'They never ... had any consultation with us.' Anger over closing of road off the N15

Sligo County Council insists that the closure of a road near Grange is 'to alleviate a safety issue on the N15' - but locals are against the move.

Last Wednesday (31st), a number of residents and locals who live along or close to the L-7216 - a road stretching up to just over one kilometre in length along the main Sligo to Donegal Road (N15) at Aughagad - protested against the council's decision.

Some residents feel aggrieved about what they deem to be a lack of consultation on the process, and believe it would be safer to leave it open.

Speaking to The Sligo Champion, local man Brendan Devins said the closure will impact up to 40 people and could cause more problems than it solves.

"They're proposing to close up an entrance that's on a very straight stretch of road that inconveniences at least 30 people, 40 maybe," Mr Devins said.

"They won't see sense at all, they never came around and had any consultation whatsoever with us."

Mr Devins says in some cases it could mean a more dangerous situation as traffic tries to get out onto the N15, which is one of the busiest roads in the region.

He argues that local people have ideas and solutions they feel could help solve the problem, in consultation with the Local Authority.

"We're not out just to be after the council for every little thing, it's not that, it's a practical approach to a very dangerous situation. We're the people on the ground.

"We feel we have a lot to contribute towards a solution to all of this and a decent approach that would come up with some sort of solution for us all."

The council says that they accept there could have been more communication in the lead up to the closure.

"Local residents were informed of the closure by Sligo County Council in the last two weeks, and a 'letter drop' was issued to local residents on Friday 26th March, which advised that the action was being taken following recommendations from a Road Safety Audit and Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) Road Safety Inspector.

"While this intervention did not require statutory public consultation, Sligo County Council acknowledge and accept fully that residents should have been communicated with and informed much earlier of this intervention, in the context of the overall road improvement works taking place in the area."

Explaining the reason for the closure, the council says that it was undertaken following a Road Safety Audit on the road last summer.

"The L-7216 west at Cashelgarran near Grange is being closed to vehicular traffic to alleviate a safety issue on the N15.

"This road is not being closed to pedestrians or cyclists.

"The safety issue on the N15 is the existence of two conflicting right turning lanes, almost opposite each other on the N15, one at the N15/L-7216 east junction (leading towards Barnaderg) and the second at the N15/L-7216 west junction (leading to the old N15 (L-72123)).

"The average traffic numbers on the N15 National Primary Road at this location is 8,000 vehicles per day, and all interventions and improvements taking place are to improve road safety on this route, with inputs from leading road safety experts.

"A Road Safety Audit undertaken in July 2020, which deals with road geometry and alignment, not numbers of vehicles, recommended omitting one of the right-turning lanes, and converting the vacated space into a fully TII (Transport Infrastructure Ireland) compliant right-turning lane.

"The Road Safety Audit further recommended, that as the junction to the west serves as an access to the former N15 road running parallel, and also as this former road has two further junctions with the N15 in close proximity (one 700m to the north and a second 600m to the south), that the junction to the east (towards Barnaderg), should benefit from the right-turning lane, and that right turning to the western junction (to the old N15), be prohibited."

There is a €2.8million package of improvement works currently taking place on a 3.6km stretch of the N15.

Sligo Champion