State papers: Private sector lobbied against Jack Lynch Tunnel

The Jack Lynch Tunnel was eventually opened in May 1999 at a cost of £70m. File picture: Eddie O'Hare

Intense lobbying efforts on behalf of private investors were made in the late 1980s to persuade the Government to reverse its plans to build a tunnel under the River Lee downstream from Cork city in favour of an open span bridge.

State papers released under the 30-year rule show the Taoiseach, Charles Haughey, and the Minister for the Environment, Pádraig Flynn, agreed in March 1988 to review the scope for private sector investment in major road projects including the proposed crossing of the River Lee which was designed to alleviate traffic congestion in Cork city.