Councillors and officials at loggerheads over N5/N59 speed limit reductions

Westport councillors have rejected proposals to reduce the speed limits along the new N5 and N59, claiming that the reductions don't go far enough.

During a lengthy debate on the proposals to reduce the speed limits, councillors in the Westport/Belmullet Municipal District argued that the current speed along the N59 Newport Road and the N5 northern relief road was too high and a serious accident was waiting to happen.

The Mayo Road Design Office and TII had recommended reducing the speed limit along the N5 northern relief road from 100km per hour to 80km per hour and down to 60km per hour for a 200 metre stretch before the Attitreech roundabout.

They also recommended that the speed limit from the entrance to the Westport Industrial Estate on the N59 Newport Road to the Attireech roundabout should remain at 80km per hour while the remainder of the N59 should revert to 100 km per hour.

While councillors called for a reduction of the current speed limits particularly around the Attireech roundabout, they felt that they did not go far enough and could not support them.

Carrowholly-based councillor John O'Malley told the monthly meeting of the municipal district that he wanted the N59 from Westport to Newport to be reduced to 80km per hour as the 100km per hour limit was too high for the number of turn-offs in Kilmeena.

“I have a real problem with the 100km speed limit on the N59. We have a situation where we have the highest number of deaths on the road in more than a decade and here we have a road with 100km per hour and a lot of the roads off it do not have a turning off lane. It seems to me this road was designed out of a book and there are a lot of things to read in a book and when you put them into practice it is not the same,” he said, adding that the Slogger junction was particularly dangerous.

“There is an accident waiting to happen, there is no question about it. When you come up to the Slogger junction you have to almost turn back which means you have to come to almost a full stop before turning. If a car is coming behind you at 100km per hour and they don't think you are stopping I guarantee you they will have a job to stop. It is a death trap and nothing can be done about it until you bring the speed limit down to 80,” the Independent councillor said.

He was supported by Fianna Fáil councillor Brendan Mulroy who also supported calls for the section of the N59 from the Westport Industrial Park to Attireech roundabout to be reduced to 60 km per hour.

Absolutely ridiculous

“It is absolutely ridiculous ... the industrial park in Westport is very busy. The idea that the roads section of Mayo County Council can go back to the TII and ask for the road to be reduced to 60km per hour and it is not heeded is not a great day for democracy,” he said.

Fine Gael councillor Peter Flynn welcomed the reduction of the speed limit along the N5 at Attireech to be reduced to 60 km per hour but called for this speed limit to be extended to the Abbvie roundabout.

Marian McHugh of the National Roads Design Office (NRDO) explained that Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) would not sign off on the proposals made by the councillors and claimed the TII had only reluctantly agreed to the current recommendations.

Cllr Flynn proposed that the current recommendations on the table be rejected by the councillors and for the NRDO and the TII to look at reducing the speed limits further. He was supported by Cllr O'Malley who said he could not stand over the recommendations when people in the area wanted the speed of the road reduced because of safety concerns.

Ms McHugh reiterated her belief that the TII will not agree to further speed reductions on these roads and if the councillors do not agree to the recommendations, the current speed limits will remain in place, including the 100km per hour speed limit along the N5 to Attireech roundabout.

Achill councillor Paul McNamara said that the current speed limits in place were not made by the councillors and they should not be blamed if the recommendations are not approved.

Numerous calls

“We had no hand act or part in any of those speed limits. This is TII and Mayo County Council's situation and not ours,” he said, adding he received numerous calls regarding the Slogger junction.

Catherine McConnell, Director of Services said if the recommendations are rejected she could not give a timeline for when the TII will look at a review of the speed limits again and urged the councillors to consider the recommendations.

Cllr Flynn accepted that the current recommendations are better than what is at present but it still did not go far enough.

“If we rubberstamp the reports in front of us we are saying to the TII we agree with you and it is business as usual and the councillors fingerprints on it and not the TII. The only way I can potentially accept it is if we get commitments that there will be a further review of the N59 and N5. We are really concerned and not making it up to get headlines. We are basing it on our experiences of this,” he said.

After a failure to reach an agreement on the recommendations, it was agreed that officials and local councillors meet at a workshop before the July meeting of the municipal district to see if a compromise can be met.