We have been watching it, and yes, yet another road sign on Liberty Square, in Thurles, has met its “Waterloo”, demolished by traffic attempting to turn west on a narrow street scape that has become a hazard since its so-called upgrade.
As with the nearby ESB cabinet highlighted on September 7th last, the sign was positioned far too low to be visible to drivers. This latest casualty has lain in the middle of Liberty Square for six full days before being retrieved today, a symbol of official neglect.
This pattern has become all too familiar. In the past three years alone, railings at the Slievenamon Road junction have been flattened three times by heavy vehicles. Five signposts, installed perilously close to narrow traffic lanes, have been damaged. Two remain not replaced. Add these collisions to continuously adjusted pedestrian crossing lights, to a set of traffic lights, not to mention street bicycle racks and everyone can see why Thurles needs a bypass.
The problem is not just confined to Thurles. On the short 4.7 km (2.9 miles) stretch of road, between the villages of Littleton and Horse & Jockey; same a six-minute drive, I observed six damaged signs just today. (See above picture). Two remain lying flattened at the scene; four have been removed altogether.
In at least two years, Tipperary County Council has made no effort to replace any of them. Which begs the obvious question, if these signs were dispensable for two years, why were they installed in the first place? The answer points to waste; waste of taxpayers’ money and a lack of responsibility in both planning and maintenance.
While motorists and pedestrians deal daily with poor visibility and dangerous road layouts, Tipperary County Council continues to spend without accountability, leaving the public to pay the price in both safety and wasted resources.
The evidence shown above speaks for itself. The waste of taxpayers’ money by Tipperary County Council still continues, unchecked.
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