Businesses warn that traffic gridlock is forcing people to avoid Ballina town centre
Traffic congestion in Ballina has reached crisis levels, with local businesses warning they are on the brink of collapse as people avoid crossing the town.
Congestion on Ballina’s Lower and Upper Bridges has reached the point where many drivers simply refuse to cross the town.
At this month’s meeting of the Ballina Municipal District, Cllr John O’Hara said traffic gridlock on routes into the town is now “interfering with business in Ballina” and called for urgent action.
He said businesses on both sides of Ballina are suffering, as people now avoid crossing the bridge and either shop on the nearest side or travel to neighbouring towns like Swinford, where traffic is lighter and parking is easier.
He added that businesses on the Ardnaree side of Ballina, who once relied on trade from Crossmolina and Knockmore, have seen that business stop because customers will not cross the bridge.
The meeting heard warnings from a local businessman who told Cllr O’Hara his business is “nearly gone” and may have to close soon.
He explained that while he once relied on trade from Crossmolina, Foxford and Knockmore, those customers no longer come into Ballina because of traffic congestion.
Cllr O’Hara noted that the man is paying high business rates yet has lost nearly three-quarters of his customers, making it “impossible to make a living.”
“There’s no way Ballina is going to exist without a third bridge,” he added.
Cllr O’Hara argued that the solution lies in reviving long-stalled plans for a third bridge in Ballina.
He pointed to a 25-year-old provision to develop a crossing from Hollister ULC onto Church Road, past the Golf Links and across to the Sligo Road. The development, he said, would significantly improve connectivity across the town.
“It would take business traffic out of Ballina and bring it around the town, so if people wanted to travel through the centre, they’d be able to drive quickly without half the level of traffic or trucks in it,” he said.
After the meeting, Cllr O’Hara said the proposed bridge would “bring Ballina back to the business town that it was 40 years ago. Now we struggle to get people to come to it because they can’t get in or out.”
He also called on the council and local TDs to “do their bit” to bring the development of the third bridge to the attention of TII.
“The plan is not on the map, and while it’s not on the map, there won’t be any funding for it. If we could get it on the TII spec, and get them to recognise that we need it in Ballina,” he said.
He emphasised: “There is a need for it in Ballina.”
Cllr O’Hara urged TDs to push the plan forward and secure its place on the TII’s list for funding.
“That land and road have been sterilised for 25 years, no one can build on it,” he said. “And there must’ve been a need for it at that time, never mind now.”
During the meeting, Cllr Michael Loftus supported the motion, admitting that as a Crossmolina man himself, he would hesitate to travel across the bridge due to “the exceptional delay” caused by traffic.
He also expressed frustration at delays on the long-awaited N26 upgrade: “It just seems to be a crazy amount of time. It’s not the fault of the staff, but it’s legislation that is stopping things from going forward.”
Cathaoirleach of the Ballina Municipal District, Cllr Jarlath Munnelly, reiterated an earlier point that a workshop with all relevant parties on Ballina’s roads must take place to give the council clarity on various project timelines and delivery.
Cllr Annie-May Reape agreed, and added that Minister Dara Calleary would attend the meeting and stressed that, unless these projects are included in the national funding plan, “there won’t be progress made.”
This project has been funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.