A BOTTLENECK bridge in
Buncrana might not be revamped for 15 years,
according to a concerned local councillor.
Cllr. Peter McLaughlin said sources had indicated to
him that it could take up to the year 2022 for the
Cockhill Bridge - which is used by up to 15,000
vehicles a day - to be redeveloped.
Fears are mounting that the old bridge might crumble
under the weight of increased traffic, particularly
with the number of new developments in the Clonbeg
area in recent years. These include a new Council
housing estate, Dun na nIarlai (Earlsfort), the keys
of which were recently handed out to tenants.
"My understanding now is, that a new bridge at
Cockhill could be as far down the line as 15 years,"
Cllr. McLaughlin told InishowenNews.com.
"We have massive development going on in that side
of the town and this bridge is just not able to cope
with the volume of traffic," he said.
"What makes it worse is that there aren't any safety
measures in place to improve the vision lines of
drivers coming on to the bridge. A bit of tree
cutting might make visibility better and would allow
drivers to see what's on the bridge and wait for
them to cross."
The Fine Gael councillor said it had been indicated
at the June monthly meeting that building of a new
footbridge, to facilitate families from the new
housing development, would start within two months.
However, he said there was currently 'no sign' of
construction works.
He also had safety concerns in relation to any new
footbridge that might be attached in some way to the
old bridge.
Meanwhile, Cllr. McLaughlin said he would be raising
his concerns at the next scheduled monthly meeting
of Buncrana Town Council, in September.
And he reiterated that he felt the budget of around
€100,000 for construction of a footbridge would be
better spent redeveloping the existing bridge
to include a pedestrian crossing. |
