Local TD, Denis Naughten, this afternoon questioned Retail Excellence Ireland (REI) on its survey of Roscommon Town which claimed that there was inadequate and expensive car parking in the town when compared to the country as a whole.
The national survey concluded that Roscommon Town needed to improve on car parking availability (four per cent below the national average) and competitive car park pricing (five per cent below the national average).

Denis Naughten pointed out to David Fitzsimons, CEO of Retail Excellence Ireland, that with free parking and with a substantial amount of off street parking, Roscommon Town was in a far better position to meet the needs of shoppers than many towns throughout the Country.
Responding Mr. Fitzsimons could not provide an explanation, but has agreed to investigate the matter and explain why the survey came up with such a result.
“There is no doubt that the work carried out by REI can be of benefit to local towns and its retailers, and the survey did give an overall positive impression of Roscommon Town” said Denis Naughten.

The survey found that people were particularly positive about feeling safe and secure in the town and felt that the town was a family friendly place.

Denis Naughten has invited Retail Excellence Ireland to make a presentation to the local businesses community in order to see how some of the issues in the survey can be addressed and how we can all make Roscommon and the other towns in County Roscommon a far better place for people to do business.