Frustration and concern have been expressed at the lack of upgrade works to a busy junction in Letterkenny.
The intercession of Larkin’s Lane and Pearse Road was the subject of discussion at the February meeting of the Letterkenny Municipal District, following a motion by Councillor James Pat McDaid.
“Business people are being hampered by the layout of the junction,” Councillor McDaid told the meeting.
“This was only supposed to be a temporary structure, but there is no sign of funding being approved.
“I met with the senior roads engineer at a time to see some of the manoeuvre at the junction here on an hour basis.”
Councillor McDaid said it ‘wasn’t good enough’ that a budget to improve the junction has not been allocated.
He said: “We know how hard it is for business people and we should support this as best we can. They have waited long enough.
“If there is a will, there is room for huge improvement that would alleviate the traffic issue.
“If there is an accident, there, the whole town can block up in a matter of minutes. We can’t afford to let that happen.”
There have been suggestions that a roundabout is needed at the junction.
“Previous option designs for improvement at this junction favoured a roundabout, for which significant land take would be required,” a response from the Council read.
“There is currently no funding for the implementation of this option.”
The Council said that the junction has been assessed on a number of occasions, adding: “Previous investigations concluded that given the restricted area of land available current layout provides most efficient traffic flows and minimum traffic delays, taking into account available lands, traffic demands and budgets.”
Councillor Michael McBride said the situation was unfair on rate payers.
“Other businesses in Letterkenny are readily accessible. To watch some of the manoeuvres here, it’s head scratching what people try to do here.”
Fergal Doherty, the area manager for roads and transportation, said: “It is something that is constantly on the list to look at. We’re continuously seeing if there is funding for it.”
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