In accordance with the Roads Act 1993 and the Planning and Development Act 2000 advertisement signs along the public road require the approval of the County Council in the form of a licence or planning permission.
Unauthorised advertisment signs at various locations throughout the county especially on the approach roads to towns and villages are both unsightly and often hazzardous to road users.
Examples of illegal signs includes small advertisement signs normally tied or nailed to existing signs or poles; finger post B&B signs, sandwich board advertisement signs, large billboard signs, large signs mounted on trailers or vans as well as vehicles being advertised for sale along public roads.
It is our policy to try to ensure that the public road is kept clear of unauthorised advertisment signs in accordance with Section 71 of the Roads Act 1993. For more information read Donegal County Council's Policy on Unauthorised Advertisement Signs on Public Roads.
1. The Council will arrange for the removal and storage of unauthorised signs for a period of one month after the date the owner has been notified or six weeks from the time it was removed, whichever is the longer.
2. The Councils will notifiy the owner (where the owners name and address is reasonably identifiable) informing the owner that the sign has been removed and stored. This notice will give the whereabouts of the sign and require that it be claimed within one month of date of notice or else it will be disposed of.
3. The Council will require the person recovering a sign to make a written declaration stating that they are the owner of the sign or they are there on the authority of the owner. The Council will require the person recovering the sign to pay the cost of the removal and storage before being able to recover it. For more information on charges read the schedule on Charges for Removal & Storage of Unauthorised Signs.
4. The Council will dispose of unclaimed signs, after the expiry of the stipulated timeframe.
Temporary signs for non-commercial local events are permissible subject to certain restrictions and provided they do not impact on road safety.
Similar signs for local commercial events can also be permissible subject to restrictions on size, timing, location, etc.
Full details of exemptions for advertisements are set out in Part 2 of Schedule 2 of the Planning and Development Regulations .