Crash fears grow over lack of stop sign at town centre junction 

Motorists are repeatedly driving through a junction in the centre of Killala without yielding to traffic with the right of way, with a local councillor warning that slow-moving traffic is the only thing preventing a crash.

Cllr Jarlath Munnelly raised concerns at the October meeting of Ballina Municipal District about the junction outside Centra, where drivers coming from the Crossmolina Road are continuing through despite being required to yield.

“There is a yield sign, but it is a ways back from the junction, and people are driving right through. I’ve seen it myself a number of times,” he said.

“This is an ongoing problem. That junction is not working properly, and it needs to be looked at.” While welcoming recent works in the area, Cllr Munnelly said changes were needed to ensure safety for road users.

“The works there have been fantastic, there is no question, but a tweak is needed. There are people driving on that road not stopping. I would be afraid that something would happen,” he said.

Senior Executive Engineer Theresa Durkin confirmed that the council would examine the junction and asked whether the problem was more common during peak travel times.

Cllr Munnelly said the safety issue could happen at any time of day.

“It is constant. I think people just don't think you have to stop there. There hasn’t been a crash because the cars are going slow,” he said.

“There is a yield sign, but it's far back because of the raised paving. There is no opportunity to write ‘stop’ or ‘yield’ on the road either. People are just driving through the junction,” he said.

• Published as part of the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.