Post, Amazon, supermarkets - people who are not familiar with the road might not be aware of the right of way,” he said.

He asked for the staggered junction.

“Nobody wants to see another serious accident and perhaps a fatality at the junction,” he said.

He was supported by Cllr James Kelly, Independent, who said a lot of the cars use the road with many racing before slowing down at the bad stretch identified by Cllr Bergin.

He said a new alignment is ‘totally necessary’. He added that there are also a lot of people living on the road.

Cllr Ollie Clooney, Independent, was also supportive.

Edmond Kenny, District Engineer, replied in writing.

“The Roads Department will apply to the Department of Transport for funding under the Safety Improvement Works Programme 2024 for works at this junction,” he said. 

Road safety measures needed on the N80 in Laois

The issue was raised at the October meeting of the Borris-in-Ossory Mountmellick Municipal District meeting.