Cllr. Cormac Devlin - Councillor For Dún Laoghaire

BOLLARDS IN

DEANSGRANGE CEMETERY CAUSING

DIFFICULTIES - DEVLIN

March 2006

Local Fianna Fáil Councillor, Cormac Devlin requested information about the bollards in Deansgrange Cemetery. Cllr. Devlin has been contacted by a number of local residents who have had difficulty accessing their family/friend's graveside. Cllr. Devlin tabled the following motion:

Motion:Councillor Cormac Devlin

That the Manager explain:

(a)

the new bollard system that is in operation in Deansgrange Cemetery and for what purpose were they installed;

(b)

on what occasions are these removed;

(c)

if not Sundays then I would strongly recommend that they are removed on this day because this day in particular a lot of people visit gravesides and many visitors with mobility difficulties need to get access as close as possible to the graveside without obstruction from bollards.

Report:

The bollards referred to were installed in late 2004 in Deansgrange Cemetery to protect both pedestrians and graves from injury/damage by private cars. The footpath/road layout of this cemetery was designed and constructed in an era when vehicular traffic was not an issue. It is a major issue now and the orderly and safe management of the cemetery grounds required that measures be taken to prevent vehicles accessing what are, in many cases, footpaths, and narrow roads which do not meet the required standard in terms of dimensions.

There have been many instances of graves being damaged by cars whose owners fail to report same and it is virtually impossible to trace these offenders. Grave owners are naturally upset at such behaviour. Pedestrian visitors have welcomed the fact that they no longer have to jump up on to grave kerbing to avoid being hit by cars driving on pathways.

Parking is available on the main roadway in the cemetery and it is proposed to designate parking spaces specifically for disabled drivers in the near future.

For persons with a physical difficulty in visiting a particular grave located within an area that is now pedestrianised. arrangements are made to remove specific bollards on request. This can only be done on working days when staff are available to remove and replace particular bollards. It is not feasible to facilitate this procedure on Sundays. We have advised persons with a mobility disability who are seeking vehicular access in pedestrianised areas that it would be helpful to contact the Deansgrange office beforehand (01-2893416) with details of the grave reference they wish to access and the appropriate ground staff will then be alerted.

Otherwise the gateman or foreman on duty will respond to reasonable requests for access for persons with mobility problems, as soon as practicable.