Laois County Council are to consider paying farmers to use their tractors to spread salt on local roads, as requested by Cllr Brendan Phelan, according to the Leinster Express.
“There are farmers prepared to do it very reasonably, to go out in the early morning for an hour and be paid,” he said at a meeting of Borris-in-Ossory Mountmellick district recently.
According to the paper, a recent accident left a number of cars off the road at a motorway flyover and farmers may be employed to help salt the roads this winter.
“There have been many accidents in Lisduff. a woman was killed when she skidded and drowned in the dyke. It is deadly, the bridge is exposed,” Brendan Phelan said.
Director of Services Anna Marie Delaney said she would forward his suggestion.
“We will see if it is feasible to use private people, but there could be insurance issues,” she said.
Cllr John King from Rathdowney said ice was a ‘major problem’ on roads from Rathdowney to Borris-in-Ossory and Errill.
“They are not salted at all, and there is a playschool in Lisduff. Portlaoise is fully salted from one end of the town to the other. It is shameful Rathdowney is forgotten,” he said.
According to the paper, the Council has enough salt to cover 19 nights of frost.