The Irish Road Haulage Association has called on local authorities to ensure that roadside hedges are cut back, in particular at busy junctions.
According to the hauliers, overgrown hedges are blocking sightlines, obstructing road signs and causing more accidents on our rural road network.
The IRHA wants both truck and trailer heights to be considered when cutting back hedgerows and to cut up to 4 metres high.
Overgrown hedgerows pose a particular danger for high-sided vehicles such as trucks, according to IRHA President Ger Hyland.
‘When hedges encroach onto the road, truck drivers are often forced to veer across the white line in order to avoid damage to their vehicles and wing mirrors, creating a dangerous situation for all road users,’ he warned.
He added: ‘An average a medium sized haulier is losing two mirrors a week on their truck fleet at a cost of €1,000 a week.’
As of June 19th, 19 pedestrians and eight cyclists have been killed on our roads this year.
