Mother whose son died on A1 hands over petition calling for road safety upgrade

​A mother whose son died in a collision on the A1 has called for funding to be made available for safety upgrades on the road.
By Jonathan McCambridge, PA
Published 17th Jan 2024, 10:15 BST
Updated 17th Jan 2024, 10:32 BST
Monica Heaney (third from left), whose son, Karl Heaney, died in a collision on the A1 in 2018, with Alliance Party representatives David Honeyford MLA (right), the party's Infrastructure spokesperson, and Lisburn and Castlereagh Councillor Gretta Thompson (left), and Banbridge Councillor Joy Ferguson, present a petition for safety upgrades to the road to Department for Infrastructure Permanent (DfI) Secretary Dr. Denis McMahon (second from right) at the DfI Headquarters on Adelaide Street in BelfastMonica Heaney (third from left), whose son, Karl Heaney, died in a collision on the A1 in 2018, with Alliance Party representatives David Honeyford MLA (right), the party's Infrastructure spokesperson, and Lisburn and Castlereagh Councillor Gretta Thompson (left), and Banbridge Councillor Joy Ferguson, present a petition for safety upgrades to the road to Department for Infrastructure Permanent (DfI) Secretary Dr. Denis McMahon (second from right) at the DfI Headquarters on Adelaide Street in Belfast
Monica Heaney (third from left), whose son, Karl Heaney, died in a collision on the A1 in 2018, with Alliance Party representatives David Honeyford MLA (right), the party's Infrastructure spokesperson, and Lisburn and Castlereagh Councillor Gretta Thompson (left), and Banbridge Councillor Joy Ferguson, present a petition for safety upgrades to the road to Department for Infrastructure Permanent (DfI) Secretary Dr. Denis McMahon (second from right) at the DfI Headquarters on Adelaide Street in Belfast

Monica Heaney presented a petition containing 12,700 signatures at the Department for Infrastructure headquarters in Belfast yesterday.

Safety concerns about the A1, which carries around 40,000 vehicles a day and is on the route from Belfast to Dublin, have been expressed by campaigners for years.

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Karl Heaney, 27, from Co Down, was driving from Newry towards Belfast when he encountered two cars driving on the wrong side of the road near Banbridge in 2018.

He managed to avoid the first car, but was struck by the second and was killed.

His mother said she did not want other families to be left in the same situation as her.

She said: "I lost my son on the A1 and I am presenting this petition to ask the DfI (Department for Infrastructure) to go ahead with the upgrade of this road.

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"We have pushed it from 2018, now we just need the funding in place for construction to happen.

"With no executive, the funding is not there. I am presenting the petition to the permanent secretary to try and push it to construction, to get the money, the funding available."

She added: "The junction where my son was killed, if the upgrade had gone ahead, he would be alive today.

"If the work was done, I could probably sleep easier at night.

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"It would give me more peace of mind that nobody else is going through what we are going through."

Ms Heaney was supported by Alliance Party MLA David Honeyford.

He said: "The A1, which connects Belfast to Dublin, is incredibly busy, carrying roughly about 40,000 vehicles a day.

"It has seen 41 fatalities in 17 years. Driving on the road is often hazardous, partly due to short slip roads and vehicles having to turn right across the dual carriageway.

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"Changes to correct the road layout were first announced in 2011, but shamefully, families who have lost loved ones on the road are still waiting for work to be carried out."

A Department for Infrastructure spokesperson said: “The delivery of the A1 Junctions Phase 2 scheme is essential to improve and modernise road safety on this very busy route.

“The department is very aware of the history of collisions along the existing road with too many lives lost, and our sincere condolences go out to all those families who have lost a loved one.

“We also sympathise with those who have been injured in all road traffic collisions.

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“Phase 2 is identified within the department’s prioritised road projects list as a scheme which will continue to progress towards the next key decision on procurement, which will be informed by the department’s emerging transport plans and the business case approval.

“The project aims to provide further safety improvements along the A1 dual carriageway between Hillsborough and Loughbrickland with these improvements including the provision of four new grade separated junctions, the closing up of all gaps in the central reservation and the provision of a continuous central reserve safety barrier along the whole 25km route, along with other safety improvements.”

Related topics:BelfastDepartment for Infrastructure