This article is from page 12 of the 2006-10-31 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 12 JPG
THE National Roads Authority will not use the controversial cable wire crash barrier system on the Ennis bypass, but has instead opted for a concrete wall which will run the entire 14-kilometre length of the new N18 dual carriageway.
The NRA has come in for severe criticism in recent years for its use of the cable system which motorcyclists have described as “lethal” and nothing short of “human cheese wire.”
Earlier this year, a 10km stretch of the N18 Shannon to Limerick dualcarriageway was fitted with the cable crash barrier. MAG Ireland, the Motorcyclists Action Group which represents 40,000 motorcyclists, slated the system as a “potentially life-threatening hazard to motorcyclists.”
The NRA has confirmed, however, that it has opted for a concrete barrier system, also known as the Jersey Barrier, for the new section of the N18 eastern bypass of Ennis, which will run from Dromoland to just north of Crusheen.
MAG Ireland spokesman Jimmy Kenny has said, “The crash barrier installed on the new Ennis Bypass is certainly an improvement on the cable system and is more motorcyclefriendly. It is definitely a move in the right direction that the Government didn’t opt for the cheap option this time and go with the cable system.
“We are still calling on the Government to remove all cable crash barriers and replace them with motorcycle-friendly barriers. The Government here went for the cheap option when it decided to use the cable system on other routes including in another part of the N18 in Clare. They didn’t consider the consequences for motorcyclists who collide with the barrier.”
The NRA has confirmed that the entire N18 Ennis Bypass mainline will have a continuous one-metre high concrete median barrier.