Calls to restrict HGVs in Gorey following latest serious incident on Main Street

By Simon Bourke, Wexford People

In the wake of an incident which left a woman seriously injured on Gorey’s Main Street, a local organisation which focuses on road safety has urged the county council to restrict heavy goods vehicles (HGV) in the town centre. On June 27, a woman in her 60s was rushed to hospital after she was struck by an oil lorry on the Main St, and this has compelled the Gorey Pedestrian and Cycling Association (GPCA) to write to the council.

Expressing its “deepest sympathy” for both the woman who was injured and the driver of the HGV, the GPCA noted that “incidents like this have sadly occurred on Gorey’s Main St before”.

"They are predictable and preventable outcomes in a town centre that has not been designed to prioritise the safety of vulnerable road users,” read the statement. “They will continue to happen until something is done.”

Stating that it had previously highlighted “glaring safety concerns” on the Main St, the group said that because traffic moves slowly through the town pedestrians and cyclists often had a “false sense of security”.

“This, combined with the lack of pedestrian crossings, causes people to cross at unsafe locations,” it continued. “People cross from behind parked cars and at 'courtesy crossings' at busy junctions, where there is a dip in the footpath but no road markings or signage.

“The problems are compounded by people parking vehicles across dipped footpaths, endangering people, especially those with disabilities using wheelchairs and other mobility aids.”

In August 2023, the GPCA highlighted the need to restrict HGV traffic on the Main St, citing the “significant blind spots” that make it difficult for their drivers to see vulnerable road users. Noting that towns such as Dungarvan, Longford, and Monaghan, have already restricted HGVs in their town centres, the group called upon Wexford County Council (WCC) to follow suit and implement further safety measures in the town centre.

“Everybody in Gorey, regardless of their main mode of transport, has at least one story about a near miss on the main street. The hazards have been there for decades and cannot be ignored any longer. We are calling on our local representatives, WCC, and the Department of Transport to prioritise the safety of all road users.

"We urgently need investment in additional pedestrian crossings, wider footpaths, cycle lanes, HGV restrictions, and other measures that put people's safety at the centre of Gorey's design. Nobody should have to risk their life when crossing the road in their own town.”

The letter from the GPCA was discussed by local councillors at the July meeting of the Gorey Kilmuckridge Municipal District (GKMD) where Councillor Joe Sullivan referenced the previous accidents on the Main St, some of which led to fatalities.

“In my time I have seen four women killed on that street and two more seriously injured,” he said. “That’s from Oscars 64 to the Coach House; and that must be the highest level of mortality on a 300m stretch of road anywhere in Ireland. As elected representatives we have a responsibility to protect everyone on the Main Street. If that means requesting funding from the Road Safety Authority (RSA) to upgrade the crossings, then so be it. We have to get our act together.”

Rather than create additional crossings, Cllr Pip Breen said some junctions could be made safer by restricting access to adjoining roads.

“Where that lady was knocked down, opposite The Loch Garman Arms, you have cars turning right from that junction,” he said. “Drivers coming down the Main St have a disadvantage because someone will come out right in front of them, the driver of that lorry hadn’t a hope of seeing her.

"If we change the junction and allow no right turns we’d stop a lot of that, in its current guise that junction is deadly.”

After cathaoirleach Donal Kenny confirmed that the area engineer was in the process of reviewing the junction in question, Cllr Darragh McDonald turned his attention to those who had chosen to share footage of the incident on social media.

“Anyone who shared a video of that needs a dose of cop on, we all have a sense of morbid curiosity at times, but it’s totally unacceptable in this day and age to stand around taking videos,” he said.