Council approves €2.5m extension of South Ring Road off-ramp 

Cork city councillors have approved a proposed extension to the South Ring Rd off-ramp at the westbound approach to Mahon, junction 10, expected to cost in the region of €2.5m.

Speaking at the most recent meeting of Cork City Council, the Lord Mayor of Cork, Cllr Kieran McCarthy, said the 750m extension will be fully funded by Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII).

In a report to councillors ahead of the meeting, the council’s director of infrastructure development, Gerry O'Beirne, said the local authority had identified a need to carry out upgrade and improvement works at the junction on the N40.

Mr O’Beirne said at peak times the hard shoulder is currently used as an informal off-ramp for traffic queuing to exit at the westbound approach to junction 10 - motorists who are travelling from the Jack Lynch tunnel.

“This practice is undesirable both for motorists queuing on the hard shoulder and motorists continuing westwards along the South Ring Rd.

“At times, the traffic queue extends back and ‘spills’ into the westbound driving lane causing congestion and reducing the safe movement of traffic on the main N40 route… the proposed extension to the westbound off-ramp at junction 10 seeks to address this queueing issue and improve the safe flow of westbound traffic in this area.

“The proposal seeks to convert a section of the existing hard shoulder into a formal off-ramp. This will involve a reallocation of existing road space,” Mr O’Beirne stated.