“No love is being shown to Letterkenny’s business owners or the general road using public by Donegal County Council”.
Making her comments today, (17th September) which is LOVE DONEGAL DAY, Aontú Rep. Mary T Sweeney says.
“It’s both ironic and highly irritating that today will see Councillors falling over themselves to profess their love for the town while they continue to consistently ignore the serious traffic congestion problems and ill-considered road planning in and around Letterkenny.
They can’t claim ignorance—we have told them often enough.
Business owners are at the end of their tether and really suffering and losing business as customers simply can’t get into them, such is the extent of the traffic bottlenecks.
I arranged the first public meeting six weeks ago for business owners along Letterkenny Main Street and the wider business community to mobilise opposition to what is happening in and around our town.
On one day, alone myself and three supporters conducted a sample survey of shop/business owners and a up to 73 of them signed our traffic survey to declare their business were suffering from traffic congestion.
The most recent flooding of the newly upgraded Ballyraine road only adds salt to the wounds for many.
The survey was simple, but what shocked me and my colleagues was how keen business owners were to express their concerns and frustrations, tell their stories and share their experiences of how they businesses were impacted and Council was not listening.
Now Councillors are pushing to increase parking rates on Main Street, and I have not heard one solitary councillor complain that the development of Market Square has removed two disabled drivers parking bays.
This is beyond unacceptable. Why have these been removed
Donegal County Councillors need to learn to stand up for our County and fight for the resources needed and proper control as to how those finances are directed in conjunction with our council executive.
The system is a failure and needs to be fixed. Millions have come to Donegal but we have no control over how it is to be spent. That’s what is creating this crazy mismanagement and it needs to be halted as cyclists continue to use the main road to cycle, even where dedicated cycle lanes are completed.
What I believe our Aontú survey and public meeting did was, jump start our councillors to get their finger out, and halt this ill-considered ATP traffic plan which is neither helpful to cyclists or commuters. Letterkenny has been left with an often-abandoned Main Street, instead of presenting as a hub, a heart and soul for our community.
In relation to cycle lanes, no-one has objection to providing cycle lanes but not at the expense of our emergency services and transport of goods and services and commuters.
Who ever said that a cycle lane should automatically straddle the main arteries into any Town?
Why not direct them using periphery routes to town?.
Cycle lanes and the Active Travel Plan (ATP) has obviously been designed in Dublin and prematurely dropped onto Letterkenny without adequate design consideration or adaption.
We no longer even have town buses running and now they are looking to build a transport hub , we need a town bus service first for goodness’ sake!
You simply couldn’t make it up.
Whoever planned cycle lanes to run alongside the main arterial routes carrying heavy duty vehicles like articulated trucks and buses which generate huge down draft as they pass, is in my opinion, absolute madness.
It would have been a much quicker and cheaper options to open up the river banks and create cycle lanes along those in and around Letterkenny town, away from national primary roads.
The majority of cyclists that I have spoken to suggest it is more dangerous to cycle on bike lanes which are left slippy from the muck and leaves pushed onto the cycle carriage way by the heavy vehicles passing leaving the main road safer to cycle on.
€16.5million was spent on a 1km of bicycle lane along the four lanes entering Letterkenny from the Clanree to Port Bridge and I find that staggering
An honest discussion between Councillors, Council Executive and the public can generate positive practical ideas.
One councillor’s suggestion to open up a one way route at Little angels primary school should be prioritised.
It’s concerning that Council Executives are still stating that all traffic works amendments need to align with the Letterkenny Transport Plan 2023 -2029— if this is the case then I don’t expect any real progress or sensible outcomes.
The people of Letterkenny have been badly let down and badly served by this shambolic traffic management plan and Councillors elected to serve the town and its people must stand up now before businesses go to the wall”.
