‘It is only a matter of time before there is a serious collision’: Cork resident claims they have spent three years asking council to change road sign

A Cork resident has claimed that they have spent more than three years attempting to get Cork City Council to change what they say has been a dangerous and inaccurate traffic sign.

Anthony Hartnett, a Bishopstown resident, told The Echo he had made multiple attempts to contact the council in relation to road signs at the entrance to Chestnut Grove in Bishopstown.

“Drivers leaving Chestnut Grove see a new sign about two seconds before they come to a T junction,” he said.

“Despite what the sign indicates it is clear that drivers have to stop at this T junction - otherwise they are in danger of colliding with incoming drivers from the Curraheen Road side.” Mr Hartnett described the sign – which depicts a sharp bend to the left, with a side road from the right on the outside of the bend - as “clearly inaccurate”.

“In the past many drivers heading for Bishopstown Tennis Club failed to slow down as they approached a misaligned yield sign and just drove at speed though the junction in question, often causing near collisions with cars exiting Chestnut Grove,” he said.

That yield sign was recently replaced with the current sign, which, Mr Hartnett claimed, would not solve the original problem.

“Cars still ignore this new sign and recklessly drive straight through the junction at speed, totally ignoring traffic leaving Chestnut Grove. It is only a matter of time before there is a serious collision,” he said.

He added that a separate issue was two conflicting signs, on either side of at Uam Var Avenue, one advertising a 30kph speed limit, and the other 50kph.

A council spokesperson said it acknowledged that the previous yield sign at Chestnut Grove “was incorrect for the junction layout hence and has been changed by council personnel”.

Regarding road signage indicating apparently conflicting speed limits, they said “signs often get to be rotated or otherwise incorrectly orientated (by weather, interference, tampering, etc). 

"Cork City Council endeavour to correct signage once we become aware of an issue.”