NO ‘Gritter Thunberg’, ‘Gritsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny Yellow Anti-Slip Machiney’ or even a wilder card again, ‘Boaty McBoatface’ – they’re all gone! But Limerick City and County Council is, nonetheless, inviting entries in a competition to name its new winter maintenance vehicles.
Ahead of snow forecast for this week, the local authority is today launching a public competition to name its five specialised
Day and night throughout the year, but particularly in the winter months, these vehicles and council workers ensure that the roads across Limerick are kept safe and open for traffic. And the local authority is now keen to send their drivers to work in vehicles with names that put a smile on their faces.
The public is invited to submit entries via Limerick.ie before Sunday 21 February 2021 or on Limerick City and County Council’s social media platforms – Limerick.ie Facebook, Limerick.ie Twitter, Limerick.ie Instagram, Limerick City and County Council Twitter, and Limerick City and County Council LinkedIn.
A shortlist of names will then be shared on Limerick City and County Council’s Twitter account @LimerickCouncil where the public will cast its vote to choose the names for each vehicle.
Mayor of the City and County of Limerick Cllr Michael Collins said: “This competition will be a great bit of fun and God knows we could do with it now. We’re expecting the weird, wacky and wonderful by way of entries. The idea of one of our employees driving ‘Gritney Spears’ or ‘Brad Gritt’ to work does put a smile on the face so we are looking for the public to let the creative juices flow on this.”
“We have over 4,000 km of roads in Limerick that are maintained by the council. I think we are particularly cognisant of the work they do at this time of year as we see those amber lights flashing as they grit roads during sub-zero temperatures, often right into the small hours. So, it’s important that we maintain and update our fleet and this investment by Limerick City and County Council is in keeping with that. And it’s also important if we can put a smile on their faces as they get behind the wheel daily.”
Laura Ryan, Head of Marketing and Communications at Limerick City and County Council added: “Limerick is known for its creativity, its grit – excuse the pun – and we are testing that with this fun competition! We’ve seen internationally what such naming competitions throw up names from Usain Salt to Spready Mercury but we’re just going to embrace it and let it run. With a lot of children remote learning at the moment and snow forecast for the week, they may be particularly interested in getting creative to enter this competition and winning a great prize!”
“The five winners will each win a €100 Limerick restaurant voucher of their choice to support the hospitality industry when it opens back up. We’re looking forward to getting a shortlist together that the public can vote on and most importantly, let people have a bit of craic during lockdown.”
