The High Court ruled that Limerick City Council was required to carry out a public consultation procedure before proceeding with a proposed quality bus corridor on Ballinacurra Road. The court held that the project fell within two prescribed development categories under planning regulations and did not qualify for the claimed maintenance exemption.
The judicial review was brought by Kevin Hoare, Kevin Donnelly and Barry Donnelly against the council. They argued that the project required consultation under section 179 of the Planning and Development Act 2000 and Part VIII of the 2001 regulations. They said it would disrupt their lives, create a traffic hazard and adversely affect parking and access to their homes. Those were the applicants’ claims, not findings by the court.
The council argued that the works were exempt as road maintenance and that they would not widen or realign the road in the relevant legal sense. It also submitted that the project’s cost did not bring it within the regulations’ separate threshold for other development. The council said the scheme had been designed by professional engineers and met applicable design and safety standards. It also said it had held non-statutory public meetings and consultations.
The judgment records that the council appointed SIAC Construction Limited as main contractor on 16 September 2010, at a fixed price of €869,055.87 excluding VAT. The applicants had also argued that the works would exceed 100 metres and cost more than €126,000, either of which they said triggered the consultation rules.
President of the High Court Kearns held that the project was a major redevelopment, not maintenance or repair within the statutory exemption. The judgment describes a reconfiguration that would turn a two-lane roadway into three lanes, extend into areas where the roadway had not previously run, and involve vertical and horizontal realignment over more than 100 metres. It found that article 80(1)(b) applied. The court also held that the project independently came within article 80(1)(k), which covers other development costing more than €126,000.
The judge rejected the council’s argument that the scheme could be treated as traffic-calming measures. He said the later statutory provision specifically addressing bus corridors was not yet operational at the time of the hearing, which supported the view that such schemes could require consultation under the existing rules.
The court found that the council had a duty to complete the mandatory procedure under section 179. Kearns said he proposed to grant the declaratory relief sought and would hear the parties further about the proposed order. The judgment does not record a final order quashing the council’s decision, prohibiting works or awarding costs.