Traffic fears on busy hospital road in Laois

Concerns have been raised for safety on the increasingly busy road in Laois that leads to Midlands Regional Hospital, an expanding special needs school, other medical centres and hundreds of houses.

The Block Road in Portlaoise has "an unbelievable amount of traffic" according to a Portlaoise Municipal District councillor.

Cllr Willie Aird is supported by colleagues in his call for extra traffic calming measures.

However the ultimate solution is building an alternative road parallel to it he said.

"It now has an unbelievable amount of traffic due to added infrastructure. Traffic has quadrupled. It was a residential area, it still is. In fact Laois County Council  granted permission for extra traffic to go onto the road. 

"I do feel for residents. We have to put some ways in place to help them. A huge amount of pedestrians and cyclists use it. Kolbe is getting a new school and that will use the road as well.

"I do say as well, we have a motion for a deputation to go to the Department, pushing for the new orbital route from Fielbrook to the Stradbally road to coincide with the new school," he said.

A new 1,000 pupil secondary school is planned for Dunamase College in the area.

Cllr Catherine Fitzgerald seconded his motion, which requests immediate road signage, speed radar signs and concealed entrance signs. 

"I am delighted to see that road markings will be refreshed, that will help. It is a very busy road with the amount of houses coming out of Chantiere Gate and Foxborrow and the estate behind it," she said.

"It is one of the busiest roads in town," said Cllr Noel Tuohy.

"It is busy, that is why the extention of the orbital route is very important. It is important that we push that on," he said.

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The council has agreed to put up a speed radar sign on the Block Road, funded from councillor's own discretionary budgets.

In answer to the motion, Laois County Council engineer Wes Wilkinson also said that the road markings on the Block road will be repainted. There will be additional road markings added, and new 'concealed entrance' signs will be erected. 

The council intends to knock two vacant houses it bought on the Stradbally road, and then get Goverment money to build a new orbital road connecting the Dublin road to the Stradbally road roundabout, running qaparallel to the Block Road.

"There is no doubt that the road linking Stradbally and Dublin roads is required for the future sustainable development of Portlaoise, for schools, housing and general expansion of the town and given the congestion on the Block Road," Director of Services for Roads Simon Walton said recently.