Crash death Laois junction is 'as dangerous as ever'
The notorious junction at Moneyquid, Killeigh, on the busy N80 route between Portlaoise and Tullamore. File image
A NOTORIOUS Laois junction where a driver was killed is 'as dangerous as ever' 16 years after the tragedy, according to a local councillor.
The fatal accident black spot at Moneyquid, on the busy N80 route between Portlaoise and Tullamore, is still waiting for road safety works despite repeated appeals.
Cllr Seamus McDonald told a council meeting that there was another crash at the site this month and there will be more, unless roadworks are finally carried out.
He told the April meeting of Borris-in-Ossory Mountmellick municipal district: “It’s more than dangerous, as everyone knows. There was another accident there last week. A man lost his life there some years ago but nothing has been done. It needs urgent attention.”
The fatal crash at Moneyquid happened in March 2009, when a man in his 40s died in a two-vehicle collision and another suffered serious injuries.
Cllr McDonald, who is cathaoirleach (chairperson) of the district, asked for an update from Laois County Council regarding the Moneyquid junction near Killeigh at this month’s meeting.
In a written response, the council’s road design section said that staff would meet the Rosenallis councillor on site to assess the junction. The response added: ‘Any proposed works will be subject to a funding application to Transport Infrastructure Ireland (Tll).’
Cllr McDonald made a similar appeal last September, when he asked county council officials to make contact with TII ‘to make the junction safe’. Because it is on a national route, TII is the agency responsible for upgrades.
Cllr McDonald described Moneyquid as “a seriously dangerous area”, where one man sadly lost his life and there were further crashes in recent years.
The Fianna Fáil councillor said: “It is a speedway out there and something will have to be done as quickly as possible.”
Cllr McDonald made similar appeals at council meetings in December 2019 and in June last year, when he said that “rapid action” must be taken at the dangerous junction near the Laois-Offaly border. Each time, he was told that the issue had been raised with TII.
