Brian Stanley demands relief road for Mount Melik after 30 years
Brian Stanley urged the minister to deliver a long-promised Mount Melik relief road, saying the bypass is essential to remove heavy goods vehicles from the town and improve safety and business conditions. He noted feasibility work and local assessments have been completed but the project was omitted from a recent €663 million roads announcement.
There are over 8,500 vehicles a day passing through the centre of Mount Melik town, many of them HGVs, and Stanley highlighted severe bottlenecks at the junction of Pear Street and Sarsfield Street. He said articulated trucks struggle to navigate the streets, the town centre has been hollowed out, and local businesses are constrained by the daily traffic.
Stanley told the minister that a feasibility study has been completed and €105,000 was spent on that work, with the local authority producing a preferred route after assessments. He expressed frustration that Mount Melik does not appear in the recent €663 million list of road projects, noting Limerick had multiple infrastructure entries while "Leish" had none.
The ministerial reply outlined the role of Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) and the National Development Plan framework, and noted the Government has earmarked €5.1 billion for national roads from 2021 to 2030. The reply added that as more funding becomes available later in the decade there is a current constraint on new projects, and approximately €502 million of exchequer capital funds have been provided to local authorities so far this year.
Stanley argued the relief road would link the Porto East Road to the Tullamore Road and improve routes to the N80 and Ross Laird, shortening journeys by an estimated 60 percent and allowing new cycle lanes. He also connected the scheme to increased freight through the Port of Rossellaire after Brexit, saying upgraded port infrastructure needs feeder roads to support HGV movements.
He presented the bypass as a safety and economic measure that would reduce journey times, enable safer cycling infrastructure that cannot be fitted into existing streets, and support local hauliers' access. The local authority has completed its assessments and Stanley pressed the minister to progress the relief road into delivery.
Local traffic and town impact
There are over 8,500 vehicles a day passing through the centre of Mount Melik town, many of them HGVs, and Stanley highlighted severe bottlenecks at the junction of Pear Street and Sarsfield Street. He said articulated trucks struggle to navigate the streets, the town centre has been hollowed out, and local businesses are constrained by the daily traffic.
Feasibility work and funding omission
Stanley told the minister that a feasibility study has been completed and €105,000 was spent on that work, with the local authority producing a preferred route after assessments. He expressed frustration that Mount Melik does not appear in the recent €663 million list of road projects, noting Limerick had multiple infrastructure entries while "Leish" had none.
Government funding context
The ministerial reply outlined the role of Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) and the National Development Plan framework, and noted the Government has earmarked €5.1 billion for national roads from 2021 to 2030. The reply added that as more funding becomes available later in the decade there is a current constraint on new projects, and approximately €502 million of exchequer capital funds have been provided to local authorities so far this year.
Strategic links and next steps
Stanley argued the relief road would link the Porto East Road to the Tullamore Road and improve routes to the N80 and Ross Laird, shortening journeys by an estimated 60 percent and allowing new cycle lanes. He also connected the scheme to increased freight through the Port of Rossellaire after Brexit, saying upgraded port infrastructure needs feeder roads to support HGV movements.
Benefits for town and transport
He presented the bypass as a safety and economic measure that would reduce journey times, enable safer cycling infrastructure that cannot be fitted into existing streets, and support local hauliers' access. The local authority has completed its assessments and Stanley pressed the minister to progress the relief road into delivery.
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Transcript
Thank you. I'm asking the Minister here to address the situation of Mount Melik which has been promised a relief road for a long number of years. It still hasn't happened and it's very important that we get it. Mount Melik town has been neglected badly over the years in terms of infrastructure and this has been talked about and promised for about 30 years. Various options have been looked at Minister in relation to which route to take. There was a route from beside what is the mill on the Porto East Road. That has changed. There is a better route selected there now and it needs to happen. There was an announcement a couple of weeks ago, 663 million for roads projects and I was delighted to see this but when I checked the list down along, I checked the list here and it has everywhere from Balladarine to Middleton and Yall but nowhere there's Mount Melik figure in this long list that's here. Indeed Limerick has four different pieces of infrastructure, substantial infrastructure. Carcass four, Limerick or Leish has zero. So this this route is badly needed to connect the Porto East Road to the Tullamore Road out of the town and this is the main route, the N80 to Ross Laird, which you are very interested in and it's important that we can get vehicles. Vehicles coming from the west of Ireland use it, particularly HGVs. There's over 8,500 vehicles a day going through the centre of Mount Melik town and you know as I said a lot of those are HGVs. There's huge bottlenecks, particularly at the junction of Pear Street and Sarsfield Street. It's really difficult for them to get articulated trucks around it. Very, very difficult. Indeed the local hauliers and the local hauliers association they complain about it. It's also holding back the town minister, the fact that you know you have HGVs running through the town every day and traffic and the middle of the town is hollowed out. That's the simplest way I can put it to you from a business point of view because you can't stop to do anything in the town. It's not friendly to walk around, you know, it needs to be bypassed very badly. The feasibility study has been done, 105 million has been, sorry 105,000 has been spent on that and the county council have done their job. They've done the assessments, they've done the studies, the preferred route is there. So the local authority has done their job and the benefits of this. Now in the last government there may have been a bit of an ideological thing about not putting in a bypass but let me inform you of this. This would shorten journeys not just in distance but also in time because the relief road, this relief road would shorten the journey by nearly 60 percent because you're, you know, you're cutting across country, you're not having to go in through the town and wiggle in and out through streets. This is a shorter, far shorter journey altogether. It will also have all new roads as you are now minister and fully supported have cycle lanes. You can't put cycle lanes in