Road safety concerns at Taughmaconnell school raised

Representatives from Roscommon County Council will meet with the principal of St Ronan's NS in Taughmaconnell to discuss interim measures to allay road safety concerns on the approach road to the school.

Cllr Emer Kelly voiced her concerns at the Athlone Municipal District meeting of the local authority calling on the council to review road safety outside of the school due to the volume and speed of the traffic on the road.

"The need for road safety measures on the approach roads to the school are being regularly highlighted to me by parents. We have to be mindful of the traffic volumes and speed at which cars are travelling towards the school. There have been a couple of near misses outside of the school particularly in the last couple of weeks so it is vital that we address the situation as soon as possible," Cllr Kelly said.

Cllr John Keogh said he would welcome measures that would cause cars on the approach roads to the school to "slow down", while Cllr Tony Ward said the introduction of road safety measures at the school would provide "peace of mind" for parents and pupils.

Athlone Municipal District Co-Ordinator Susan Loughnane said that St Ronan's NS had previously been invited to apply for funding under the Safe Routes to School Programme to improve safety measures outside the school.

"The Safe Routes to School (SRTS) Programme aims to improve safety at school gates and increase active travel to schools. However, when it was launched St Ronan's NS did not apply," Ms Loughnane said.

The MD Co-Ordinator did confirm that the council was happy to meet with the school principal "to discuss any low-cost proposals that could be implemented outside of the SRTS Programme".

"Any proposals would be subject to the availability of budget and resources," Ms Loughnane concluded.