A KINSALE-based councillor has described Abbey Lane as an accident waiting to happen unless traffic calming measures are urgently addressed, writes Kieran O’Mahony.

Cllr Marie O’Sullivan (FG) raised a motion at a recent meeting of Bandon Kinsale Municipal District calling for officials to have the area resurfaced and install safety/traffic calming measures, because it is an artery route for many school going children. However, councillors were told that inflation is increasing the costs of getting work done with significant price hikes across the board.

‘Abbey Lane is one of the oldest areas in Kinsale and it’s part of the heritage area of the town as we have a cemetery there. But since two big schools were built in the area there is lots of pedestrian traffic coming through there,’ said Cllr O’Sullivan.

‘They are coming down from The Rock and crossing the Bandon road and taking short cuts to their schools. It’s an accident waiting to happen,’ she warned.

Cllr Alan Coleman (Ind) seconded the motion and added that it’s an important artery for the people of Kinsale, while the Abbey Graveyard is one of the oldest graveyards in the town.

‘It badly needs resurfacing. There are a lot of moving parts in that part of the town between residents there and those visiting the graveyard but we should definitely deal with the surface first and make it safer,’ said Cllr Coleman.

Bandon Kinsale Municipal District manager of Padraig Barrett acknowledged that the road at Abbey Lane needs a new surface but that the funding isn’t there. He signalled that inflation is increasing the cost of getting work done.

‘We recently got prices back and there was significant cost increases. What we can do depends on the funding as well as the prices we get back. There are limits to what we can do.’