Ashgrove estate sets up its own speed limit

Residents of the Ashgrove estate on the outskirts of Cavan Town have taken matters into their own hands by attempting to impose a 20kph limit around their homes to protect young children from speeding motorists.
Chairman of the residents’ association Declan Kelly says that safety concerns for pedestrian children were brought to the forefront of some residents’ minds with the 2014 death of Jake Brennan on an estate in Kilkenny.
After Jake’s inquest, his distraught parents held vigils at government buildings to secure what is known as Jake’s Law - putting a top speed on all estates at 20kph but it has yet to be formally enacted.
The council has not received any department direction nor funding even though the law was passed unopposed in February 2014. Transport Minister Paschal Donohoe has instructed local authorities to examine and report on the implementation of the measure and for the Attorney General to liaise with the deputy sponsoring the bill Dessie Ellis (SF) on how best to progress the new law.
The Ashgrove residents thought it better not to wait and spent their own money on the signs to encourage motorists to slow down.
“Residents had concerns about people driving very fast and thought that to start with we could put up a notice on speed limits, which are currently at 30kph, obviously, after we got to find out about the Jake Brennan case whose family were looking for 20kph, we decided on 20kph signs at the entrance, and on the cul-de-sace estate.
Declan is writing a notice to the residents with the details of what is termed their new 'urban slow zone’.
Of the 16 homes in Ashbrook, Declan estimates that at least five families have younger children who play on the road.
In his letter to residents, Declan says that the committee will be “actively addressing bad or dangerous driving” by reporting breaches of the limit to the relevant authorities but the residents, he adds, are not there to “take the law into our own hands”.

Near miss
“It’s a very small estate, it’s not a lot to ask and you are coming out to a very dangerous junction so your speed should be restricted coming in, as well as going out.
“For example, only last week, I had a child coming down the hill on a stakeboard in a horizontal position and, only for I was driving slowly, he was coming right underneath my vehicle.
“If I had taken that corner in the way I might have in the past I might not, nor would he, have time to stop, god forbid.
“We have a responsibility to be pro-active to take all the precautions that we can and be cognisant so that nobody here has to face that terrible tragedy that the family in Kilkenny had to go through,” he says.