Call for road safety audit at north Louth juncton

Louth County Council has been asked to carry out a road safety audit at a junction near Faughart National School, and carry out appropriate traffic calming measures and renewed line markings.

The request was made by Cllr Antóin Watters at the Dundalk Municipal District July meeting, held at the Dundalk Town Hall last Tuesday evening. In his motion at the July meeting, Cllr Watters called on Louth County Council to "carry out a road safety audit at the junction of the LP3097 Jonesborough Road and the LS7100-0 Faughart National School Road, adjacent to the railway bridge.

"Can I request that the location is assessed as part of Phase II of the Countywide Speed Limit Review and for appropriate traffic calming measures and renewed line markings. Can I also request an appropriate timeline for this audit."

Replying to Cllr Watters motion, David Hanratty, A/Director of Services, Operations & Environmental Delivery, said that: "Louth County Council is committed to improving road safety across the county. However, the demand for road safety measures continues to exceed the available resources, and projects must  be prioritised based on objective, evidence-led assessments.

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"This particular location was not identified in the Department of Transport's recent 'Regional and Local Road Network Safety Analysis (Round 2) ' as a Location of Interest (LOI). The LOI process is designed to highlight sites where evidence-based investment, such as Low-Cost Safety Improvement Works (LCSIW), would yield the most effective outcomes based on national collision data. As such this junction is currently outside the Department's targeted safety investment programme."

Mr Hanratty continued: "Nevertheless, this location will be reviewed as part of the Phase II of the Countywide Speed Limit Review, which is scheduled to commence later in 2025. While Phase I (completed in February 2025) applied a blanket 60km/h limit to rural local roads, Phase II will  focus on environments where lower speed limits (eg 30/km/h) may be more appropriate.

"Pending further analysis, the Council may also consider:

• Renewal of line markings, subject to routine maintenance scheduling; 
• The feasibility of traffic calming measures, subject to funding and design constraints.

"At present, a Road Safety Audit at this location is not programmed under existing work plans. However, the location will continue to be monitored, and if future data or risk assessments indicate a safety concern, it may be considered in future safety programmes."

Cllr Watters welcomed the response from Mr Hanratty but said that he still thinks more needs to be done and that motorists not knowing the layout of the road, could lead to an accident, adding that he would hope to see line markings renewed as soon as possible.

Cllr Seán Kelly voiced his support for Cllr Watters motion at the July meeting, saying that the road was the location for several fatalities over the years.