Authority in contact with Cork homeowners potentially impacted by 'super bus lanes'

Compulsory purchase orders will be required in several places along all of the routes — impacting hundreds of properties

The issuing of these letters is an important step in the delivery of the complex BusConnects scheme, and will help the authority identify the property owners it will need to deal with as the project advances. File Picture: Larry Cummins

The National Transport Authority (NTA) has begun issuing letters to hundreds of property owners across Cork City to identify those who may be impacted by one of the 11 super bus lanes in its multi-million BusConnects scheme.

The letters say the authority intends to seek planning later this year to change the road layout close to their property as part of a project designed to transform Cork’s bus system — to make journeys by bus fast, reliable, and punctual.

It says these works, if approved by An Bord Pleanála, are likely to impact on the property highlighted in the letter, requiring the compulsory acquisition of a portion of the property.

However, the authority has stressed that these "property referencing letters" and an accompanying questionnaire are not part of any formal compulsory purchase order (CPO) process.

That can only begin after an order has been prepared and an application for planning has been submitted to An Bord Pleanála — that stage is several months away.

Public feedback

The issuing of these letters is an important step in the delivery of the complex BusConnects scheme, and will help the authority identify the property owners it will need to deal with as the project advances.

The authority has spent almost two years in non-statutory public consultation on its plans for 11 sustainable transport corridors (STC) running from the suburbs to the city. It has amended the designs in several areas as a result of public feedback.

However, compulsory purchase orders will be required in several places along all of the routes — impacting hundreds of property owners, some of whom could lose portions of their gardens.

The first letters were issued on Monday to potentially impacted property owners along four strategic transport corridor routes — Dunkettle to the city, Mayfield to the city, Blackpool to the city, and Hollyhill to the city.

Letters to property owners along Airport Rd to the city, Maryborough Hill to the city, Mahon to the city, and Kinsale Rd to Douglas will be sent out later in the week.

Letters to relevant property owners along the Ballincollig to the city route, Bishopstown to the city, and Togher to city will issue towards the end of this week.

Strategic transport corridors

The National Transport Authority has also announced that the 11 strategic transport corridors (STCs) have been combined into three standalone schemes that are likely to be advanced to planning in these bundles.

The Cork City North corridor scheme bundles several key northside city routes; the South West scheme bundles the Ballincollig, Bishopstown and Togher; while the South East scheme bundles the Airport Rd, Maryborough Hill and Mahon to city routes along with the Kinsale Rd to Douglas route.

The authority said it expects that planning applications for the three standalone schemes to be submitted to An Bord Pleanála on a phased basis from the middle of the year.

“If approved, the acquisition of the portions of properties included in the approved CPO would involve the payment of appropriate compensation in respect of the relevant properties,” the authority says.