Sir, - I travel each morning from Rathmines to the Naas Road via Terenure, Cromwellsfort Road and the Walkinstown Roundabout, a journey that used to take 20 minutes or so.
For the past few weeks one would be lucky to do it in twice that time. In particular one now finds a jam from the traffic lights at the Submarine Bar tailing back to the KCR junction and back to Terenure.
Why? I asked myself. What has changed? It must be something to do with the lights at the Submarine because on examination there is no congestion beyond them to Walkinstown.
Who will I ring? The Dublin Transportation Initiative, obviously! So, using my handsfree mobile phone via directory enquiries, I contact them.
An extremely helpful and sympathetic young lady listens to my tale, but when I ask if I will get any feedback on whether my analysis of the problem is correct she transfers me to a gentleman who tells me that traffic lights are not their concern. They deal with overall planning for the future.
OK, sez I, who do I speak to, then? He gives me Dublin Corporation's main number. Rapidly I am connected to a gentleman who listens to my tale and then says: they're not our lights, they're South Dublin's.
It is now 11.30. I have left two messages with South Dublin County Council, the first at 9.10 a.m. but the relevant party has not been in yet.
Who would I contact if, for example, I noticed a malfunctioning light which could put two traffic streams headlong into each other?
My guess would be that at any time in this city 25 per cent of all traffic lights are doing something odd, something that further screws up the traffic flow. If that doesn't need co-ordinating I don't know what does.
So who do we report it to? - Yours, etc.,
Belgrave Square East, Dublin 6.