CORK County Council has been warned that overhanging branches along the road “will cause a death” if they are not cut back.

Cllr Danny Collins (Ind Ire) made the comments at a meeting of West Cork Municipal District.

He said: “We need to up our game here” before there is an accident.” Cllr Finbarr Harrington (Ind) raised the issue, asking the council to identify and address the problem to ensure the safety of road users, particularly as it enters the winter months.

He said it’s unfair on council workers who have to deal with fallen branches and blocked roads during “extreme weather events” when in many cases potentially problematic areas are public knowledge before the storm.

He highlighted the main route through Glengarriff and the Bantry to Ballydehob road as areas of concern, pointing out that trees have recently fallen in the area.

“I am not saying that every tree should be removed,” he said.

“What I am saying is that where there is a safety concern, we need to identify it, engage with the relevant landowners where necessary, and take the appropriate action.”

Cllr Harrington added that there is an “onus and a responsibility on us as a council” to keep road users safe.

He said that instead of continually reacting to fallen branches, areas of greatest concern should be identified and a plan be put in place to tackle them.

Cllr Daniel Sexton (Ind Ire) said there is a large tree on Convent Hill in Clonakilty that is causing concern, adding that there are a number of similar cases along the N71.

He said he has been contacted by haulage companies who have damaged mirrors due to trees encroaching on the road, resulting in thousands of euro worth of repairs.

Cllr Collins said that buses and campervans also deal with this issue, adding that yesterday he witnessed a campervan crossing the centre line while driving through Caheragh to try avoid doing damage to their vehicle.

Cllr Deirdre Kelly (FF) said that even after the mild storm recently there was lots of debris on the roads.

Cllr Alan Dromey (FF) asked if areas of concern were identified and provided to the council could the matter be dealt with proactively.

Executive engineer Kevin Lynch said: “As there are over 3,000 kilometres of road network in the municipal district if councillors are aware of any specific areas of concern they are invited to submit them to the relevant area office for inspection and follow on correspondence with the relevant landowners.”

However, he said it remains the responsibility of the landowners to maintain their hedges, including trees, to ensure that they are not a hazard to road users.

The council writes letters to landowners to reminding them where specific concerns have been noted.

Every year as hedge cutting season gets underway, the council undertake a county wide awareness campaign across local papers and local radio to remind landowners of their responsibilities.

Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.