Well attended meeting reflects locals' worries

A large crowd of concerned locals gathered in St Joseph’s Parish Hall, Rochfortbridge for a meeting to air their concerns about road safety, on Monday October 20.

The meeting was well attended by locals, and there were a number of local elected representatives, plus a representative from An Garda Síochána, who informed locals of their plans to help with traffic calming.

Among the concerns residents raised were traffic speed through the village, inefficient lighting, parking, school buses parked too close to the road, and a lack of pedestrian crossings.

Minister Robert Troy, Sorca Clarke, TD, and Cllrs Denis Leonard and David Jones spoke to the Westmeath Examiner following the event.

Minister Troy said: “It was a well attended meeting, and I want to compliment those who organised it and got the word out. It is clear that there are concerns in Rochfortbridge in relation to the speed of traffic, particularly by the school – those concerns need to be addressed.

“It was good to see the gardaí there, and the sergeant responsible for road policing in the area gave a firm commitment that he would take on board the concerns of the community and ensure that there will be an increased presence of the Traffic Corps monitoring traffic in the area.”

Cllr Leonard said he attended on the night “to lend my support to the people of the area who need a simple traffic management plan for the whole community.

“There are many issues, but the main one seems to be that there are schools there, a large secondary school, and a primary school. Many locals just don’t feel confident driving through the town with the speeds that people seem to be travelling.

“We need to make sure that they can stop speeding from approach roads, as there are three or four of them in Rochfortbridge, we need to make sure that people slow down when coming into the village.”

Deputy Clarke said: “It was a productive meeting, where residents set out clear and reasonable asks on road safety, including actions needed from both Westmeath County Council and An Garda Síochána. People in the area have genuine and serious concerns that must be listened to and acted upon.

“I will continue to engage closely with residents on this and on many other issues affecting the community to ensure their voices are heard and real progress is made.”

Cllr Jones said: “I have been working with the community in Rochfortbridge for the last few months, and they had long thought of holding a meeting with the council, so they decided to hold a cross-party meeting to try to find the best outcome for the area.

“It is going to take willpower on behalf of Westmeath County Council, who have done a bit of work in Rochfortbridge already. Traffic calming measures don’t always happen overnight; planning goes into it. It could be a year, it could be two years, or even coming up to Christmas, we may see more ramps being installed right across the district.

“I think the county is heading in the right direction. You won’t sort out every road, but you can do your best to sort out the main roads through towns and villages, and in and around schools.”

Cllrs Emily Wallace and Niall Gaffney also attended the meeting.