Cork East Constituency Fine Gael TD, David Stanton, has called for the upgrade of the Lakeview Roundabout in Midleton to make the busy intersection safer and easier to negotiate for road users and pedestrians alike.
The Lakeview Roundabout junction between the N25 national road and the R630 access road to Midleton and Whitegate currently presents a very challenging situation for road users particularly at peak traffic times when a very large number of vehicles travel in an easterly direction through the roundabout. This makes it very difficult for vehicles travelling from Midleton on the R630 to access and traverse the roundabout resulting in very long tailbacks into the town.
David Stanton said: “Serious concerns have recently been raised by a number of constituents with regard to the current layout of the Lakeview Roundabout and the knock-on effect this is having on traffic. Those attempting to access the Lakeview Roundabout from the R630 on the Midleton side during such periods have likened it to ‘running the gauntlet’ or ‘Russian roulette’.
“There is considerable concern in the area that a serious crash could occur given the volume and speed of vehicles especially during the late afternoon when traffic appears to be at its heaviest. This problem looks set to be exacerbated in the future with houses currently under construction on the southern side of the roundabout leading to an increased number of road users and local pedestrians using the junction infrastructure.
“The safety of pedestrians who decide not to use the pedestrian overpass and instead cross the N25 on the eastern side of the roundabout has also been brought in to question by those using the roundabout, most notably heavy goods vehicle drivers. Such drivers have raised the possibility of additional safety measure being installed at this point to further encourage the use of the overpass and to warn drivers of approaching pedestrians.
“The installation of a slip-road at the Lakeview Roundabout in 2019 has been highly beneficial in reducing traffic volumes approaching the roundabout from the southern side and I believe that a further upgrade of the junction is now needed, particularly at the northern and eastern sides. I have written to the Minister for Transport, the Chief Executive of Cork County Council and to Transport Infrastructure Ireland to relay these concerns and to ask that the situation be examined with a view to putting in place measures to make this increasingly busy intersection safer and easier to negotiate from all sides”, concluded David Stanton.
