Parnell Street

Councillors reject Parnell Street Parking Proposal

Councillors in the Templemore-Thurles District today rejected a motion to remove parking from Parnell Street in Thurles.

In what has been described by some as a decision against Thurles, councillors rejected the motion 6 votes to 2. The motion was aimed at removing parking from Parnell Street on a 3 month trial period. This would not have effected the 4 parking spaces outside Stakelum’s Office Supplies.

The 8 councillors in attendance today, Sean Ryan, Jim Ryan, Michéal Lowry, David Doran, Seamus Hanifin, Eddie Moran, Joe Bourke and Michael Smith, debated the merits of the motion. It was argued by many that the decision to remove parking from Parnell Street would have a detrimental impact on business on the street however this was rejected by both Councillors Jim Ryan and David Doran.

Having proposed the motion, Jim Ryan and David Doran were both disappointed with the outcome. Doran stated “This has been a decision against the town of Thurles. The focus was on a handful of businesses when the entire town of Thurles will be effected by this decision”.

Speaking to Tipperary Times, Councillor Jim Ryan stated that “This decision will have a detrimental impact on people who live in Thurles and people who are trying to get into the town to do business. The simple fact of the matter is Parnell street is a bottle neck. We were proposing a 3 month trail today, if it didn’t work we would have reverted to the current system. There was no harm in trying a new solution to help the town”.

Also speaking to us earlier, Councillor David Doran stated “Over 5,000 people signed a petition to remove parking form Parnell Street. Their voices have been ignored by the 6 councillors who rejected today’s proposal. The trial was only for 3 months, if it didn’t work we’d gladly raise our hands, but at least we would have tried”.

Councillor Ryan concluded by stating “Today, we had the roads engineer present at the meeting. He did not object to the proposal and stated that should there be a positive outcome from today’s meeting, he would have brought the solution for further consultation”.

Both Councillors were very critical of their counterparts for rejecting what was in effect a feasibility study for the future of the street. The street has had parking restricted in recent times by the Gardai for the national ploughing championships. The flow of traffic dramatically improved as a result.

Thurles is a town which has been in decline for some time, and proactive solutions to improve the status of the town are needed. It is somewhat unfortunate that such proposals are rejected without public consultation.


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