04 May Dillon welcomes community-led consensus building on Breaffy speed limits

Breaffy Community Council deliberated on two options from speed limit feasibility report on N60 at Breaffy;

– Community-led deliberations very much in favour of Option 1 (80kph limit and 60kph during school opening/closing);

– Commitment from TII that funding application for Option 1 will be prioritised with works possibly starting in Spring 2022.

Fine Gael TD for Mayo, Alan Dillon, has welcomed the efforts of Breaffy Community Council on their community-led deliberations on the speed limits for the N60 running through Breaffy.  Option 1 is the emerging preference at present due to commitments from Transport Infrastructure Ireland on funding and going to construction.  Option 1 entails a 80kph speed limit with a further reduction to 60kph during school opening/closing times.  Further information is posted on a display board outside the Shamrock Bar in Breaffy Village for a period of two weeks to maximise transparency on the details of the plan.

Deputy Dillon said: “I wish to commend the efforts of Breaffy Community Council for their positive engagement on this issue and their work in moving towards a solution.  Of the two options presented in the feasibility study, Option 1 is costing circa €965,000 with a 80kph speed limit running from Kilkenny Cross to Heneghan’s Plant Hire and a further speed limit reduction to 60kph around school opening and closing times.  It also includes a pedestrian crossing on the N60 with an island, as well as a cycle lane in and out of the village.  The key benefit is my understanding that commitments have been given in prioritising the funding for Option 1 and getting it to construction as early as Q1 of 2022.”

Deputy Dillon concluded: “I wish to thank their Chairman, Martin Reddington, and the community council for engaging their community, as well as with Transport Infrastructure Ireland and Mayo County Council.  It is their view that Option 1 is a significant improvement on previous plans to introduce a speed limit of 80kph and now takes into account a further reduction to 60kph to accommodate the busy school in the village.  It is testament to how things can be progressed when there is a consensus with local stakeholder groups and I encourage local residents to look at the display board outside the Shamrock and leave any comments or queries in the drop box provided.”