Write a comment
Following yet another near miss on the Crieve Road, Newry in recent weeks, MLAs Liz Kimmins and Sinéad Ennis have once again urged the Infrastructure Minister Nichola Mallon to take action.
Newry/Armagh MLA Liz Kimmins stated, "Sinn Féin have been lobbying the Dept for Infrastructure for over four years now to put in place road safety measures on this road.
"The Crieve Road is one of the most dangerous roads in Newry due to the speed and volume of traffic on it every day.
"My colleague Sinéad Ennis and I have been raising this with the Minister at every opportunity, and residents are fed up with the lack of action by the Minister and her Department to date.
In a response on behalf of Minister Mallon to Ms Kimmins dated 10th March 2022, the Department said 'This scheme will remain on consideration for inclusion within a future works programme whilst taking into account other scheme priorities and availability of funding.'
The Newry and Armagh representative said the response is unacceptable.
"We need the Department to be more proactive instead of reactive, and the people of this area deserve to be able to use this road safely." she said.
South Down MLA, Sinéad Ennis, echoed her colleagues comments saying "I have been consistently calling on the Minister to install a footpath on the Crieve Road on behalf of my constituents in Carneyhough Court for several years now.
"There are hundreds of new houses built in this area, many with young families, who walk this road on a daily basis to and from school and work.
"They are crying out for the road to be made safer and the lack of action from the Department is a disgrace.
"What will it take for this road to be made safer - a fatality?
"Sinn Féin will continue to push for this vital work to be done sooner rather than later, to ensure that all road users in this area can do so safely."
