New tour buses unable to travel Cork-Kerry route
Fears have been expressed that the tourist industry in the south-west will suffer as a result.
Cork County Council engineers are to seek funding from the National Roads Authority (NRA) to raise the height of the historic tunnel which connects Glengarriff and Kenmare after it was discovered that new “high-line” coaches cannot pass through it.
The 180-metre tunnel, built in the 19th century, is just 3.65 metres high, compared to a maximum height clearance of 4.9 metres in the Dublin Port tunnel and the Jack Lynch tunnel.
Council engineers say the new high-line coaches, used by CIÉ and a number of private operators, have a height clearance of 4.3 metres, and up to 4.6 metres if air conditioning systems are carried on top.
This means they cannot pass through the tunnel and face major detours if tour operators want to include parts of west Cork and Kerry on daily excursions.
The issue was highlighted by Councillor Pat Murphy (FF) who claimed tour operators were concentrating on Kerry routes because of the problem, and this was going to result in heavy losses for tourist-related businesses in west Cork.
His party colleague, Cllr Joe Carroll, who is a bus driver himself, said it was “doing serious damage” to the local economy.
Meanwhile, Cllr Danny Crowley said: “It will reflect very poorly on our commitment to tourism in the region if we can’t fix it.”
The council’s senior executive engineer Ted Murphy, told the Western Committee he would put a case for funding to the NRA as the upkeep of the road (N71) linking Glengarriff to Kenmare was the national body’s responsibility.
“We will try and get it included in a works programme, but we know it won’t be included in NRA funding for this year,” Mr Murphy said.
He said the only solution would be to lower the floor of the tunnel by around 1.3 metres.
However, he pointed out that this would be a large job that would take several months to complete.
“We would have to close the tunnel for an extended period to undertake this work,” he advised.
He said that the local authority would also talk to Kerry County Council about the proposed project.
Cork Co Council owns 110 metres of the 180-metre long tunnel, while Kerry County Council owns the remaining 70 metres.
The tunnel, which is 1,300 ft above sea level straddled the two counties on a roadway which has some of the most picturesque valley and woodland scenes in the country.
Both local authorities would have to agree on any proposed works, it was emphasised.
