Traffic lights for major Donegal roundabout on the way?

Details of major road works in and around Letterkenny, including traffic lights for the Polestar Roundabout were revealed at this week's online meeting of the Letterkenny-Milford Municipal District.

The councillors learned that the Letterkenny Traffic Management Project will be constructed in phases, commencing with the Joe Boner/Neil T Blaney junction to the Polestar Roundabout in 2021 and each phase will provide a benefit to the existing congestion in its own right. The contract work will also facilitate the opening of the new Joe Boner road.

Cllr Jimmy Kavanagh raised the issue when he questioned if the council is still planning on putting traffic lights on this roundabout and other roundabouts in the town and if so is there a timeline for the work.

He was told that during 2019, the council developed a solution to manage traffic though the section of the network from the Joe Boner/Neil T Blaney junction through the Polestar Roundabout to the creamery mini-roundabout at the N56/R245 junction.

The Part 8 Planning for the Letterkenny Traffic Management project was approved at a meeting of Donegal County Council on July 20.

"The project will, when completed, manage the traffic along these sections of the national and regional roads in this urban area of Letterkenny, which has a designated speed limit is 50kph.

"The proposed works are mainly confined within the extents of the existing road cross section, with a small amount of land purchase to provide extra width where required.

"The scheme includes for the installation of a MOVA (Microprocessor Optimised Vehicle Actuation) controlled traffic management system at all junctions with road widening at various locations, new signing and road lining."

Cllr Kavanagh was also informed that the works improve and extend existing shared pedestrian\cycle pathways and provide for controlled crossing points at all four junctions.

It also made provision for a new pedestrian\cycle traffic light crossing in the vicinity of Rossan College with footpath realignment to facilitate the new layout.

His was also told how in 2020, through funding allocated by the Department of Transport (DoT), Donegal County Council completed some advance site clearance works, commenced acquisition of some small parcels of land and following a procurement process, purchased a MOVA controlled traffic signal system in November 2020 for the tendered cost of €336,000.

"DoT has allocated €550,000 to the project for 2021. The civil engineering works elements of the project have been designed and construction will be completed from the Joe Boner/Neil T Blaney Junction up to but not including the Polestar Roundabout as Contract 1, subject to Covid-19 restrictions.

"This road is a regional road and so the DoT funding is applicable. Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) has indicated support for the funding of the remaining elements of the project along the N56 including the Polestar Roundabout," said an official reply.

Separately, the meeting heard that the N56 4 Lane Project is due to commence in Q2 2021.

The remaining Traffic Management works will be considered with respect to the timing of the various phases of construction and the implementation of those works on the N56 4 Lane road.