During the weekend of the Donegal International Rally, Donegal County Council implemented a road closure on the Cullion Road to allow emergency vehicles to avoid gridlock traffic on the Four Lane road.
The measure facilitated the swift travel of ambulances, gardaí and fire services during one of the busiest weekends of the year in Donegal.
But as life returned to normal after the rally weekend, it begs the question of why a back road was needed to avoid the new multi-million Four Lane Safety Improvement Scheme.
Letterkenny man Pauric Shevlin, who has highlighted traffic concerns in Letterkenny before, wrote an open letter to Donegal County Council demanding urgent action to add an emergency lane to the Four Lane project.
He said: “Dear Donegal County Council,
During the Donegal International Rally emergency traffic was successfully diverted from the heavily congested N56 to a closed-off Cullion road, ensuring a timely emergency response for our communities.
“However, this raises a critical question: Why is such a diversion considered necessary only during rally weekend and not on normal days when the 2 incoming lanes are equally congested? This suggests that the N56 four-lane ‘SAFETY PROJECT’ is ‘not fit for purpose,’ and we must address this immediately.
“We need swift action to remove the concrete central reservation and replace it with a barrier-width reservation which will enable a traffic split for emergency vehicles.
“Over rally weekend, a 24-hour Facebook poll asked whether the concrete central reservation should be removed. The results were decisive: 84% voted Yes, and 16% voted No.
“Please act now to prevent potential loss of life due to emergency response delays caused by N56 traffic congestion. Our community’s safety must be prioritised.”
– Pauric Shevlin
Letterkenny area councillors have also raised their concerts with the concrete bollard dividing the four lane carriageway. Former Cllr Kevin Bradley, who was Mayor at the time, expressed concern ahead of the rally weekend and criticised the divider feature as serving no purpose.