€74m allocated for Cork roads projects; €50m for the M28 Cork to Ringaskiddy motorway

Cork city and county are to receive more than €74m in exchequer capital funds for national roads through Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) this year.

The funding is part of a Department of Transport allocation of €633m for national roads around the country.

The total allocation across city and county is €74.2m, of which €72.25m is going to Cork County Council, with €1.95m allocated to Cork City Council.

The largest portion of this year’s funding to Cork is €50m for the M28 Cork to Ringaskiddy motorway.

Included in the funding is an allocation of €700,000 for the long-awaited Mallow relief road, and a €700,000 allocation for the Midleton to Youghal bypass.

Separate to the Cork funding is an allocation to Limerick City and County Council of €4.5m in funding for the Cork to Limerick motorway.

Announcing the funding allocation for Cork, Jerry Buttimer, Fine Gael TD for Cork South Central and minister of state for rural transport, said that since his election to the Dáil last November, he had stressed the importance of the completion of M28 Cork to Ringaskiddy road.

“This funding is an important part of that, and I will be continuing to advocate for funding in 2025 and into next year,” Mr Buttimer said.

“As minister with responsibility for rural transport, I appreciate the important role played by the national road network in ensuring that all parts of Ireland are connected to each other.”

He added that a safe and efficient national road network would support rural residents, allowing them greater connectivity to work, education, and healthcare, as well as facilitating increased public transport in rural Ireland.

Seamus McGrath, Fianna Fáil TD for Cork South Central, said the M28 Cork to Ringaskiddy road was “critically important” for Cork city and county.

“This allocation will allow the project to proceed to construction in the coming months, which is great news,” he said.

Pádraig O’Sullivan, Fianna Fáil TD for Cork North Central, said the allocation of €700,000 for the Mallow relief road was good news for his constituency.

“This is a massive boost for Mallow and a very welcome development,” he said.

Eoghan Kenny, Labour Party TD for Cork North Central, said the allocation for the Mallow relief road was a good development, and something for which he had campaigned.

“This had been a collective effort, and I want to commend the Mallow Relief Road alliance group, led by John McDonnell,” he said.

Colm Burke, Fine Gael TD for Cork North Central, said he was delighted to see funding allocated to Cork City Council and Cork County Council for essential national road repair works.

“The continued safety for all road users is a key priority for Fine Gael in Government and key to that is the protection and regeneration of our existing national road network,” he said.

Fianna Fáil councillor Gearoid Murphy said he understood that this funding would get the Mallow relief road through planning until it was “shovel-ready”.

Major new national road projects funded in the allocation include the Adare bypass, and the N5 Ballaghaderreen to Scramoge.