Latest news with #LizKimmins
BBC News
13-07-2025
- Automotive
- BBC News
Seapark beach: Double yellow lines to be installed at parking spot
Double yellow lines are set to be installed at a popular beachfront hotspot in an effort to stop drivers from abandoning their cars in residential beach in Holywood, County Down, attracts beachgoers hoping to enjoy the warmer weather – but local residents have complained of traffic is a car park but it can overflow during the busier days with drivers parking along the narrow Seapark Road, Seapark Lane and Seapark a letter from Infrastructure Minister Liz Kimmins, it was outlined the double yellow lines would be painted in "the coming weeks subject to available resources". "As a result of this, these double yellow lines should help reduce parking allowing for better traffic progression entering and leaving the A2 resulting in reduced queuing onto the A2," she said in her letter to North Down assembly and Environment Minister Andrew added that Department for Infrastructure officials would monitor the situation after the lines are installed to "determine whether further restrictions are appropriate". 'Main road is quite tight' As Northern Ireland basks in glorious sunshine, there was a mixed reaction to the news of the incoming double yellow lines from those enjoying the weather at Seapark Grimley, from west Belfast, was on her first visit to the beach and said she was lucky getting parked in the car park as another vehicle had pulled out of a space."I could see the main road though was covered in cars and it is quite tight," she also expressed sympathy for residents over the parking situation, saying: "I know if I was living there, it would be a pain." John Compston was enjoying the sunny weather with his granddaughter Atlanta said he could understand locals being "fed up" with the situation."But you would think there would be another way of putting more car parking spaces in somewhere along the way," he asked about their parking experience, Atlanta said: "It's kind of the same as it is at Helen's Bay... at the end of the day, you pay road tax and it's people coming to enjoy the beach."Double yellows are only really necessary if you're offloading." 'Significant measures needed' Alliance councillor Gillian McCollum welcomed the upcoming installation of the double yellow lines but believes "significant infrastructure measures" are needed within Seapark to accommodate the main concern was emergency vehicle access on extremely busy days."It creates a gridlock situation when the road is reduced to a single lane and cars then become backed up right up on to the A2 and that creates a situation where emergency vehicles would have no hope of accessing the area," she added that she would like to see more beachgoers using public transport."We would like people to be mindful that this is a highly residential area and these residents have been literally plagued with this problem for several years and we would like people to be considerate," she said. 'Not a silver bullet' Councillor Alan Graham, from the Democratic Unionist Party, said he understood the frustrations of those opposing the double yellow lines."I can imagine a mother and father with children and the hustle and bustle of getting them out of the car, getting the packs on them and not being able to get parked - it's very frustrating," he added that the double yellow lines were not a silver bullet to the traffic bedlam."There's a tension between increasing car parking space and taking up green grass," he said. "I believe there is a balance."I would be reasonably sympathetic to extending the car park to accommodate more people."
Belfast Telegraph
11-07-2025
- Business
- Belfast Telegraph
Strike action threat could derail golf fans heading to The Open in Portrush
Around 280,000 spectators are expected at the North Coast venue over the tournament and practice days, which will be the biggest sporting event ever to be held in the country. The Transport Salaried Staffs' Association (TSSA) has said strike action is planned for Friday and Saturday, July 18-19, for some of its members, which could halt Translink's rail service to the town. Strike action is part of an ongoing pay dispute with Translink. An offer to settle, received on Wednesday from Translink, was rejected by members, with services across Northern Ireland set to be affected. Members who work in supervisor grades (including railway controllers), as well as clerical, management, professional and technical grades (MPT), overwhelmingly voted for both strike action and action short of a strike. Within supervisor grades at NI Railways, over 90% voted in favour of strike action, with similar results in other areas, including Ulsterbus and management grades at NI Railways, with over 80% support. 'We are keen to meet Translink to resolve the ongoing disputes for all our members,' said TSSA general secretary Maryam Eslamdoust. 'However, so far, the company has only made an inadequate offer to the supervisor grades and completely ignored our clerical and MPT members. This is not the way to resolve a pay dispute. 'I met the Infrastructure Minister, Liz Kimmins, last week to impress the urgency of this issue. 'Regrettably, it seems that both Translink and the minister are sitting on their hands and hoping that these disputes will go away. That's simply not going to happen. 'Ultimately the responsibility for any disruption during The Open rests with Translink and the minister. 'All we are asking for is the same deal that has been offered to other staff in Translink. The company is trying to fob us off with less, but TSSA members have shown, with their overwhelming support in the ballot for strike action, that they are not prepared to accept that. 'TSSA urges Translink to return to the table immediately with a fair and meaningful offer for all our members. Otherwise, we'll see them on the picket line.' If the industrial action goes ahead, it would involve widespread disruption to rail services, not just in Portrush. Who is Rory McIlroy and what is golf's Career Grand Slam? Translink has planned special buses and trains to Portrush, while maintaining approximately 13,000 services a day across the network. The first official practice day at The Open is Sunday, with the four-day championship teeing-off on Thursday. About 300 Translink workers are in the union, which issued a warning last month that events such as The Open could be impacted if members take industrial action due to no settlement having been agreed. A Translink spokesperson said: 'We continue to engage with our trade union TSSA to reach an agreement that will not impact passenger services.' 'The union and Translink are still in negotiations in the hope a resolution can still be found ahead of next week's tournament. 'Thousands of golf fans are expected to travel from the Republic of Ireland, with the more frequent train service to and from Dublin making transportation to and from the venue easier.'
