Cause of Baylin to Mount Temple road issues ‘unknown’

By Rebekah O'Reilly

The cause of ongoing surface issues on the Baylin to Mount Temple road is unknown, a recent meeting of the Athlone Moate Municipal District heard.

Questions were raised by Cllr Frankie Keena and Cllr John Dolan about the the road, which has been deemed 'dangerous' by both councillors.

"People can't use the road anymore, it's just too dangerous," said Cllr Dolan, who noted the road has been "patched, and patched, and patched" over a number of years: "Another patch is now being added to the quilt. It's time to take it off and put a new bedspread on the bed. The road needs to be repaired now."

Cllr Paul Hogan added that the Local Link bus uses that road, and it would "absolutely shake the life out of you" to pass over its road surface.

He asked whether a recent Geo Technical Report had suggested any improvement works that could temporarily smooth the surface of the road

"There are references to unknowns. (The report) couldn't put (its) finger on the causes. I believe we're going to have to redevelop the road entirely," said District Engineer Willie Ryan. Some €30,000 has been designated for the road, which Mr Ryan said would only work for a single lane fix. "I have spoken to a contractor, who has some experience in the area, and they are developing a solution based on their own experiences.

"The issue is we don't know if whatever fix we put in place is going to resolve the issue. There appears to be no easy fix," he added

Cllr Dolan asked that the roads section would present the estimated cost of fixing the road at the next monthly meeting. "We need to know how much it will cost, and where we can go from here."

Mr Ryan added that the council would be hoping a Government-funded pilot scheme would be considered for the road.