Protesters block traffic in Slane over bypass delay

Up to 100 people last Thursday blocked traffic in Slane village in a protest against delays in providing a bypass of the village. The group stopped traffic for a total of 15 minutes at around 9.30am on Thursday, causing huge backlogs of traffic which took another half hour to clear away. According to those taking part, it was an impromptu protest organised by mothers from the area. 'Initially, we had just intended protesting on the roadside with placards but some of those involved felt so strongly they decided to block the traffic,' said a spokesperson for the group. Among those who participated were people caught up in the recent nine-vehicle pile-up in the centre of the village and representatives of all walks of life in the village. One of those who lent his support was Lord Henry Mountcharles of Slane Castle. The chairman of Slane Forum, Ciaran Baxter, said he understood why those involved had been moved to take such action and said people were frustrated with the heavy traffic passing through the village. Meanwhile, the Forum, the Slane Bridge Action Committee and a number of people involved in the most recent crash have been invited to put their concerns to the Oireachtas Committee for Transport and there was a huge turn out at a public meeting in the village on Monday of last week, which had been held to intensify the campaign for the bypass of Slane. Also last week, councillors took the first steps towards banning heavy goods vehicles from travelling on the N2 through the village. While the bypass is seen as the long-term solution to the problem, councillors and local residents want to see heavy trucks banned from the route through Slane.