Galway Bay fm newsroom – Galway County Council has indicated that a one-way traffic system for Oranmore could still be on the cards.

It follows the recent submission of a detailed one-way trail system to the local authority by the MÓR Action group – accompanied by a petition of over 1,500 signatures.

While that proposal was ultimately dismissed, a meeting this week revealed it’s still a possibility and considerable thought has been given to the idea.

The matter arose at this week’s meeting of the Athenry-Oranmore municipal district.

Councillor Jim Cuddy wanted to know if recently announced active travel funding for Galway projects could be put towards the Oranmore Traffic Management Plan.

He was advised that plan is now obsolete – and that a new transportation plan is currently in the works for the village, that will be more mindful of all modes of transportation – including pedestrians and cyclists.

It’ll not only examine issues like traffic, parking, road safety, pedestrian access and cycling – but also the potential for a one way traffic system through the village.

While such an idea was recently proposed by the MÓR Action community group as part of a detailed submission, the indication was that it was a non-runner.

Now, just weeks later, the local authority has confirmed that a one-way system will be considered by consultants when drafting a new transportation plan for Oranmore.

It was clear considerable thought has been given to the idea, as it was revealed the local authority has liased with private businesses to secure, in principle, the use of private roads for a one-way system.

There is no firm date at present for the development of the new transport plan for Oranmore – but it’s expected the project will get underway this year with the appointment of a consultant.

Galway Bay fm newsroom – The Health Protection Surveillance Centre has today been notified of 18 additional deaths related to COVID-19.

Of the deaths reported today, 7 occurred in April, 3 occurred in March, 3 occurred in February, 3 occurred in January. 1 death was reported as occurring before January.*

The median age of those who died was 85 years and the age range was 46-102 years.

There has been a total of 4,803 COVID-19 related deaths in Ireland.

As of midnight, Monday 12^th April, the HPSC has been notified of 358 confirmed cases of COVID-19.

There has now been a total of 241,684** confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ireland.

Of the cases notified today:

• 163 are men / 192 are women
• 73% are under 45 years of age
• The median age is 31 years old
• 166 in Dublin, 39 in Donegal, 16 in Kildare, 13 in Offaly, 12 in Meath, 12 in Limerick and the remaining 100 cases are spread across 18 other counties***.

As of 8am today, 205 COVID-19 patients are hospitalised, of which 48 are in ICU. 11 additional hospitalisations in the past 24 hours.

As of April 11^th 2021, 1,063,666 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered in Ireland:

• 749,450 people have received their first dose
• 314,216 people have received their second dose

The COVID-19 Dashboard provides up-to-date information on the key indicators of COVID-19 in the community including daily data on Ireland’s COVID-19 Vaccination Programme.

ENDS//

*There is 1 death where the date of death is under investigation.

**Validation of data at the HPSC has resulted in the denotification of 4 confirmed cases. The figure of 241,684 confirmed cases reflects this.

***County data should be considered provisional as the national Computerised Infectious Disease Reporting System (CIDR) is a dynamic system and case details are continually being validated and updated.

• 7-day incidence 58.7
• 5-day moving average 396

Today’s cases, 5-day moving average of new cases, 14-day incidence rate per 100,000 population and new cases in last 14 days (as of midnight 12^th April 2021) (incidence rate based on Census 2016 county population)

~The 5-day moving average of the number of new cases provides an appropriate indicator of current daily case numbers within a county. It takes account of any validation of cases for previous days and smooths out daily/weekend fluctuations in case numbers.

Galway Bay fm newsroom – Almost 1,400 Galway pupils, from 55 primary schools, have taken part in this year’s Incredible Edibles health and wellbeing programme.

Nationwide, over 25,000 primary school children participated in the events which showcased how children are keeping active in the garden and eating healthy to keep well this spring.

Incredible Edibles gives participating schools free grow packs that contain everything teachers need to start their own school garden.

Students then submit videos explaining how they keep active to keep well, while participants also take part in art and recipe competitions aimed at highlighting what they’ve learned about making good food choices.

This year’s initiative was held in conjunction with Healthy Ireland’s Keep Well Campaign, which is part of the Government Plan for Living with Covid-19.