Motorists see red as traffic grinds to a halt on Bridge

BY CIARAN TIERNEY

Traffic ground to a halt in Galway yesterday as roadworks at three separate locations within just hundreds of metres of each other effectively closed off key arteries and caused lengthy delays across the city.

Motorists have expressed anger that Galway City Council began roadworks at both the Newcastle end of Quincentenary Bridge and University Road on the same day, causing long delays for road users who have already been inconvenienced by the on-going revamp of the Seamus Quirke Road in the Westside.

With some schools set to reopen at the end of this week, and heavy rain forecast for the next few days, road users are incredulous that three major works are taking place in the same area at the same time.

It was taking people up to 45 minutes to cross Quincentenary Bridge during the day yesterday and people attempting to make their way to the west side of the city faced lengthy delays during the so-called evening ‘rush hour’.

The N6 improvement scheme, which involves integrating the traffic lights at Newcastle with the new Urban Traffic Management Centre and improving pedestrian and cycling facilities, is set to cause disruption along the city’s main cross-city route (the Quincentenary Bridge) for the next eight weeks.

Although the resurfacing of the University Road, between the Cathedral and University Hospital Galway, will conclude early next week motorists were incredulous yesterday that the works could not be staggered to take place at different times.

One reader told The Sentinel that it took him an hour and 20 minutes to get from Boston Scientific to his home in Knocknacarra, while a female listener told Galway Bay FM that it took her 45 minutes to get from the Menlo Park Hotel to Arch Motors in the Westside. 

“I cannot understand why the Council needs to cause such traffic jams in Newcastle while University Road is also being worked on at the same time,” said another road user who contacted this newspaper. “It is a disgrace. Why can’t they do these works at night time when there are not so many cars on the roads?”

For more, read this week's Connacht Sentinel.