Where else in Ireland would a crossroads, latter situated on a blind hill, be allowed to have traffic approaching and exiting at 100 km/h?
Well this remains the case at Turtulla Cross, Thurles, Co. Tipperary.
The proposed replacement of Turtulla Cross with a roundabout has been welcomed by local councillors as a major step forward. Nobody disputes that this junction has a serious safety problem. It has been associated with one pedestrian fatality, numerous collisions and long-standing concern among residents, motorists and public representatives.
Pic: G. Willoughby.
The present 100 km/h limit is a maximum permitted speed, not an instruction to drive at that speed. Nevertheless, allowing traffic to approach a known hazardous junction under a 100 km/h limit sends entirely the wrong message. Drivers travelling at or near that speed have less time to recognise danger, react to another vehicle and stop safely.
However, welcoming action should not mean giving Transport Infrastructure Ireland and Tipperary County Council a blank cheque.
Before large sums of public money are committed to constructing a roundabout, the authorities must explain why a significantly cheaper and quicker safety measure has not been properly trialled; namely reducing the speed limit on the approach and exit to Turtulla Cross from 100 km/h to 50 or 60 km/h.
A roundabout would inevitably force approaching vehicles to slow considerably. That raises an obvious question: why not introduce lower approach speeds now and assess the results before committing to an expensive construction project?
The Government’s own Speed Limit Review recommended lower limits, including a proposed reduction of the default limit on national secondary roads from 100 km/h to 80 km/h. Official guidance also recognises 60 km/h transition zones on national and other significant roads entering areas where traffic conditions become more complex.
A properly designed trial could include a 60 km/h transition zone, a further 50 km/h limit immediately approaching the junction, prominent warning signs, refreshed road markings, flashing speed indicators, improved lighting and targeted Garda enforcement. The trial should be supported by speed surveys and collision-risk assessments, with the results published openly. A few hundred metres closer to Thurles town such signs exist, so just grab a screwdriver or pliers and move them.
According to Tipperary County Council’s May 2026 management report, preliminary design has commenced for a safety scheme involving a roundabout. The project is expected to enter the Part 8 planning process in 2026, with construction anticipated in 2027, or 2028 or maybe 2030.
That timetable provides an opportunity to test lower-cost interventions before construction begins.
Public money must be treated with respect. A roundabout may ultimately prove necessary, particularly if the junction’s layout, visibility or traffic movements cannot be made acceptably safe through speed management alone. But that conclusion should be demonstrated through real evidence, not just simply assumed by councillors wishing to take advantage of a video opportunity.
TII and Tipperary County Council should publish the up-to-date collision history, traffic speeds, projected construction cost, alternatives considered and the reasons those alternatives were rejected.
Spending millions without first testing an enforceable speed reduction would be a failure of common sense and responsible public administration. Safety must come first, but value for money, transparency and evidence must come with it.
Collision data is under the umbrella of the RSA, the website for said data is currently unavailable due to maintenance. I think without the roundabout in place drivers will still speed on that stretch of road. The roundabout is necessary and will be worth the cost.