Road safety improvements put in place in Aghalee

The scheme’s focus is on improving the overall safety and accessibility of the village and enhancing it aesthetically across the main arterial routes through the village. The installation of the traffic calming measures sees the completion of a series of village improvements that have been delivered in Aghalee since 2018.

The work was commissioned by Lisburn & Castlereagh City Council (LCCC) as part of its Covid Recovery Small Settlements Programme, which aims to address the regeneration needs of small towns and villages through a combination of capital projects and business support. The programme is funded by the Department for Communities (DfC), the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA), and the Department for Infrastructure (DfI).

Communities Minister Gordon Lyons said: “The Covid Recovery Small Settlements Regeneration Programme is an excellent example of how DfC, DAERA and DfI have collaborated with our partners in local councils to support rural settlements as they recover from the impact of the pandemic. Through this project, the Department for Communities is supporting Aghalee to become an even more attractive place to live, work and invest.”

Councillor John Laverty BEM, Chair of LCCC’s Regeneration and Growth Committee said, “Local residents have long raised concerns about cars speeding through the village. These new traffic-calming measures will prompt motorists to check their speed as well as making walking a safer, more pleasant, experience for pedestrians.”

The council has worked closely with Aghalee residents to identify how the small settlements programme might best support the community in achieving its own ambition of making the village pedestrian friendly. Matt Hull, Acting Chairman of Aghalee Village Hall Management Committee said: “We are delighted that these works will bring us closer to our goal of making Aghalee a safe village where more residents will feel encouraged to walk to the shops, surgery, village hall or park - safe in the knowledge that they will be able to do so without running the gauntlet of speeding traffic.”