Road that needed work for past six years "a scandal"

Cllr Brendan Barry requested that Ballinamore municipal district resurface the local road between Fenagh village and Aghoo Bridge (L1487).

"The section in Mough and Drumraine is getting particularly bad," he said.

The response said that the district office have expended a number of Road Improvement Grants in this area and that this is a short section that requires a final pavement and "we can include it in the next three year roadworks programme. In the meantime, we will carry out general maintenance on the road surface."

Cllr Barry continued that "it's part of the main road" and said he hoped that the works could be carried out next year if possible. "After another winter, that surface is going to be very poor," he added.

Cllr Caillian Ellis supported the motion and said the road has needed work for the past six years and described it as a "scandal". 

He said that the road "has been done in bits and pieces and should have been all done together; there's a small piece left to complete that road and I'm proposing that it's completed this year. There's a huge volume of traffic on that road. I propose the road is completed this year; not next year or any other year."

All members supported the motion. 

Cllr Ellis said that the road should have been included in the roadworks programme. "It's long enough going on," he said.

Leitrim County Council District Engineer, Darragh O'Boyle responded that the roadworks programme is approved by the elected members and added that the road from Aghoo to Fenagh has had "two grants on it in the last three years; the side roads off that each had a grant; in that area alone we've five grants."

He said the road is around 3.5km in length and said the options available are to "take one off this route, and the other is that we put it on the start of next year's three year programme."

He stressed that the "district office hasn't neglected that section of the county and actually we've put a lot of grants in that section of the county."