Junction at Perths in Kiltoom

Cllr. Naughten stated that he previously raised his concerns with the broken white line at the Perths junction in Kiltoom. This junction was recently re-lined by the TII from a continuous white line to a broken white line. Cllr. Naughten stated that this is causing concerns to the residents of Perths in Kiltoom and is a road hazard as it has caused a number of near accidents that have been in contact.

Cllr. Naughten proposed that an engineer would investigate and raise the issue of this concern with the TII.

Diarmuid MacDonnacha advised that this matter is dealt with in a question by Cllr. Naughten’s stating that Eugene Dwyer has raised this issue with TII. TII are satisfied that the Scheme is carried out with in compliance with current guidelines.

Cllr. Naughten stated his disappointment with the response, TII should take residents’ concerns into consideration and TII’s response is not acceptable.

Cllr. Fallon advised the meeting that there are mixed opinions on this matter. Local knowledge is vital when considering works on local roads.

Public Representatives on the Board of TII

Cllr. Kilduff queried a previous Notice of Motion regarding public representation on the Board of TII.

Liam Bergin advised the members of the reply from TII regarding public representation on the Board of TII –

‘Section 28 of the Roads Act, 1993, as amended, sets out the legislation in respect of the membership of the board of TII. Under this section, the legislation states that the members on the board of TII shall be selected by the Minister and the number of members shall not be less than ten nor more than fourteen. It also stipulates that members shall have wide experience and competence in relation to roads, railway infrastructure, transport, industrial, commercial, financial or environmental matters, local government, the organisation of workers or administration.

The process for Board Appointments is managed though the Public Appointments Service (PAS) which is an open, transparent process to which anyone meeting the relevant criteria may apply’.

Cllr. Connaughton advised that he is a member of the Association of Irish Local Government (AILG) and he will bring the matter before the Board of the next AILG meeting.

On the Proposal of Cllr. Naughten

Seconded by Cllr. Kilduff

It was AGREED to send a letter to AILG regarding the composition of the Board of TII, that public representatives should be appointed to this Board in order to ensure accountability and responsiveness to public safety issues.

On the Proposal of Cllr. Ward

Seconded by Cllr. Naughten

It was AGREED to send a letter to LAMA regarding the composition of the Board of TII, that public representatives should be appointed to this Board in order to ensure accountability and responsiveness to public safety issues.

On the Proposal of Cllr. Ward

Seconded by Cllr. Naughten

It was AGREED to send a letter to the Minister of the Environment dealing with issues of the N61 regarding road safety concerns. In particular, that the Traffic calming survey needs to include the area of Ballybay National School.

Danger of Rahara Road

Cllr. Fallon wished to compliment the works completed to date and further progress to this area of widening the road at this area to reduce any dangers.

Cllr. Ward also complimented works completed at Lecarrow.

Council Depot

Cllr. Naughten seeking an update on the appearance of the council depot at junction 13 in order to improve this area as it does not reflect the area and requires enhancement works.

Cllr. Ward also commented on this and stated that the impression public get when they enter County Roscommon, there is substantial works that need completion.

Diarmuid MacDonnacha advised the Members that landscaping this particular area might be the best option.

TII Study

Cllr. Fallon sought clarification on the TII Study as to the exact location that it finishes at.

Diarmuid MacDonnacha advised that the TII Study for the realignment of the N61 will not examine individual junctions on the approach to Athlone from the Newpark/St. Brigids, Kiltoom junction. The joint Roscommon/Westmeath Strategic Traffic Assessment Study being carried out will examine all junctions from St. Brigids to Ganleys Roundabout. This study could take up to 15 months however TII agreed at a recent meeting that they would allow a separate study that could feed into the larger plan.