More than €45m in funding is to be allocated to sustainable transport projects in Cork county and city, with Lord Mayor of Cork Joe Kavanagh saying the investment will "not only improve our infrastructure, but our quality of life”.

Yesterday, the National Transport Authority (NTA) announced that it was allocating €45.39m for 80 sustainable transport projects in Cork.

Overall, €29.6m has been allocated to Cork City Council while €15,781,943 will be provided to Cork County Council for the various projects.

Of the projects, 39 are entirely new and will receive funding of over €18m.

The remaining projects are existing projects for which ongoing funding of over €27m will be provided to Cork City Council and Cork County Council.

Among the existing transport projects being funded is the first phase of the Mahon to Marina Greenway project in Cork City, which has been allocated €3.2m.

Upgrades to Dunkettle Rd and an allocation of €900,000 for Curraheen pedestrian and cycleway upgrades are also included.

Some €1.5m of funding has also been allocated for public transport improvements on MacCurtain St.

The new projects being funded in the city include design works and installation of cycle detection at signalised junctions in Cork city and automatic bollards which will support the implementation of 17 new pedestrianised streets which will help to facilitate active travel within the city.

Other projects to receive funding include the Blarney Village Cycle Route, the Mayfield to Glen Cycle Route, and the Ballincollig to City Cycle Route which have each received a funding boost of €100,000.

In Cork county, projects to receive funding include the Carrigtwohill to Midleton Cycle Route which will receive €100,000, and the Bothar Guidel Road cycle lane which has been allocated €35,000 in funding

The Ballinacurra to Midleton cycle route in Cork county has been allocated €1.3m.

The NTA is also helping to realise the ambition of the Cork Metropolitan Area Draft Transport Strategy 2040 with new funding for the Lee to Sea Cycle Route Study.

Cork City Council has welcomed the €29.6m in funding announced by the NTA to improve sustainable transport across the city.

Projects broadly welcomed

Speaking on the announcement, Lord Mayor of Cork, councillor Joe Kavanagh said: “This significant investment in the city’s infrastructure and will help make cycling, walking and public transport more accessible by upgrading and developing new infrastructure in the city centre, suburbs and towns.

“I am delighted to see the Government delivering for the city by investing in these new facilities which will not only improve our infrastructure but our quality of life.”

The Cork Cycling Campaign has said that they are “excited” by the announcement and the improvements that will be made to active travel in Cork and the new projects that are to come.

“The cycling campaign is very excited and delighted with [yesterday’s] announcement regarding a number of active travel improvements due to come down the line, so it is a very exciting project for all involved in the campaign,” a spokesperson said.

The group has said that there are a number of projects that they are particularly glad to see receive funding, such as the allocation of automatic cycle lane counting which has been allocated €50,000 and would detect the number of cyclists on particular routes.

“It’s a great way to show exactly how many people are cycling in Cork and hopefully, it will encourage more to possibly take it up as well,” a spokesperson said.

In addition, the group has welcomed the upgrades to cycle lanes on Airport Road, which will receive €560,000 and the improvements to Tramore Valley Park among other projects.

Fianna Fáil TD for Cork North Central, Pádraig O’Sullivan, welcomed the €3.1m in funding for the Dunkettle to Carrigtohill Cycle Route, which he said will be “instrumental in creating a safe cycle corridor for the people of Cork”.

Sinn Féin TD for Cork North Central Thomas Gould also welcomed the funding but said that more development is needed in the northside.

“There’s some really positive proposals here but they are far too heavily weighted. Greenways and cycle lanes are needed badly on the northside as are safety improvements and other sustainable transport initiatives,” he said.

“We have a real opportunity now to build a city that is fair and equal. What we don’t want is to continue modernising and developing one half of the city and completely forgetting the other.”

Key projects 

Cork City 

• Greenway - Phase1 (Mahon to Marina) €3,200,000 
• Skehard Rd Phase 3 €2,600,000 
• Grange Road Transport Corridor & Tramore Valley (N40 bridge) €1,500,000
• Active Travel - Multi Intervention & Pedestrian Crossings - Location Specific Projects €1,200,000 (new project)

Cork County 

• Dunkettle to Carrigtohill Cycle Route €3,100,000 
• Ballinacurra to Midleton Cycle Route €1,325,000 
• Little Island - Multi-Modal Infrastructure €800,000
• Bothar Guidel Road Cycle lane €350,000 (new)