OVERGROWN hedges on narrow roads are causing all kinds of problems in West Cork.

According to Cllr Finbarr Harrington (Ind), residents living near the Dursey Cable car no longer drive the narrow road to town in the middle of the day, preferring instead to drive it early in the morning, or late in the evening when the road is quiet.

Cllr Caroline Cronin (FG), who was besieged with complaints about dangerously obscured junctions, recently took matters into her own hands.

Speaking at the Western Committee meeting, she said she was contacted by numerous people about overgrown hedges on narrow roads, especially at a four-cross-junction in Goleen.

‘The hedges had become so overgrown, and the road signs were so completely hidden, it was almost impossible to see oncoming traffic,’ she said.

But with the help of a local rural social scheme worker and a local woman, Caroline said they got up early, last Thursday morning, and trimmed the hedgerows themselves.

‘At this time of year,’ Cllr Cronin said, ‘our roads are full of cars, camper vans, cyclists and tourists travelling to Barleycove, Ballyrisode, and the Mizen Head Visitor Centre, so good visibility at junctions is essential for everyone’s safety.’

Cllr Cronin confirmed that they got the work done quickly before the volume and speed of traffic picked-up. She acknowledged that it is the responsibility of landowners to cut hedges along their boundaries, but when this doesn’t happen, she said it can create serious safety risks.

‘Maybe the time has come for Cork County Council to take responsibility for hedge​-cutting again, at least at dangerous junctions, and on narrow roads, where visibility is poor?’ she suggested.

Cllr Harrington warned that when the rain does come, all of the vegetation that had been starved for moisture, will shoot up dramatically, causing even more woes for motorists.