A Ballincollig mother-of-two who has launched a campaign for speed ramps in her estate has asked “how many more children have to get injured or die?” before the issue is addressed.
As the family of Jake Brennan, who died last month after being hit by a car outside of his home in Kilkenny city, launched a high-profile campaign for speed ramps in every estate across the country, Oak Avenue resident Linda Atkinson has called for similar safety measures to be taken locally: “That poor family, I can’t imagine how they are going to cope,” said Ms Atkinson. “How many more children like Jake have to get injured or die for the government to protect our children?”
Ms Atkinson added that she has been “sickened” by the media coverage and money spent to resolve the Garth Brooks saga: “They should be making Ireland safe for all our kids, just a simple thing to be able to play safely outside their own front door,” she said. Along with seeking mandatory speed ramps in the construction of new housing estates, and ramps placed in existing estates which don’t already have them, The Jake’s Legacy campaign is also calling for new laws to reduce the speed limit in housing estates to 20km. His family has said they are determined that Jake’s “name and spirit will live on”.
Ms Atkinson has already raised the need for speed ramps to Cork County Council for those living in and around Oak Avenue and The Cedars in Classes Lake due to the excessive speed of some cars along the road adjacent to a large green area. A spokesperson for the council has confirmed that estates are assessed under several headings, including road width, speed of traffic, and views of residents.
Ms Atkinson stated: “It can’t cost that much for some tar to be placed in the housing estates. We the residents pay for the upkeep of the estate saving the county council thousands every year. We all need the speed ramps.”
