MORE than €100m in funding has been confirmed for seven road projects in Cork city and county, including funds for Cork’s long-awaited Northern Ring Road.

There had been speculation in recent days that the Cork City Northern Transport Project formerly the Northern Ring Road was going to be pulled, but these fears proved unfounded as it was included in the funding allocations for national road projects announced yesterday by Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII).

The project has been allocated €100,000 for this year, which was described by TII as “funding to meet current project commitments.”

Cork North Central Sinn Féin TD Thomas Gould said the allocation of €100,000 is a ‘joke’.

“Unfortunately, the Northern Ring Road and the northside lose out again,” he said. “We were looking for an allocation of funding to help deliver this project. The allocation of €100,000 is a joke and this means the delivery of the Northern Ring Road will be delayed further.”

“We need a proper roads infrastructure in the northside if we want to bring more jobs and investment to the northside.”

It is envisaged that the Northern Ring Road would link the M8 Cork to Dublin motorway with the planned M20 Cork to Limerick motorway and the South Ring Road near Ballincollig.

Original plans to develop a Northern Ring Road in Cork extend as far back as 2004.

Mr Gould welcomed the funding for the Dunkettle Interchange but said the Northern Ring Road project will need tens of millions of euro.

“We welcome the investment in the Dunkettle Interchange,” he said.

“It is not good news for the Northern Ring Road however with an allocation of €100,000.

“This project will need tens of millions to be developed. I have always claimed that the northside has been neglected when you look at the road infrastructure in the northside compared to the southside.

“If you look at the number of heavy goods vehicles that are going through areas in the northside, the same doesn’t happen in the southside.

“I would challenge minister [Eamon] Ryan to drive around Cork with me and look at the roads on one side of the city and the other side. It doesn’t compare.”

Fianna Fáil TD Pádraig O’Sullivan said that the “relatively” small allocation of funding for the Cork City Northern Transport Project will help to keep the project alive.

“Plenty of projects do get shelved and the fact it has been allocated a relatively small amount keeps it alive and on the programme,” he said. “I welcome it for that reason alone.

“We all know the importance of the Northern Ring Road. We know the hospital is happening in Glanmire. The road will run right by the hospital and link to the far side of the city. It is now more important than ever before.”

Two Cork national roads projects currently under or close to construction have been allocated funding.

The N22 Ballyvourney to Macroom road has been allocated €39m and the N8/N40 Dunkettle Interchange has been allocated €41.5m.

Funding for 2023 has also been allocated to the following four Cork projects which are at an earlier stage in the development process:

M28 Cork to Ringaskiddy (€19m);

N/M20 Cork to Limerick (€5m);

N72/73 Mallow Relief Road (€100,000);

N25 Midleton to Youghal (Castlemartyr and Killeagh
bypasses) which has received €800,000 in funding.

Fianna Fáil TD James O’Connor — who, in October 2021, sought assurances from then taoiseach Micheál Martin, then minister for public expenditure Michael McGrath, and the Transport Minister Eamon Ryan over the Castlemartyr and Killeagh bypasses — said the funding for the N25 Midleton to Youghal scheme will allow “significant” progress to be made.

“I’m delighted to see the bypasses being prioritised,” Mr O’Connor said.

“Locals need these bypasses. Castlemartyr and Killeagh are the last two villages on the N25 route from Cork to Rosslare and the daily constant congestion needs to end.”

Labour TD for Cork East Seán Sherlock said that the decision to vastly reduce the allocation for the Mallow Relief Road from €800,000 in 2022 to €100,000 in 2023 will not be enough to bring the project to planning phase.

“It is utterly deplorable that Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil have allowed this to happen when there was such great momentum behind this project,” he said. “I am calling on the Government to reappraise the decision to only allocate €100,000 with a view to revising that upwards to a level that would allow for the project to go to planning.”