What is the cost of road safety?

Editorial Department • Published 13 May 2010 09:20 0 Comments

See also:

How many accidents does it take to improve road safety? That's the question residents in the Lower Chanterhill Road and Drumclay area of Enniskillen are asking in light of the serious accident on a notorious corner on Monday morning.

A lorry laden with logs overturned on the apex of the corner, damaging a nearby house. Luckily, the driver of the lorry and the occupants of the house were not hurt.

However it again calls in question the dangers posed on our roads and the steps needed to prevent such accidents re-occurring again.

The particular road has a history of serious accidents and it is only six months ago that this newspaper highlighted such dangers when a mother described being "too scared" to use the road to bring her children to school because of the fear of an accident.

While the Roads Service has indicated how a crash barrier, a 30mph speed limit, warning markings and box junction have been installed in the area, it appears they are not sufficient to stop the ongoing spate of accidents in this area, some of them extremely serious.

It is not only other road users who are at risk but residents of nearby homes as was the case in Monday's accident.

It shows the need for the quick completion of the Cherrymount Link which should take a considerable amount of traffic from the Lower Chanterhill Road, and in particular, heavy goods vehicles. However the Cherrymount Link project is itself beset with problems and delays.

Even after phase one of the project is completed, there has not been a commitment to actually construct the road. That will only happen if the Department for Regional Development has the sufficient funds.

What it boils down to is the cost rather than the risk to people's lives.

This article appeared in Impartial Reporter 13 May 10

Return to the main index, get more from this section or browse our Opinion archives.