Officials to lobby for motorway and flood relief funds

LOBBYING is to intensify to ensure two major projects, including the proposed €800 million motorway connecting Cork and Limerick, get a kickstart as soon as possible.

County councillors in north Cork are to lobby ministers to fast-track money for the motorway and for the second phase of the Fermoy Flood Relief Scheme.

Funding wasn’t made available to the NRA for the motorway under the last Government’s 2010-2013 road plan.

However, Cllr Ronan Sheehan (Lab), chairman of the council’s northern division, said he hoped that under the new programme for Government there will be a new National Development Plan which will release money for the project.

“On that basis, I would be hopeful the Atlantic Corridor (motorway from Sligo to Cork) will be expedited and I have also spoken to our local minister of state Seán Sherlock on this,” Cllr Sheehan said.

“I acknowledge there are constraints with regard to the four year plan initiated by the former Fianna Fáil Government, but that does not necessarily negate the possibility of major road projects being revived.

“The Atlantic corridor, for example, is a vital piece of infrastructure linking the second and third largest cities in the country and is therefore essential in terms of the economic development of both regions.”

Several councillors vowed to support the lobbying process, including Cllr Tim Collins (Ind) who said a motorway was badly needed to take traffic out of Charleville.

“It’s not so long ago a woman got knocked down and killed there. You can’t cross the road in Charleville and the local people deserve to have their town bypassed,” Cllr Collins said.

Meanwhile, councillors have also agreed to put pressure on the OPW to release more than €10m for the second phase of the Fermoy Flood Relief Scheme.

Cllr Noel McCarthy (Lab), who lives in the town, said there was serious concern amongst locals that the funding had been delayed.

“Phase two was supposed to start early last January and we’re now into March.

“We should write to minister for OPW to see what’s happening. We should emphasise that there are also a number of people unemployed in the area who should be allowed get them some work through local sub contractors employed on the project,” he said.