Calls for targeted campaign as speeding through Tipperary villages remains concern
Tipperary councillors have called for a targeted campaign to tackle speeding in rural villages, warning that the issue is widespread across the Nenagh Municipal District (MD).
The call was made by independent councillor Joe Hannigan at the April meeting of the Nenagh MD, who said that there is a real issue with speeding in the villages across the area.
"I think everyone here has mentioned at one point or another, but speeding through the villages, is there any means by which we could maybe educate people that there’s speed limits in these villages?” Cllr Hannigan said.
"In every village in my area, and I hear the same from all the councillors, but is there any means that we could get people to slow down in these villages rather than speed ramps?” he asked representatives from the districts’s roads section.
Agreeing with Cllr Hannigan, fellow independent councillor Michael O’Meara said that more often than not, people who regularly speed through villages are the same culprits.
"I think we have a role to play here, because you’d be surprised who’s speeding through the villages, it’s usually two or three repeat offenders,” he said.
"A young fella in a car, or a young girl in a car, they’re always blamed, but I’ll tell you one thing, I witnessed a person, who’d be at least as old as me, maybe not older, speeding up through Lorrha village.
"95pc of the people are fine, but if a person is driving up a village at excessive speed now, they’re going to do it all the time, but a little word in their ear can often be enough,” Cllr O’Meara said.
Cllr Hannigan suggested that a targeted campaign of signage in villages could be key to help alleviate speeding issues.
"If we had temporary signage in those areas to say to people to realise you’re going through a village and to slow down, or some kind of programme like that that we could create,” he said.
"Would it be a good idea as a municipal area, not putting the onus on the engineering team, I think it’s on us as public representatives to put that campaign out there to work with people,” Cllr Hannigan added.
In response, engineer with the district’s roads section Barry Murphy welcomed the idea and said that people need to be aware of the devastation that can be caused by speeding.
"Speeding through villages is problematic … a small section of the population consider that there’s nothing wrong with excessive speeds and it’s how to change people’s perspective on it,” he said.
"It certainly does need a national campaign to make people aware of the devastation that results from speeding through villages, through towns, and on rural roads,” Mr Murphy added.