On verge of an accident if councils do not trim hedges  

WE DON’T often comment in these columns on matters pertaining to road safety but one topic which has engaged us in recent weeks is the apparent complete absence of verge trimming in our countryside.

This was traditionally a job which various Co Councils undertook annually — and a fine job they did of it. However, in recent months we have been witnessing a situation where the local authorities are no longer doing that job. Money, as ever, is at the heart of the issue.

The councils are adamant they no longer have the cash to do this vital work — and that may be the case, despite the new extra taxes being extracted from the broad public — but the fact of the matter is that this critical element of road safety is now being completely ignored. Anyone who drives the highways and byways of Ireland will attest that having well-tended roadside verges is not simply a matter of having them neat and tidy; for drivers, having trimmed verges, shorn ditches, orderly trees and so forth, is an absolutely vital component of being able to drive safely. Any experienced driver will tell you that clear sightlines on any stretch of road is a part of their defensive armoury that not only keeps them safe, but other road users too. With unshorn verges, wild ditches and unnecessarily intrusive trees affecting vision and visibility, the safety risks become evident. Also, with the increasing levels of cycling activity on our roads right now, it is nearly impossible for cyclists to keep as tight to the inside of the road as they might otherwise do.

The risk to them from overgrown ditches and verges is also as serious as it is for drivers — and the same applies to pedestrians, on country roads especially.

For authorities to blithely say they do not have money to do this vital work is completely unacceptable, especially of there is a tragedy that is waiting to happen because this vital work is left undone is equally so.

I have heard mention of instances around the country where councils and local people working together under various government-funded schemes have come up with a solution to this issue and have managed to get vital verge and ditch trimming work done, but a countrywide answer has to be found — and quickly.

Trimming must resume to avert a potentially fatal accident caused by verges and ditches which obscure a drivers view.

Prevention is a huge part of any safety effort and sorting out this small but vital element of road safety is paramount.