New Athlone traffic restrictions from Monday as part of streetscape work

A temporary one-way traffic system is due to come into effect at Pump Lane in the centre of Athlone from Monday next, as part of the ongoing streetscape enhancement work in the town.

One of the lanes of traffic at Pump Lane will be closed from Monday, July 17, next until Friday, October 6, with traffic diversions in place, Westmeath County Council said on its website.

Mardyke Street has been fully closed to traffic since March of this year, and is due to remain closed until late August.

Deirdre Reilly, Regeneration Project Manager with Westmeath County Council, said that when the traffic closure at Mardyke Street is lifted, it will be followed by the closure of part of Sean Costello Street, from Flannery's pub to The Stairwell (formerly Murphy's Law).

This means that vehicular traffic through this stretch of Sean Costello Street, which was reduced from two-way to one-way in recent years, will come to a permanent end in around six weeks' time.

John Cradock Ltd is the contractor working on the €4m streetscape revamp at Mardyke Street, Pump Lane and Sean Costello Street.

Ms Reilly told the Westmeath Independent the streetscape project was on schedule and was expected to be fully completed by February of next year.