Irish Water respond to road blockage between Meenaleck and Ranafast

Irish Water have responded to a road between Meenaleck and Ranafast being block today by a local Councillor in protest against the utility.
Cllr Michael Cholm Mac Giolla Easbuig says he has taken such action to prevent the utility carry out works on the road as he claims it has emerged that the road will not be reinstated in the way the community wants.
He’s calling for assurances from Irish Water that the road will be finished in an agreeable state.
In response, Irish Water have confirmed that the road which they say was not in good condition before works commenced that it will be reinstated to an appropriate standard.
The utility says Donegal County Council are the roads authority and that reinstatement works will be carried out to a standard agreed by them.
They have also warned that any disruption to the replacement works could potentially delay the completion of the project.
Irish Water Statement in full:
Irish Water, working in partnership with Donegal County Council, is replacing approximately 40km of ageing water mains across 13 priority sections in Co Donegal as part of the €12m investment in the Donegal county wide project. Replacing these ageing water mains and service connections will reduce the instances of bursts and water outages and help ensure a reliable supply of water to customers and local businesses throughout the county. It will also lead to improved water quality by removing old cast iron pipes from the network and replacing them with modern plastic pipes which will reduce the risk of contamination.
The Meenaleack – Ranafast area is one of the 13 areas where 3km of old watermain with a frequent burst history is being replaced. The works in this area are progressing well with approximately 100m of pipelaying to be finished.
These works will bring many benefits to local residents who had to endure a lot of bursts and outages over the years including a safer and more secure water supply. This is a very important network upgrade and will end the repeated repairs and associated ongoing disruption for both impacts on traffic and on water supply to the local area.
Irish Water can confirm that the road, which was not in good condition before the works started, will be reinstated to an appropriate standard. Donegal County Council are the roads authority and ultimately all reinstatement works will be carried out to a standard in consultation and agreement with them. The timing and responsibility for completing all reinstatement works will be agreed between Irish Water, Donegal County Council and the contractor.
Any disruption to the works could potentially delay the completion of this much needed project which the local residents ultimately benefit from. Furthermore, disruption of works raises the likelihood that the works will not be completed within the road closure period, resulting in an extension of the road closure which will further impact on residents.
Irish Water would like to thank the locals for their patience and co-operation so far and look forward to completion the remaining section of the works.