After a very emotional and publicised experience when our dog decided to chase a rabbit down a 150 foot cliff on Marine Drive and my partner chose to try and save him, I needed to call 999 but there was no phone signal. 

After some very sad incidents of late, and the potential for more footfall on this road, I believe it is necessary for people to have the ability to make a phone call should something go wrong. I would hate for anyone to have to go through what I did and having to run to my car and drive just to be able to call 999. Every second is critical in an emergency. I also had to make the tough decision of staying in a phone signal zone for the coastguard to call me back rather than returning to my boyfriend and advising him to stay where he was, as instructed by the coastguard.

The Department of Infrastructure have released plans to open up Marine Drive to the public by permanently cutting off access for cars. Marine Drive is a beautiful spot and I agree it would be nice to walk or cycle along there without the fear of coming across traffic but when you need a vehicle to get to a clear phone signal these plans could make it difficult to call for help.

Should someone twist their ankle or like in this case, a dog falls down the cliff, quick access to a phone is vital. Please help me by asking the Department of Infrastructure to consider this whether the plans go ahead or not. If something is done then we can prevent anyone else having to be in such a scary situation.