'Berlin wall' ramps not wanted on Portlaoise shortcut road

A Portlaoise councillor is asking for a new Laois roads safety policy for small roads around towns used as short cuts, but no 'Berlin wall' style ramps are wanted.

Cllr Paddy Buggy has raised the particular problem on the Crookedy Road in Ballytegan, Portlaoise. 

It links the main N80 Mountmellick road near Fairgreen, to the Ridge Road, past houses and around severe bends.

However he does not want the style of road safety installed in Emo village, comparing their speed ramps to the Berlin Wall.

He tabled a motion to the September meeting of Portlaoise Municipal District.

"This is an unusual situation. This road is rural but it's used by a lot of urban traffic. It is similar to what happened on the Meelick road where a solution was put in.

"If the SPC (Laois County Council's Strategic Policy Committee for transport) develops a policy which I hope they do, I ask that the measures are not as severe as were put into Emo. The measures there are extremely severe, I'm not against speed ramps, but there's speed ramps and there's the Berlin wall. Bearing in mind it's a rural scenario so there will be agricultural machinery moving on the road," he said.

Cllr Barry Walsh seconded the motion.

"We definitely need a policy on this, but all roads are different. Sometimes categorising them as just regional or local is not enough. Some are busier, some have schools on them," he cautioned.

Cllr Tommy Mulligan agrees.

"This is definitely one of those roads where something needs to be addressed soon. It's a narrow road with bad bends, bad dykes on each side and traffic has greatly increased," he said.

Cllr Catherine Fitzgerald praised recent drainage improvements on the "dangerous" road.

"I 100% agree, it's a very dangerous road, it's been ongoing for years to try and get road safety on it. A lot of work has been done on Ballytegan in the last six weeks, on drainage and I give credit to the council on that," she said.

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Cllr Buggy is asking the council to "investigate how traffic calming measures can be implemented within a 60km zone" on rural roads used as part of an urban road network.

Adrian Barrett, acting director of services for roads in reply said that the SPC for transportation was the appropriate group to develop such a strategy.