In respect of the proposed addition Ref. B44-G, I object to the addition of this wall mounted post box to the Record of Protected Structures.
The addition of this post box is inconsisent with other sections of the draft Wicklow County Development Plan 2021-2027 and cannot be protected should those plans proceed as identified. In particular, you are referred to Chapter 12 and the associated Appendix 9 of the draft County Development Plan. Both sections of the Plan, which should be read in conjunction with the Bray and Environs Transport Study (April 2019), set out the following planned transportation interventions on the Upper Dargle Road:
- Delivery of the Upper Dargle Road public transport priority measures schemes and the River Dargle Cycle Scheme;
- N11/M11 Junction 4 to 14 Improvement Scheme [the post box is located within the boundary of the Preferred Route Corridor].
Further to the above, the Upper Dargle Road which is described as a 'rural road' in previous Wicklow County County Infrastructure Reports, was not designed to carry the current traffic [including HGV & Buses] volumes/speeds. The post box, located at a bus stop, is as result already subject to significant vibrations as a result of speeding HGVs and buses. Despite representations from residents in the area, Wicklow County Council (Bray) have by all accounts rejected motions to implement traffic calming measures which would serve to limit the ongoing damage being caused to the wall mounted post box.
This position in respect of traffic calming measures when combined with the delivery of the schemes referenced above , in particular the associated construction activities and subsequent significant increase in the bus frequency (from hourly to every 5 minutes) will stress and undermine the condition of the wall mounted post box. It will not be feasible to protect the post box from these planned interventions. The damage caused to the protected structure will be a direct result of activities initiated by Wicklow County Council and as such it seems counter-intuitive that the council intends to add the post box to the Record of Protected Structures.