By Chris Ashmore

WORKS on an Active Travel Project on one of Letterkenny’s busiest roads – which will see the installation of new cycle paths and pavements but at the expense of removing turning lanes for vehicles – could take between nine and 12 months to complete, the Donegal News can reveal.

Traffic came to a standstill for long periods this week on the section between the roundabout at Letterkenny University Hospital and the Knocknamona Roundabout on the R229-1 Kilmacrennan Road.

This prompted considerable reaction from motorists, and concern has been expressed that emergency service vehicles could be restricted from getting through to Letterkenny University Hospital.

Preliminary works began last week – some during the night – but this week the section was dogged by lengthy delays that had a knock-on effect throughout the town.

And the issue sparked a lively debate at the monthly meeting of Letterkenny-Milford Municipal District Council on Tuesday afternoon with calls for the works to be put back until after Christmas.

Raising the matter, Cllr. Donal ‘Mandy’ Kelly expressed his concern about the traffic congestion in the town on Tuesday morning as a result of the Active Travel Project.

He highlighted the traffic congestion which has been caused by the effective removal of the centre lane on the road where vehicles would normally wait if they were turning right into St Conal’s Hospital when going up the road.

As things stand there are still two lanes of traffic, but with no turning middle lane, when a vehicle stops to turn right, all the traffic behind it must wait until it can get across. Previously, the vehicle turning could sit and wait in the (middle) turning lane while traffic flowed on its inside.

“Every single road was backed up, buses were late to school and people were late to work,” he declared.

And he added: “How the emergency services are going to get through is beyond me. Did we learn anything from the four lane project?” he said, referring to the Polestar to the Dry Arch Roundabout project which was dogged by issues.

With Christmas approaching and mindful of just how important it is to so many businesses, he said he would like to see the project stopped.

“It should be deferred to after Christmas,” he stated.

Claiming that the Active Travel Project is “premature” he also felt that it was outer roads that they needed to be focusing on, and getting a town bus service in place.

He also called on the roads engineers and road design personnel associated with the project to stand out and witness for themselves what is happening.

Barricades have been erected along just a short stretch of around 40 metres – and this is one of his chief worries.

All the central islands on the section between the two roundabouts have been removed, and when the project is complete – with its new cycle lanes and footpaths – the stretch will have one lane each way, but – significantly – no turning lanes.

As he pointed out, there are numerous other parts of this section where people will need to turn and go across facing traffic.

As well as St Conal’s, these include several hospital entrances, the NowDoc facility at the Errigal Chronic Disease Management (CDM) Hub, Errigal College, Little Angels School, and the new 110-bed community nursing unit currently under construction.

Cllr Tomás Seán Devine said that while he had supported the Active Travel Project, he described Tuesday morning’s traffic as “brutal” and said he would second the proposal to put it off until after Christmas.

However, Cllr. Gerry McMonagle defended the Active Travel Project, and began by commenting: “You will not make an omelet without cracking a few eggs.”

Responding, Senior Executive Engineer, Roads and Transportation, David McIlwaine, pointed out that the contract states that there is a two-way flow of traffic between 7am and 7pm.

Mr McIlwaine added that he would take the comments back to the design team on site, and “see what we can do from a traffic management point of view.”