Thumbs up for new pedestrian crossings and traffic calmers around Castlebar

But how can the traffic issue at Gallow's Hill be best addressed?

A significant safety operation has been undertaken by Mayo County Council in a busy area of Castlebar.

New pedestrian crossings and traffic calming measures have been put in place at Pound Road, Chapel Street, Rathbawn, New Line, Garryduff and Snugboro - all the work taking a number of weeks.

It follows years of campaigning by local elected representatives, residents associations and concerned citizens.

The measures at Chapel Street, New Line and Rathbawn Road are very welcome for children going to and from St. Patrick's National School on a daily basis.

Great credit is due to Ann Sweeney, senior engineer, Castlebar Municipal District, for bringing the proposals to fruition.

Now an appeal has been issued to motorists to slow down and drive carefully, particularly when approaching pedestrian crossings.

The issue of providing a traffic lights system at the junction of Gallow's Hill, New Line, Chapel Street and Tucker Street is one that is consistently raised.

However, the only one of these streets that had frequent traffic snarls during busy periods is Gallows Hill.

Consequently, there are concerns that placing lights at the junction in question would lead to traffic jams at Chapel Street and New Line, where they do not already exist, thus compounding the problem at the location rather than solving it.

However, a solution needs to be found to the Gallow's Hill situation, thus the recent re-emergence of the debate over the provision of the proposed route between Rathbawn and Pontoon Road.

Perhaps a public consultation process on the matter would help find a long-term remedy.