NRA refuses to fund upgrade after road claims 10 lives

COUNCILLORS have reacted furiously to the NRA’s refusal to provide money to straighten a dangerous section of road in North Cork which has claimed the lives of 10 people in recent years.

Instead of reacting positively to councillors’ pleas for an urgent upgrade of the Mallow-Fermoy road (N72), the NRA advised that the best the council could hope for was a feasibility study on the project.

NRA chief executive Fred Barry wrote to county manager Martin Riordan saying funding for roads improvements had been cut in recent years so there was “a backlog of worthwhile schemes in the planning system”. He said even if the NRA regional design office made a case for a study, unfortunately it would be some time before money would became available.