Poor signage on the Athlone bypass will not be improved until a decision is made on whether the stretch of road is to enjoy dual carriageway or motorway status, it has emerged.
Director of services Barry Kehoe has told a meeting of Athlone Town Council that, while he is aware that signage can be confusing for visitors, the council is negotiating with the National Roads Authority (NRA ) on new signage for the stretch of the N6.
It was agreed that signage is needed on both the east and west approaches to Athlone on the bypass to inform motorists that there are five exits for Athlone and not just one.
The issue was raised by Cllr Kevin ‘Boxer’ Moran, who is concerned at the heavy volumes of traffic leaving the bypass at the Kilmartins exit.
“When you’re coming into Athlone [from the east] you hit the sign for Athlone and [Birr], and everyone going to Athlone takes this, and this is creating huge problems. They don’t all have to go in by the college, and the same with the Garrycastle exit. The next one is marked Longford and Cavan.
“It’s the same from the Galway side. We have people who bypass Athlone as they don’t know where they are going. There are no signs for the west side of town, except for Roscommon. We can help by putting up signs, we owe it to the business people in the town,” said Cllr Moran.
Mayor Mark Cooney supported the calls, saying it should be evident which exit to take for different areas of the town. “The designs should be presented to us before the NRA finalise them,” he said.
Mr Kehoe agreed that signage on the bypass has been “very poor” for the last number of years.
“We are dealing with the NRA, and poles have been erected for new signage, but we can’t proceed until the Minister decides on the status of the bypass,” he explained.
“The designs haven’t been brought before us yet. The signs need to impress the fact that there are five exits for Athlone, not just one. There will be a sign at each approach to show there are five interchanges.”
