By Avril Horan

ELDERLY residents in two Oranmore estates are unable to access their homes because of ‘chaotic’ works taking place in the area.

That’s according to Cllr Martina Kinane (FF) who has hit out at the lack of consultation over the Active Travel project on the Maree Road.

Up to 80 houses in Beech Grove and Beech Park are affected by the Safe Routes to School scheme for Scoil Íosa and Cllr Kinane has called for immediate consultation to take place.

She told this week’s meeting of Galway County Council that, at a minimum, residents should have received a letter drop before construction began.

“This is urgent,” she said.

“I fully back any initiative that supports children travelling to school. But chaos is the only word for what I have been dealing with.

“Elderly people cannot get in and out of their homes. A pause in this project would cause more chaos. It has to be completed. It’s possible a new plan will have to be put in place as I believe proper consultation was not undertaken.”

She has called for Active Travel project engineers to meet with residents immediately to address their concerns, as they are having difficulty entering and exiting their estates.

Council officials said the scheme had gone through public consultation in line with statutory requirements, including notices in local newspapers, and information published online.

Cllr Kinane pressed on saying that it is “a disaster” as “people cannot get in and out of their estates.”

She also highlighted a wider governance issue, arguing that consultation had fallen between two stools, because Oranmore is served by more than one municipal district.

While the town is generally associated with the Athenry Municipal District (linked to the Athenry/Oranmore local electoral area), the affected estates are represented through the Loughrea Municipal District via the Gort/Kinvara local electoral area.

Cllr Cillian Keane (FF) said that, as a result, areas in Oranmore “get caught in terms of priority.” He also called for more direct engagement with residents and asked that signs be put in place along any stretch of road that is part of a public consultation process.

He argued that minor alterations to the current works could significantly ease the difficulties facing residents and called for improved coordination between the two districts.

“Oranmore is the only large urban centre that straddles two municipal districts,” he said.

“There is no other urban centre that falls in this situation. It’s crucial that people are represented on both municipal districts. It needs to be dealt with and the two districts need to work together.”

Councillor Tomás Grealish (Ind) agreed that historically “it should never have happened.”

In her motion to the Council, Cllr Kinane stressed that communication was a key factor.

“No briefing was provided to the elected members of the Gort/Kinvara Municipal District who represent this area in contrast to the briefings that were provided to the Athenry/Oranmore Municipal District councillors.”

She sought a commitment to ensure that relevant area engineers and elected members are consulted in advance of any similar Active Travel works proposed within the Gort/Kinvara electoral area.

However, Cllr Michael ‘Moegie’ Maher (FG) cautioned against pausing the project.

“We are actively asking Active Travel to put in these projects,” he said.

“Now, we are saying we don’t like it. I would hate to stop the project now it would send a wrong message to Active Travel and we are spending a lot of money on it. I would hate to stop it.”

Council officials accepted the urgency of the matter and said that the senior engineer will follow up and consult with residents in the area.

Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.

Pictured: Cllr Martina Kinane…angry on behalf of local elderly residents.