Two Dublin 12 Labour Councillors in neighbouring
local authorities have joined together to call for an upgrade to a local Post
Office service on the border of the City and County Council. South Dublin
County Councillor Dermot Looney has joined with his Dublin City Council
colleague Michael O’Sullivan to campaign for an upgrade to postal services in
Walkinstown.
The Walkinstown Post Office is located in a small,
old building on Bunting Road
which the two Councillors have said is “not fit for purpose.” O’Sullivan and
Looney have called on An Post to upgrade the services in the interests of
safety, security and service for residents living nearby in the Walkinstown and
Greenhills areas.
“The Post Office was located in this building
decades ago with the assumption that this would be a temporary measure,” said
Cllr Michael O’Sullivan. “But despite the huge changes in the postal service
over all those years, little has changed for local residents.”
“The current premises is unsuitable for a modern
post office service. There are serious safety and security concerns for staff
and customers which came to light in recent robberies. Furthermore, the premises
is too small to accommodate the large numbers who use the Post Office,”
concluded O’Sullivan.
His South Dublin
colleague Cllr Dermot Looney stated; “Since the closure of the Greenhills Post
Office with the fire at the old McHugh’s site in 2003, thousands of residents
in the Greenhills area have had to use the Bunting Rd office for their postal
service. This has led to yet further pressure on the staff and the premises
itself. It is particularly depressing to see large queues out the door at busy
times, in all weathers – particularly when so many elderly and vulnerable
people need to use the Post Office.”
“I have called on An Post to reinstate the postal
service in Greenhills but, in the meantime, an upgrade to the Bunting Rd
facility, or a move to an appropriate and nearby facility is required,” noted
Looney. “If there is to be a move, it must be accessible by bus from Greenhills
and other nearby estates. The rumoured move to the Superquinn on Walkinstown Road
would be inaccessible for many elderly residents in Greenhills. I have
communicated this to the CEO of An Post and Minister Pat Rabbitte and hope this
is taken on board if a new site is being sourced.”
Both Cllrs have been told by An Post that they are
aware of the problems being experienced at the Bunting Rd facility and that the company
is actively seeking an upgrade. Both Cllrs have submitted motions to their
local area committees at Council level and will be continuing the campaign in
the time ahead.
