Call to clean road signs and erect new signage for major events happening in Laois
Some existing Laois signs point the wrong way, are mouldy and 'an embarrassment' says councillor
Information road signs that can be changed to suit an upcoming events should be erected by Laois County Council.
That was the view of Independent Cllr James Kelly who described some of the road signs in Laois as an “embarrassment” to the county.
He tabled a motion in relation to signage at the latest monthly meeting of Laois County Council.
He asked “that Laois County Council clean and repair road signs across County Laois.”
“As you can see from the attached images which is only a sample from the Western area of what is an ‘embarrassment’ when one is driving around the county observing the various road and welcoming signs, many of which are illegible due to dirt, grime and mould and many more are damaged or pointing in the wrong direction.
We have one chance to make a first impression to tourists but for many visiting Laois its absolutely shocking to see the dirty and badly damaged signs, some of which are blocked by hedges and growth which can lead to road safety issues as motorists struggle to read dirty signs. This could threaten our tourism product and also become a health and safety issue,” said Cllr Kelly.
He was critical of the council for leaving the job of cleaning signs to voluntary groups.
“In our towns and villages it is now left to Tidy Towns committees and other voluntary groups to clean the various signage rather than our Local Authority.
I wish to commend Laois County Council on the new information signs installed on our national and regional roads highlighting the upcoming major events for 2024, All Ireland Drama Finals, Electric Picnic, National Ploughing Championships and World Handball Championships all of which will be of huge benefit to the county. While these are temporary wooden signage I would propose that we install more permanent ones that we could change the event information on which would be more appealing to the eye,” said Cllr Kelly.
He expressed his belief that the topic should ideally be discussed at budget time. He said the council needs to develop a policy in relation to signage and then fund it.
“In the interim can we provide whatever resources are available to carry out cleaning and repair duties as soon as possible,” he said.
The motion was seconded by Fianna Fail Cllr Paddy Bracken.