Council urged to prevent repeat of last week's traffic gridlock mayhem in Carrick-on-Suir

Severe traffic gridlock in Carrick-on-Suir last Friday caused by a poor traffic management system for water mains works was highlighted at Carrick-on-Suir Municipal District's monthly meeting this week by concerned councillors seeking assurances the “absolute mayhem” won't be repeated.

District Engineer Michael Scully responded to councillors complaints by promising to work with contractors to ensure the traffic congestion that Cllr Kieran Bourke says affected the entire town on the morning of March 20 doesn't happen again.

Cllr Bourke told the Carrick MD meeting yesterday (Thursday) the town “ground to a complete halt with traffic congestion” because the Stop/Go traffic management system for Uisce Éireann water mains replacement works on Greystone Street wasn't “fit for purpose”.

The Fianna Fáil councillor outlined there wasn't an issue on the first few days of the water mains works on this town centre street. The traffic congestion problems arose as the works got closer to the roundabout at the junction of Greystone Street, the N24 Clonmel Road and O'Mahony Avenue.

“This led last Friday to absolute mayhem in the town. This is not a blame game, I am just asking as a public representative that this kind of thing never happens again,” he told council management.

Speaking to The Nationalist after the meeting, Cllr Bourke said the traffic management system caused vehicle tailbacks that affected every approach route into the town, even across the River Suir in Carrickbeg. Traffic was backed up as far as Miloko on the Clonmel Road side and beyond the Sean Kelly Sports Centre on the Pill Road. 

Cllr Bourke recalled it took him about 25 minutes to travel from New Street to Lidl on the N24 Clonmel Road that morning.

The traffic gridlock began during the morning rush hour and continued until about 12.15pm after he contacted the council to highlight the problem and a council engineer visited the contractors on Greystone Street.  

At the Carrick MD meeting, he told council management he received emails from people going about their daily business bringing children to school and going shopping who were “very frustrated” over the traffic gridlock that day.

“They all accepted and recognised this work is necessary and makes the town a better place but each and every one said 'couldn't we please have a proper traffic management system in place'.”

He called for a proper traffic management plan to be in place for any road works like this in the town.

Carrick MD Cathaoirleach Cllr David Dunne supported Cllr Bourke's comments. He said the situation in Carrick on March 20 was a “perfect storm” as the traffic issues caused by the water mains project's traffic management system happened on what he described as the “busiest shopping day of the year”.

He pointed out the management of Carrick's SuperValu, which is located on Greystone Street, gave permission for the contractors' vans to park in the supermarket car park as the parking of the vans on the street had been contributing to the traffic congestion.

Mr Scully said everything the councillors raised about the traffic problem in the town that day was “fair”. He noted there will be a lot of traffic management measures put in place in the town over the next few years and agreed there needs to be a good consultation process in place between the council and contractors working on streets.

He said they needed to “bang heads together” to make sure there isn't a repeat of this incident and promised to be “strong” on ensuring that any road opening licences or traffic management plans caused as little disruption as possible to the public.

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