BBC News
07-07-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Derry homes benefit from extra waste water funding
More than 3,000 new homes in Londonderry are to be among the first to benefit from extra government funding to improve Northern Ireland's waste water comes after £11m was allocated to the Department for Infrastructure in the June monitoring round – Stormont's system of reviewing budgets and reallocating Minister Liz Kimmins said the extra money would help "release capacity" within the June a report found there was a "huge problem" with the level of water infrastructure in Northern Ireland. Speaking in Derry on Monday, Kimmins said she was "determined to do all that I can to unlock wastewater capacity across the whole of the North"."Working in partnership with NI Water and others, I will continue to take every opportunity we have to ensure wastewater connections are available to support the development of housing and the wider economy," the Sinn Féin politician additional money from the June monitoring round will benefit 1,000 homes in Derry's Waterside, a further 100 in Strabane, 30 in Sion Mills and 2,000 in Derry's includes The Cashel development on land between Whitehouse Road and the Coshquin area of Derry. Patrick McGinnis, from developer The Braidwater Group, said he "warmly welcomed" the minister's announcement."The focus now must be on the next steps and ensuring work can be progressed at pace so that much-needed housing can be delivered without further delay," he said. Northern Ireland is the only part of the UK where households do not pay directly for their NI Water receives a government subsidy which diverts more than £300m annually from the Stormont Executive's persistent underfunding of NI Water has led to a shortfall in wastewater infrastructure, which in turn, is limiting house year NI Water said an outdated and at capacity sewage network was stalling construction of new homes, businesses and public buildings in 23 towns across Northern Ireland.
Belfast Telegraph
07-07-2025
- Business
- Belfast Telegraph
Additional funding to unlock more than 3,000 new homes in Derry
Infrastructure Minister Liz Kimmins said additional funding was just one approach to wastewater services Wastewater connections have been unlocked for more than 3,000 new homes in Derry after the Department for Infrastructure (DfI) secured £11m in funding during the June monitoring round. The fresh funding has released capacity to enable more than 2,000 homes through the H2 project in the city, which will be connected over the next 2-3 years, as well as a further thousand homes in the Waterside area.
Irish Times
05-07-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
Appeal for prevention of more A5 road deaths following court order quashing upgrade
A man whose father was killed in a crash on the A5 in Northern Ireland has warned more people will lose their lives on the road because of a court ruling that has quashed its upgrade. On Monday Mr Justice McAlinden at the Belfast High Court said he was aware his ruling would bring 'fresh anguish' to bereaved families, but the proposed scheme breached elements of the Climate Change Act 2022. 'My appeal is to the minister, infrastructure officials in the department, to get this [upgrade] over the line, get the evidence that the judge has said is required delivered at pace and get moving on this,' Stephen Kelly, whose father, Terry, was killed on the road in 1995, said afterwards. 'Pull everybody together first thing and get working, because in the time it's going to take between now and whenever this project comes forward again, more people are going to lose their lives, and that is completely unacceptable.' READ MORE Mr Kelly, who is chief executive of Manufacturing NI , also said the A5 was a 'critically vital piece of economic infrastructure' for the west, and was needed 'from an economic, a political and a familial point of view'. In a statement following Monday's ruling, the North's minister for infrastructure, Liz Kimmins, said it was a 'disappointing day' and re-emphasised her commitment to the A5 upgrade. She saidshe would 'take time to carefully consider the judgment in full, including any implications for the scheme, and the department's next steps'. The upgrade of the A5, which runs from Derry to the Border at Aughnacloy, Co Tyrone and connects the northwest to Dublin, was first announced in 2007 but has been mired in delays and legal challenges. In that time more than 50 people have lost their lives on the road. The £1.2 billion (€1.4 billion) scheme was approved in October but judicial review proceedings were brought against the Department for Infrastructure by nine applicants including residents, farmers and landowners. The judge acknowledged it was 'likely that delays in the progression of this scheme will coincide with the occurrence of further loss of life and serious injury on the existing road' but he said the decision to proceed 'must be taken in accordance with the law'. Mr Kelly's father Terry, 45, was on his way home to Derry from his construction job in Omagh when he died in a collision 'on that bad corner in Bready', Co Tyrone. 'My father was just a normal working man in the construction industry, he left to go to work early in the morning of 31st August 1995 and he never returned home.' His son was 24. 'I'll never forget,' Mr Kelly said. 'This young police officer had to come to my family home, where I answered the door. 'He was visibly upset and stressed, and I was taken away in the police car to go down to Altnagelvin [Hospital] and identify his body. That's an experience that will always live with you. 'That corner has been slightly improved since then but there's been next to no improvement on that road in the 30 years since he lost his life.' Niall McKenna, chairman of the A5 Enough is Enough campaign group, also warned it was 'inevitable ... that delay will cause deaths'. He said the judge's decision had caused more 'anguish' to bereaved families who could not understand why, 'when there's a scheme there, and the vast majority of people want it, the money's there to build it, why can it not go ahead?' 'What is wrong with our legal system? What is the dysfunctionality of our system, a lot of our systems, that cannot deliver things that are for huge societal benefit?' he said. Additional reporting – PA.
