Slieve Gullion Sinn Féin Councillor Mickey Larkin has met residents from the Wood Road regarding the situation they found themselves in over the Easter break.
Speaking on the issue Cllr Larkin said "The residents of the Wood Road, which is at the exit to Slieve Gullion Courtyard, found themselves besieged by day trippers who parked and abandoned their cars the full length of the road over the Easter weekend and into the following week.Due to the car park at the Courtyard being full and the Forest Drive being closed, because of safety concerns, the hundreds of visitors spilled out onto the surrounding roads to park their vehicles.
"The resulting chaos left the residents of the area hemmed into their homes. Some came out to find cars blocking entrances and even some parked on their driveways. Although I can understand the frustration of travellers when they have come a distance, many with children on board, and find it difficult to park, there is no excuse for the blocking of driveways, field entrances and even the road.
"The main road from Newry to Forkhill was at a standstill in both directions at the entrance to Slieve Gullion due to cars queuing. This in itself was a very dangerous situation as was the number of families with small children and buggies walking the roads.
"In response to the calls from those living in the area I spoke to the CEO of the new Council, Liam Hannaway, and showed him many photographs of the congestion. Liam reacted quickly by providing more staff with radios to manage the entrance, exit and car park. I also spoke with the Community Policing Team for the area in relation to the need to keep the Wood Road free from parked cars. They provided police cones for the length of the road and assured me that they will respond quickly to any obstruction of the roads. I also requested that the Council quickly convene a meeting with the PSNI, Forestry, Transport NI and Courtyard to better prepare for such instances.
"At this point I must also state that the residents are fully supportive of the developments at Slieve Gullion and welcome the opening up of such a beautiful area to visitors. Their only request is that it doesn't have a detrimental effect on their daily lives. At the meeting with the residents a number of suggestions were aired which I will be following up on."
Sinn Féin MLA for the area Megan Fearon welcomed the response from the Council and PSNI but also called for more investment in the road infrastructure surrounding Slieve Gullion. " The Courtyard, play park, Giant's Lair and walks have become a massive draw for day trippers. This has become a Regional Play Park and is attracting visitors from all over the Island. It is wonderful to see thousands of people flocking to South Armagh but it is essential that more is done to improve the road network to ensure easy access to and from the attractions. There are future opportunities for expanding tourism on Slieve Gullion so we need to be planning for this now. With such development will come more jobs and increased prosperity for an area that was for so long neglected."
