FADED road markings and signs giving “false information” could easily result in deaths on our roads, according to a driving instructor who
has called on the Department of Infrastructure (DoI) to take immediate action before “minor injuries become major fatalities.”
But despite this warning and the Herald trying on a number of occasions to contact the department on the issue the agency
responsible for roads did not respond.
The local man has warned road users to “be alert” on dangerous roads that have no signs or markings to prohibit over-taking, with
particular concerns over the main road between Maguiresbridge and Lisnaskea.
He said, “That stretch of road is a total disgrace. There is no doubt that there should be a solid white line appearing throughout, but
because there is not, people are simply enticed and encouraged to pass when it is not safe to do so.
“No overtaking signs and markings are often located on bends, dips in the road or where there are hills – yet we can’t even get the basics
here in Fermanagh?
“This total disregard for rural roads is so dangerous and yet again we must wait until somebody is injured before anything is done,” he
pointed out.
With failures to maintain safe and effective road markings throughout the county, it has been suggested that the upkeep of Fermanagh roads has been “forgotten about” with regards to infrastructure.
“Roads are more dangerous here for young drivers than in other parts of the North. Up until lately, Enniskillen was a disaster for road
markings. This was just not acceptable for the top town in the county,” he explained.
Adding that, “As a driving instructor I’ve had first hand experience of seeing how young people react to the roads, they are taught one
thing in their theory textbook yet the roads they drive on are a total contradiction of what they’ve learned.
“Your first accident could be your last and you don’t want to see someone in a graveyard 70 years before their time because safety
measures were out of their control.
“Potholes, give-way signs that should be a stop sign, and signs with false information leading up to roundabouts are just some of the
things that young drivers have to deal with daily and it’s unfair. Something must be done.”
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