Filling potholes is not a solution to dire road conditions in Moycullen/Roscahill, where the road surfaces themselves remain unchanged since the 1970s.
This is the view of Fianna Fáil Connemara candidate Noel Thomas who is calling for “a complete overhaul” of the region’s roads, which are “in a state of disrepair” owing to “massive potholes”.
“Some of these roads still have the same surface that was put on them 35 years ago,” he said. “It is the main issue on the doorsteps. People are wondering why they are paying road tax when no work is being carried out in the area.”
Mr Thomas was critical of the Galway County Council’s maintenance of the roadways in the area.
“The council has been filling potholes over the years and this has left some of the roads looking like patchwork quilts,” he said. “This fill is no sooner down than up again when we get spells of frost or hot weather. The fill is not a solution to the problem, and means in the long term the roads become impossible to drive on.”
Mr Thomas is calling on the county council to put funding in place for a major renovation of the region’s roads.
“These roads have been neglected for so long that we are years behind,” he said. “We need to fast-track funding for some of these roads.”
