A chara, - So the chainsaws have finally moved in to the Glen of the Downs. I suppose this was inevitable from the start, given the blinkered, "economic growth at any cost" philosophy which seems to underlie all Government decisions.
One aspect of the destruction is becoming increasingly annoying. This is the repeated claim by Wicklow County Council that the reason for the road expansion is to save lives. The reality is that if the road succeeds in the stated intention of increasing the speed of cars passing through the Glen of the Downs, it is likely to increase the number of road accidents and deaths. Monotonously, Garda statistics indicate that excessive speed is the principal cause of accidents and deaths on our roads. - Yours, etc.,
John O'Neill, Roebuck Castle, Clonskeagh, Dublin 14.