Who’s to blame for killer roads?

ON yet another weekend of road casualties recently, three died in single-car night-time accidents where the vehicle had ‘gone out of control’.

Has any of the bodies appointed to oversee road safety examined the probability of these being associated with our inadequate road markings? Gaybo rattles-on, emotionally, about speed; others, more sensible, mention drink-driving; but no-one appears to consider the roads.

In recent years we have brought in a blanket speed-limit: national roads, 100km/h; regional roads, 80km/h.

Here in west Cork, we have the N71, long twisting sections, high hedges on both sides, no hard shoulder, no side markings — but, hey, it is a national road, let’s all go at 100km/h, the Government says it is safe — and who are we to argue with the Government?

We have a regional road from Skibbereen to Dunmanway, wide straight stretches, emergency hard shoulder, great visibility, but it’s only a regional road, so we must crawl at 80km/h.

We have a new feature appearing around the country — tarmac laid on top of old, unprepared surfaces.

In many cases, some of the new surface peels-off, leaving potholes of varying sizes and dips over old manhole and valve covers, but even worse are the ‘cliffs’ left on the edge of the road. I have measured some of them in my vicinity at 9 ins. If, in taking evasive action (a stray animal or such), a driver has to swerve to the left and drops one wheel into one of them, God only knows where he/she and the car will land.

We have a National Roads Authority which appears to have no authority.

I contacted them about auditing a very inadequate resurfacing job on a national road.

I was informed it was not their responsibility.

Could they quantify, on the 257km between Cork and Dublin (the first and second cities of the State) the amount of motorway, dual carriageway, single carriageway with and without continuous lines (broken down by width and without emergency hard shoulders) and speed-restricted within town boundaries?

They didn’t have those sort of figures. Surely to God, anybody with authority should have an inventory of their responsibility.

Come on, Irish road-users need, even deserve, better than this.

Cal Hyland

4 Closheen Lane

Rosscarbery

Co Cork