New speed limits on the way for Letirim,

Cllr Roisin Kenny asked for an update on when the urban and county speed limit reviews will be taking place at the latest meeting of the Ballinmore municipal district meeting.

She asked: "I have been asked to look for the town speed limit on the Swanlinbar Road out of Ballinamore to be extended to the turn off the L13511, I assume that this would fall under the review."

She was advised that the Department of Transport has requested all local authorities to look at speed limit reviews for rural local roads, urban centres and school zones and that the rural local roads speed limit implementation is completed. 

The urban speed zones are currently being assessed and the variable speed zones for schools will shortly follow. 

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The response continued that once the urban speed zones are assessed, they will be put forward to the elected members for approval as they constitute a special speed limit and thus is a reserved function of each local authority. Once all of the above has been finalised and implemented, the existing 50/60 zones can be assessed and put to the elected members as part of the special speed limit review. 

Cllr Kenny noted that previously, former Cllr Gerry Dolan called on Ballinamore Municipal District to have the street lighting and the footpath extended out the Swanlinbar Road from Ballinamore before "there is a serious accident because there are a large number of houses out there and a lot of people walking, including children going to and from school."

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The former councillor had asked if the speed limit should be extended to Lisacarn and was supported by all members. 

A report by the Roads office said at the time that there was no funding in the Roadworks Programme for extensions to public lighting and, "in any event, it would not be our policy to provide public lighting outside the speed limits."

At this week's meeting, Emma Donohoe, district engineer said the council are still waiting on the full guidelines from the Department "to be finalised on the urban speed limits and it is not envisaged that the guidelines will push speed limits further out as it tends to reduce their effectiveness." 

She said the speed limits are set to go before councillors later in the year. 

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Cllr Ita Reynolds-Flynn said that the community would have to apply for funding themselves in order to have a lighting or footpath installed at that location. "The funding is not going to come from the council; they would have to go through a funding stream like CLÁR ." 

Ms Donohoe said that the NTA funding for Active Travel "doesn't provide footpaths to just a few houses; they are looking at either housing estates or schools etc. so that's the only funding available to the local authority at the moment."