Staggered junction needed at south Mayo crossroads

FURTHER safety measures are needed at Annfield crossroads in south Mayo.

Issues at the accident black spot are being compounded by sat nav showing it as a straight road through, Councillor Patsy O'Brien told a Claremorris-Swinford Municipal District meeting.

He brought a motion asking Mayo County Council to seek funding for safety measures at the crossroads.

In reply, he was told safety improvement works have been carried out at the location on three separate occasions.

They include additional road markings, advance warning signs, and sight lines were increased at the junction in 2020.

Further improvement works must include the removal of the look through effect and will involve staggering of the junction, which will result in significant construction works.

A full design will be required before any submission for funding is made.

Councillor O'Brien agreed it is not an easy job to resolve but it is a huge accident black spot.

Sav navs are adding to the problem as people tend to go straight through it.

He asked that a design be drawn up and that they look for funding.

The location has a significant accident history, said Councillor Damien Ryan, who said they needed to get the regional design office to look at this and the crossroads in The Neale to draw up a design and evaluation and seek strategic funding for both.

The crossroads need to be staggered, and he agreed sat nav is an issue, not showing up a major junction at either location.