the existing streets in the town. That's just the fact of life. It's too dangerous and we need to get people using cycle lanes and using bicycles. So it's a really important project. You know, Mount Melik is a substantial town with a large population. You know, it is lacking in industry. It's lacking in infrastructure. You know, this would benefit Mount Melik. It would benefit people, you know, travellers and drivers and particularly HGVs. And we need to get this moving because the Port of Rossellaire, as we know, particularly with Brexit, we know that now that there's a lot more freight going through Rossellaire. The number of HGVs going through Mount Melik and the Minister has improved. So it's really important and the Port's been upgraded, if I'm correct in saying that, there's new infrastructure being put in there. So we do need to put in the roads to feed into that. This road is part of that. Thanks. Thank you, Deputy Minister. Thank you very much, Deputy, for raising this matter. The Minister for Transport has asked me to take it on their behalf today. And, of course, the Minister has responsibility for overall policy and exchequer figure, exchequer funding in relation to the National Roads Programme. And once funding arrangements have been put in place with Transport Infrastructure Ireland, TII, under the Roads Act and in line with the National Development Plan, the operation and the management of individual national roads becomes the matter of TII in conjunction with the local authorities concerned, in this case, Leesha County Council. TII ultimately delivers the National Roads Programme and they do that in line with Project Ireland 2040, the National Planning Framework and, most importantly, the NDP National Development Plan. The Government has earmarked €5.1 billion for capital spending on new national roads projects from 2021 to 2030 and that's all under the National Development Plan. This funding will enable improved regional accessibility across the country as well as compact growth, which are key strategic outcomes. The funding will provide for the development of numerous national road projects, including the completion of projects which are already at construction stage and those close to construction stage as well as the development of a number of other projects. As the greater proportion of this funding becomes available in the second half of the decade, this means that there is a constraint in the funding available for new projects this year. However, approximately €502 million of exchequer capital funds have been provided for national roads through TII to local authorities so far this year. With regards to the Mount Malik Relief Road, Leash County Council have, as you have said, concluded the process of completing a preliminary appraisal of options in relation to a bypass of Mount Malik. An allocation contribution was provided to Leash County Council in 2020 to carry out a strategic assessment report. However, a proposed bypass of Mount Malik is not included amongst the projects that are identified for development during the period of the national development plan. Therefore, advancement of the proposed scheme cannot be accommodated in the national roads programme presently. But as you will be aware, a review of the national development plan is currently being undertaken and the outcome of this review will inform TII on the schemes to be progressed over the coming years pending the availability of sufficient funding. So I suppose that the message and the message deputy is it's not included in the NDP at the moment. That's the constraint. But the NDP, as you will be aware, is up for review currently. And I would urge you and the organisations and the resident associations you're working with Mount Malik to use this opportunity to engage. The billions that are there between 2026 and 2030. And yes, it didn't make it into the 20 to 2025 period. And that's, we've come to the end of that now. But the new funding that was announced only just a number of weeks ago, it wasn't included in that. And I know some of the ones in the list, some of the ones such as the Adair Bypass, I know they're badly needed. But there's a long list of other ones there as well. But Mount Malik and Leish didn't seem to figure in at all. And it does need to be included in the review for active consideration and inclusion. You have outlined the amount of money that's due to be spent between now and 2020, between now and 2030. And I welcome that. The National Development Plan is the opportunity and that will be signed off on by ministers, you know that. It will be signed off on by the senior ministers and by the cabinet. This project, by the way, is ready to go. You know, you mentioned that projects have been funded that are already started and some that may be almost ready to go. This is ready to go. The studies have been done. So the groundwork has been done here. And I would just say to you as well, your party leader was down just before the election. And I always like to take people at their word. And along with Deputy Aird gave a firm commitment, as I quoted publicly before the election, that this would be built under the National Development Plan. And just, you know, that you would remind Minister Daryl O'Brien and your party leader, Simon Harris, of the fact that, I've already said it to Deputy Aird. But you might remember, or you might give a reminder to, to the tarnished, Simon Harris, of the commitment. And people locally just really want to see that, particularly all the people who voted for Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil in Mount Melig. Thanks, Minister. Thank you, Deputy Minister. Thank you very much, Deputy. And Deputy, you will be pleased to hear that Leash did figure in funding this year. An allocation of €1.147 million was provided to Leash County Council for National Roads so far this year. That comprises of over €701,300 for capital protection and renewal, and €445,949 for current protection and renewal. So approximately €502 million of extra capital funds has been provided to TII for National Roads so far this year. And as you'll see, almost €1.2 million of that has been allocated for Leash County Council, which I'm sure you'll be pleased to hear. And that's in line with the NDP and with government policy. And in line with that, TII have sought to allocate national road funding to local authorities in a manner which seeks to achieve protection and renewal of existing national road networks, progression of major projects which are in or near construction. And I appreciate you saying that this could be a shovel ready project and if it were to be on the national development plan, but it's not. So the next step is to get it there if that's what you're looking for. And I'll absolutely remind Minister Dara O'Brien and our thornish to Simon Harris that it's not currently on the NDP. And it also looks to progress major projects which are at an earlier stage of development in the pipeline. A number of these new road projects, which are included in the current NDP, have already been delivered. And that includes, for example, the N22 project, the Duncattle interchange, the N5 Westport to Turla, and the bypass of Moycolan and Mistol. And the programme for government commits to increased funding for new roads as part of the NDP review and to the maintenance of existing roads too. Thank you, Caramagos.