A Wexford councillor has expressed disbelief at his colleagues' apparent 'U-turn' on the use of roundabouts in the county.

Lorcan Allen called on fellow council members to explain why ten years ago roundabouts were deemed inappropriate for the area, and now it seems they are installed 'everywhere'.

Citing two local examples - Main Street in Ferns and O'Hanrahan Bridge in New Ross - Mr Allen said: "Are roundabouts getting smaller or roads bigger? Or has someone changed their mind?"

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Fielding his questions at the Director of Road Services Adrian Doyle, Mr Allen asked why a roundabout on Gorey's Main Street was refused due to the camber of the road.

"How come roundabouts are now acceptable and fitting in where we were told they wouldn't? And explain to me why we were told for 20 years they couldn't be put in places where they now are?" he asked.

Mr Doyle said the roundabout issue was "subjective", adding that there was a lot less traffic 20 years ago.

"The cheapest roundabout costs about €1m, so you don't just take them off the shelf," added Mr Doyle.

Councillor Larry O'Brien said he just couldn't fathom how a simple roundabout could cost so much money.

"How can it cost one million to put something on the road and brick it?" he asked.

Mr Doyle said you must factor in the cost of land, drainage work, safety measures and re-surfacing work into the total price.

(PR/JM)