Louth junction ‘possibly one of the most dangerous’ in the county as appeal made for traffic lights

By Olivia Ryan, The Drogheda Independent

A Dundalk road junction described as “one of the most dangerous in Louth” is in urgent need of traffic lights, according to a local councillor.

Cllr. Shane McGuinness highlighted ongoing concerns about the junction at Sexton’s, along the R132, south of Dundalk.

Speaking at this month's meeting of Dundalk Municipal District he said a recent two-vehicle traffic collision, where a motorcyclist sustained serious injuries, had indicated once again the need for a safety intervention at this location.

He said this was the second serious accident in ten days, and he had gone to the gardai who had told him there were two accidents every week on the same stretch of road.

Cllr. McGuinness said: “This is possibly one of the most dangerous junctions now in Louth.”

"There are a number of things we have to look at here, and one is how we prioritise the need for traffic lights. I think we should be prioritising it based on risk.”

He added that there was a protest in Blackrock last week in relation to water, and he expected there to be further outrage around the need for traffic lights at this junction.

Cllr. McGuinness said that while he appreciated there was an Active Travel programme being planned for the road: “I just don’t know whether we are going to be able to wait two or three years.”

He told the meeting: “How do we prioritise which Active Travel programme should go first, I think that is a question we need to ask.”

“The question on everyone’s lips is why do we keep building houses when we don’t have the infrastructure.”

Cllr. McGuinness said he had been highlighting the problems with this junction for a number of years, even before he was elected to the council.

He added that a meeting was arranged with David Jones, Director of Services at Louth County Council, and he hoped to raise the matter directly with him.