Councillor praises community effort to install Strathfoyle Speed Indicator Devices
‘Concern in Strathfoyle about traffic speed on the Haw Road, which serves Foyle Port and coming in from the Temple Road’ - Cllr Declan Norris
Derry City and Strabane District councillor Declan Norris (SDLP) has thanked the local businesses which donated seven Speed Indicator Devices for the Strathfoyle area.
Speaking to The Derry News at the official unveiling of the Speed Indicator Devices in the Faughan DEA [District Electoral Area], Cllr Norris said the traffic calming measures could not have been installed without the generosity of: The Lycra Company; Evero Energy and Evermore Energy; Foyle Port; RiverRidge Recycling; Coolkeeragh Power Station; and ABO Energy.
Cllr Norris said that the community in Strathfoyle and the surrounding area had been concerned about the speed at which some vehicles were travelling through the area for a number of years.
“It was one of the first issues I raised when I was elected to Council almost four years ago,” said Cllr Norris.
“We did the project in Eglinton through the Eglinton Active Travel Team to get eight Speed Indicator Devices put up in and around the village,” he added.
“Then I got two for Tamnaherin, through the Gaelic club (St Mary’s GAC) and the primary School (Our Lady of Fatima Primary School), which were donated by All Pipe Engineering Ltd (AE Global) and MMS Utilities Ltd.
Cllr Declan Norris with local industries helping the local community to slow down traffic.
“So, I talked to Paul (McGinley) in Enagh Youth Forum because, in order to get these Speed Indicator Devices, they have to be requested by a community group and then donated by a business. After that we asked around. Cllr Alex Duffy (Sinn Féin) got two donated through Strathfoyle Community Association by Coolkeeragh, and I got the rest through donations from several local businesses, all of which were very much appreciated. Foyle Port also donated the poles and the retention sockets for the poles for the Speed Indicator Devices.
“The whole process begins with an application to the Department for Infrastructure (DFI). It comes out and pinpoints where the group wants to put up the Speed Indicator Device and gives authorisation. Then you have to apply through Article 73 to get a utility company involved and that is where MMS came into the picture. It dug the holes and put in the poles for all of the Speed Indicator Devices,” said Cllr Norris, who added, “once they were in, myself and a friend who have the right skills went out and erected the actual devices”.
“These are permanent fixtures,” said Cllr Norris. “What happens is, in the 30mph speed limit, if a driver is going below 30mph, the device tells them their speed and then they get a green face and a ‘Thank You’ message.
“If you are going above 30mph, you will get a sad face and a ‘Slow Down’ message. If you are going above 40mph, you will get a ‘Too Fast’ message and at 46mph, a sad face comes on which tells you, you are going far too fast, so you need to slow down,” he added.
“I can then gather the data from the Speed Indicator Devices, which I can use to go to DFI and say, ‘This road is too fast’ or whatever.
“The brilliant thing about the Speed Indicator Devices is that it is a community-led initiative and has the acceptance of the community, otherwise it couldn’t happen. After a period of time, the community donates the devices to the Council, which then takes them on board for any maintenance going forward.
“These devices have really helped in traffic calming in Eglinton and I am confident it will do the same in Strathfoyle. As well as providing us with useful data, the devices will provide a real time indication to drivers about their speed, that is the main thing, so they can then slow down in response. The Speed Indicator Devices really work.”