IS PAID PARKING ON THE WAY IN MITCHELSTOWN?
A Cork County Council report due sometime next year will investigate the possibility of introducing paid parking to ‘non-town council towns’ such as Mitchelstown, senior engineer Aidan Weir said this week.
Mr Weir’s comments came at Tuesday’s sitting of the Mallow/Fermoy Area committee of Cork County Council as ILTP Consulting presented the local authority with their finalised version of a Traffic Management Plan for the town.
A council spokesperson has since told The Avondhu that Mitchelstown is not being looked at specifically with a view to introduce paid parking.
“The matter is being looked at as part of an overall traffic plan, in that the possibility of revenue is being examined but there is nothing specific in mind and there is certainly nothing imminent,” the spokesperson said.
Amongst the recommendations for Mitchelstown put forward by John Paul Fitzgerald and Clifford Killeen of ILTP Consulting are the introduction of a full-time traffic warden and the partial pedestrianisation of the New Square, where surveys show a high number of recorded accidents.
The consultants strongly advised the council against the introduction of paid parking in Mitchelstown and recommended the narrowing of Cork Street for the benefit of pedestrians and as a traffic calming measure.
Amongst the short-term proposals recommended in the detailed report is a ban on heavy goods vehicles (HGV) in the town centre and the enforcement of parking regulations, with the consultants urging the implementation of a full-time traffic warden as “crucial” to Mitchelstown.
HGV access to industrial areas in the town could be served by a route from the roundabout at the relief road as opposed to the current access through King’s Square, the report suggests.
Both Mr Weir and area engineer Brendan O’Gorman reminded members of the council that the widespread findings of the report were suggestions and that no aspect of the major proposals would be implemented before coming to the councillors for approval.
Published:
Saturday 13th December 2:06pm
