Calls for more salt to be spread on local roads were raised at today’s Portlaoise Municipal District meeting.
The correspondence was brought up by councillor John Joe Fennelly who argued that if the snow and frost the county has seen in the last few days happened in Dublin, services would be out immediately.
“Towns and schools can’t be stopped for two days,” added cllr Fennelly.
The cllr then suggested to have designated areas in the county where people could collect salt for their own roads.
Director of Services for Laois County Council Kieran Kehoe said that they are looking at schemes but that it is impossible to salt every road in the county.
“Everyone wants their road salted. We salted the roads on Friday, Saturday, Sunday, again on Sunday evening and on Monday morning. We did what we could do.
Addressing concerns raised by parents of Heywood Community School, he said: “The main road outside of Heywood was salted. You can’t salt private grounds. If you have to go five miles an hour, you have to go five miles an hour.”
Mr Kehoe added that he is pricing small salters that would fit on the back of a pick up truck.
He said that these would have to be driven by those not driving the main trucks, as “they are already flat-out.”
Cathaoirleach of Portlaoise Municipal District Mary Sweeney agreed with cllr Fennelly and said she believed there was a similiar scheme where people could get salt themselves a few years ago.
Cllr Willie Aird thanked those who gritted the roads in the last few days but said he believes, “We have gone back slightly in Portlaoise.”
“We used to have a tractor and an artificial spreader and do the housing estates in town.”
What salt reserves does Laois have
When cllr Noel Tuohy asked what salt reserve they council have for freezing conditions, Mr Kehoe said: “There is 750 tonnes of salt. Each run takes 50 tonnes of salt. We never let the reserve go under 300 tonnes.”
SEE ALSO – One fifth of roads in Laois are treated in freezing weather
The LaoisToday 2017 Annual is now on sale in bookshops and newsagents around the county – this is where you can buy it
