Galway Bay fm - News

Irish hospitals could be in for a tough winter if something isn’t done to alleviate overcrowding

There are calls for Galway City Council to introduce a maintenance plan for drainage gullies across the city.
Councillor Alan Cheevers says after heavy rainfall, many vital roads in the city network, as well as housing estates, are being flooded because of blocked gullies. 
He says a full maintenance plan needs to be put in place. 

Sinn Féin to host Gaeltacht People’s Assembly in Connemara on Irish Unity

Sinn Féin is to hold a Gaeltacht People’s Assembly on Irish Unity later this month (Nov 27th) in Connemara.
The event on November 27th will be conducted as Gaeilge
It will provide a platform for discussions on Irish Unity and its direct impact on the Connemara Gaeltacht.
This comes as part of Sinn Fein’s ongoing discussion about Irish Unity.
Galway West Sinn Féin TD Mairéad Farrell outlines the importance of getting involved in the Irish Unity dialogue.

Biorbic’s Biobus makes a stop in Galway City

Michael Duffy from Circular Road wins Best Garden in the city for second year running

County Council to sit down with NTA over substandard bus services to Loughrea

World Conference of Screenwriters to be held in Galway next year

Next year's World Conference of Screenwriters will be held in Galway.
Hundreds of screenwriters from around the world are expected to attend the event to discuss the ongoing threats to their livelihoods.
The announcement comes a month after the resolution of a five-month strike by the Writers’ Guild of America, over pay and the impacts of AI.
The venue and exact date of the conference is yet to be decided, but it will take place in early October 2024.
Chair of the Writers' Guild of Ireland, Jennifer Davidson, says there was great interest in holding the conference in Galway:

Criticism over lack of traffic management plans for Macnas Parade

There's a call for clarity on what exact traffic management plans were in place for Sunday's Macnas Parade.
Councillor Alan Curran says there were no official road closures - and so, packed streets remained fully open to heavy traffic until just minutes before the parade arrived.
The iconic parade - with draws tens of thousands of spectators - began at University Road, travelling along Eglinton Street, Shop Street, Dominic Street and Fr. Griffin Road.
Councillor Curran also says cars were also parked illegally all across the city, and questions why more effort wasn't made to organise shuttle services.
He argues local talented artists are putting on world-class spectacle, and everyone should be able to enjoy them safely - and improved plans are needed for any future parades.

Pat McDonagh offers free alternative site for new fire station in Loughrea

Supermac's boss Pat McDonagh is offering a free alternative site for a planned new fire station in Loughrea. 
He argues the current earmarked site at St. Lawrences Field is inappropriate for a wide range of reasons, including crew distance and use of recreational land.  
He's instead proposing that he donate a site in a better location, close to the bypass, to Galway County Council. 
But that seems unlikely to be a feasible option given the current plans are at a very advanced stage after years of planning and design. 
The new station would include a 14m tall training tower - and Mr. McDonagh told Galway Talks the development would seriously impact the Loughrea Hotel, which he owns. 

Anger as TII fails to support demand for pedestrian crossing in Kilcolgan

Frustration and anger is being expressed at attempts to have a pedestrian crossing installed in Kilcolgan being shot down. 
Deputy Ciaran Cannon has told the Dáil of the necessity of a crossing for the village, which is divided by the N67. 
He argued around one thousand people live there, and it's simply not safe for them to be crossing over and back on the road. 
But Deputy Cannon read out a response from Transport Infrastructure Ireland on the matter - that didn't appear to support a crossing. 

University of Galway nominated for prestigious UK award for AI Assistant

The University of Galway has been nominated for a Times Higher Education Award for its AI student support platform.
"Cara"  is a collaboration with Galway based Galvia AI and has answered over 30 thousand student queries.
It assists with questions such as lost student ID cards, and how to book a student counselling appointment.
The AI platform is one of three nominations for the University of Galway for this year's awards in the UK in December
Josephine Walsh, Head of Student Engagement Projects at the University of Galway says that Cara could evolve in the future