Road Safety in Carrignavar

HSE

The Health Service Executive provides funding to promote its strategies around physical, mental and sexual health amongst the youth population. The HSE recognise that youth participation in social innovation promotes positive wellbeing in young people. The HSE provides the Making Our World Healthier (Physical Wellbeing and Mental Health) Awards as well as the Relationships and Sexual Health Award.

HSE Healthy Ireland

The Health Service Executive provides funding to promote its strategies around physical, mental and sexual health amongst the youth population. The HSE recognise that youth participation in social innovation promotes positive wellbeing in young people. The HSE provides the Making Our World Healthier (Physical Wellbeing and Mental Health) Awards as well as the Relationships and Sexual Health Award.

Road Safety in Carrignavar

Coláiste An Chroí Naofa, Carraig na bhFear, Co. Chorcaí.

The Social Issue:

Concerned about road safety in their local community and the huge potential for tragedy, the team behind this project wanted to improve road conditions and make them safer to reduce the risk of accidents and increase peace of mind for motorists and pedestrians in the area, particularly for school-going children and teenagers.

There is currently only “one uncontrolled crossing” in the village said the students, who added “This is an issue because it can be quite dangerous to cross the roads considering the amount of road traffic in the area, many of us have nearly been run over during these peak hours of traffic”.
 

The Idea:

The team identified that a pedestrian crossing connecting both the primary and secondary schools to local housing estates would make the journey to and from school safer for many young people in their locality.

The project’s plans would further UN Sustainable Development Goal 9: Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialisation and foster innovation.

Working with Cork Road Design Office road engineer Aiden Lynch, and Cork County Council area engineer Gerard O’Hora, the students were able to choose a suitable location and design the crossing. They also connected with their local political representative Colm Burke TD.

The team’s plans were brought to the attention of the local authority forming part of a proposal that was presented to Cork County Council who subsequently allocated €40,000 towards realising the implementation of the crossing.

We have empowered people by showing people that anyone can make a difference if they try hard enough

The Impact:

After recognising a local problem that needed to be solved, in this case a lack of road safety measures in the village, the team worked with engineers to bring the issue to the attention of local authorities and provide a solution. The implementation of the pedestrian crossing will improve the safety of local people, including schoolchildren who will now have a safe way to cross the road before and after school.

Not only did the team win the 2021 YSI Make Our World Safer Challenge Award, but with support from Cork County Council, work on the new pedestrian crossing is expected to begin in late 2021.