Public consultation to open on planned safety upgrades for Mayo town’s pedestrian crossing after 12 years of campaigning
A Mayo councillor has “cautiously” welcomed long‑awaited progress on safety upgrades at a dangerous pedestrian crossing in Foxford, saying headway was finally being made after a “12‑year saga”.
Following multiple rounds of funding from Transport Infrastructure Ireland, continued campaigning from the local community, and a road safety audit carried out earlier this year, the safety improvement project is now moving to the next stage.
A public consultation for a Section 38, the legal process under the 1994 Road Traffic Act that allows councils to introduce traffic‑calming and safety measures, will go live on the Mayo County Council website from Thursday, May 7.
Speaking at the May meeting of the Claremorris and Swinford Municipal District, Cllr Cruise said he was “very, very cautiously” welcoming the publication of the Section 38 for the Foxford crossing.
He said the consultation had been advertised in local newspapers, confirmed that the online portal will open on Thursday, and urged members of the public to make submissions on the proposed works.
“It's been a long time coming. We have incidents [at the crossing] virtually weekly,” he told the meeting.
Cllr Cruise thanked those involved in liaising with Transport Infrastructure Ireland, but also criticised the fact that, as the elected local representative for the area, he had not yet seen the design plans being brought forward as part of the consultation.
He described this as a “shortcoming” and a “weakness in the system”, and said he had been made aware that people, who he referred to as “yellow jackets”, had visited the crossing to assess how best to progress the safety improvements, adding that “local knowledge is king”.
Cllr Cruise repeated that while his welcoming of the public consultation was cautious, he hopes that the public consultation “will be of benefit and will enhance the safety of the pedestrian crossing”.
“It’s an ongoing saga; it has been 12 years since it was installed in 2014, but hopefully things will move on from this, and we will see boots on the ground by the end of the year,” he said.
The pedestrian crossing is located on the N26 in the town centre of Foxford, and sees traffic travelling between Ballina and Swinford, as well as vehicles entering the town via the N58.
A variation in road levels has resulted in reduced visibility of the white line markings, particularly for motorists entering Foxford from Ballina, who are often unable to see them until they are close to the crossing.
In addition, the crossing is located close to a corner, where traffic turning right off Main Street or left from Lower Main Street meets the N26.
Because it is partially hidden around the bend, drivers may have little time to react to pedestrians already on the crossing before they come into view and need to brake.
Vehicles exiting Main Street or Lower Main Street onto the N26 are also typically accelerating at this point, which further increases the safety risk.
Cllr Cruise has been working to secure safety improvements at the crossing since its installation in 2014.
In 2022, he and the Foxford Enhancement Group submitted a petition to Transport Infrastructure Ireland calling for the crossing to be raised to road level in order to improve visibility.
The petition also set out a number of additional safety measures, including improved lighting, advance warning signage, and the introduction of red and green pedestrian signals.
This article has been funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.