‘Transport NI must not repeat mistakes of the past’ – Hearty | Latest Newry News, Newry Sport and Newry Business for Newry City

‘Transport NI must not repeat mistakes of the past’ – Hearty

Sinn Fein's Terry HeartySinn Féin Councillor Terry Hearty has warned Transport NI not to repeat the mistakes of the past.

The Slieve Gullion representative was speaking after the roads authority presented their 2017/2018 annual report to Newry, Mourne and Down District council.

“This deeply disappointing report has once again pushed back a number of crucial minor work schemes that have already been delayed numerous times,” he said.

“While they may not appear very important to those pinching pennies and cutting corners in the Transport NI office they are crucial to the communities we represent.


 

“They also revealed that the road verge and cleaning of gullies would only take place once this year and that only potholes over a certain size would be fixed.

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Go For It March 2017“Have they learned nothing from the disastrous term of Danny Kennedy as Roads Minister? You may make small savings in the immediate term by neglecting these basic maintenance services but they cost you hugely down the line as roads become almost unusable and need wholesale replacement,” he insisted.


 

“Continuing with this lack of long-term planning will certainly undo the good work and investment achieved by Chris Hazzard as Minister for Infrastructure, and will have a massive impact on local roads.

Hearty continued, “Far from being a cosmetic issue, failing to keep up basic maintenance puts lives at risk, especially in rural areas as road junctions are already blind and dangerous from over grown grass.


 

“Pedestrians and cyclists are forced to move out into the middle of the roads to get around puddles and damaged surfaces. Drivers have to swerve to avoid damaging their cars on potholes while water running onto the roads due to gullies not being cleaned turns to ice in the winter months.

“I also asked that the weed spraying in our towns and villages take place as soon as possible before the weeds get out of control.

“Our Council has made tourism a priority, investing huge amounts of money in it and I would ask that Road Service consider this when implementing such reckless measures.

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25th March 2017 Box AdvertHe added, “With a little bit of foresight Transport NI could make huge savings on tackling issues before they become major problems. They must learn from the mistakes of the past.”

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Posted by on Jun 2 2017. Filed under Community. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry

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