Madam, - Every autumn fallen leaves end up in road gullies, where they lie for weeks, along with storm-snapped branches and twigs, before the various greater Dublin local authorities get around to sweeping the leaves up. In the meantime the leaves become entrapped in the grid of the gullies and when it rains the roads are then subject to ponding and flooding.
This phenomenon hardly disturbs drivers, who remain well insulated from its effects, but pedestrians and cyclists suffer badly from the soaking and drenching caused by vehicles being driven through flooded areas at speed. The leaf slime at the edge of the road also presents a skid hazard to cyclists.
Now that the good weather has come to an end, please could we have an effective and consistent local authority response to blocked gullies and leaf slime all along the inside edges of our roads? - Yours, etc,
MIKE McKILLEN, Dublin Cycling Campaign, Seaview Terrace, Dublin 4.