Date: 14 April 2022
Deputy Steven Matthews, Green TD for Wicklow, has welcomed a commitment from the District Engineer of Arklow Municipal District that a full review of speed limits and an assessment of the safety and adequacy of footpaths adjacent to Rathdrum Girl’s National School near St. Mary & Michael’s Church on the R755 into Rathdrum. Deputy Matthews said:
“I visited Rathdrum recently to meet with residents and discuss their concerns surrounding excessive speeding and safety issues around Rathdrum Girls National School. There is a very narrow footpath serving the children and parents walking to the Woods/Woodpark residences and there appears to be cars travelling at excessive speeds at this point. This is a 50kph zone but there is no speed limit sign in place.”
“Following my meeting with residents, I contacted the District Engineer to raise these issues and she has agreed to carry out a speed survey/traffic count after which they will assess the safety and adequacy of footpaths in the area. I recommended that Wicklow County Council introduce a 30kph ‘slow zone’ at this location, placing a speed indicator board on approach from Laragh direction and improvement works to widen the footpath at the pinch points.”
“This review will be carried out in the weeks following the Easter school holidays to give a more accurate description of the speeding issues at this location. It is very important that we address this soon as it impacts the safety of children and parents walking to and from school in the area. I welcome the positive response from Wicklow County Council, and I look forward to continued engagement with local residents on this issue.
“This review is part of my wider efforts to improve pedestrian and cycling infrastructure across Wicklow with a particular focus on providing Safe Routes to School for our children. In recent months I have met with a number of schools and resident groups to flag areas of concern with the council. If there are any specific locations that residents wish to have assessed for safety concerns, I would be more than happy to liaise with the council on their behalf”, concluded Deputy Matthews.
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