Households without phone or broadband for a month
By Aideen O'Flaherty
SEVERAL households on Mount Venus Road in Rathfarnham have been without phone and broadband services for over a month, with Eir claiming that repair work has not yet been carried out as there has been a delay in securing a licence from South Dublin County Council.
It is believed that a high-level vehicle was using the road last May and accidentally cut the phone lines, severing the telecommunications connections of several Mount Venus Road residents.
Residents are frustrated with a lack of broadband service
Mount Venus Road has recently seen an increase in traffic, as motorists have been detoured to the area away from Edmondstown Road, which has been closed since last November after alleged illegal excavation work took place and destabilised the road.
Local resident Anne Flood told The Echo: “It’s pretty chaotic. There are coaches and trucks that wouldn’t normally be on Mount Venus Road that now use the road [as a result of the Edmondstown Road closure].”
Ms Flood added that her neighbours have been left “utterly frustrated” by the loss of their phone and broadband services, saying that it particularly affects business owners in the area as now “they have effectively no contact with the outside world”.
Five households on Mount Venus Road have been affected by the damaged phone lines, however, Eir’s attempt to carry out a temporary repair was unsuccessful as they were hindered by the volume of traffic on the road.
Narrow and dangerous
A spokesperson from Eir told The Echo: “[Mount Venus Road] is narrow and dangerous as the council have closed off another nearby road for roadworks and diverted traffic down this road.
“We have tried to do a temporary repair but this was not possible due to the volume of traffic.
“Completing the repairs on Mount Venus Road is dependent upon the grant of a licence from the local council, which is causing the delays.”
South Dublin County Council previously approved a telecommunications repair licence for Eir to carry out works on the road, and in June they granted permission for the provision of a new telecommunications pole on the road.
However, as of Wednesday morning, July 11, Eir were awaiting the result of an application that they submitted to the council for a licence for temporary traffic lights, which they will need to have in place in order to carry out the repairs.
The Eir spokesperson added: “I can understand the frustration that these customers must feel and it is unfortunate that Eir is prevented from restoring service in a timely fashion, but we are doing everything we can to restore service.
“The repairs will take a day with disruption to traffic but not a complete road closure as the crew should be able to maintain one-way traffic.”
A spokesperson for the council told The Echo on Wednesday afternoon, July 11, that approval for “a stop/go system of traffic management” to carry out repairs on the phone lines on Mount Venus Road had been granted to Eir.
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