€10m of public money has been spent on N24 upgrade project in Tipperary with ‘nothing to show’ for it
At the November meeting of Tipperary-Cahir-Cashel Municipal District (MD) councillors were given an update from district Leas Cathoirleach Cllr Marie Murphy on a meeting that was held between Tipperary County Council and Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII).
Plans to upgrade the N24, which goes through the middle of Tipperary town have been mooted for decades, but the most recent project plans are for the Cahir to Limerick Junction section, which would essentially bypass Tipperary town.
The project is currently at phase two, which aims to assess constraints to the project and identify a preferred route for the new section of road.
Further plans for the Cahir to Waterford section of the road have been stalled due to a lack of funding being allocated for a design of the new route.
Speaking at the meeting, Cllr Murphy said that the project was highlighted as a priority within the county for the TII.
"The N24 in total, 65km runs through Tipperary from just outside Carrick-on-Suir right through to past Limerick Junction, to Monard and that’s 1pc of our total road network in the county, but it accounts for 25pc of the road deaths every year,” Cllr Murphy said.
Significant public funding has already been spent on the past plans, the Fine Gael councillor added, saying that there had been no return on the investment so far.
"Over the last 20 years, €10million has been spent between the three past projects, over €10million in public funds has been wasted on it in my opinion.
"There are seven homes that are in the middle of it and they don’t know what’s going to happen because the preferred corridor from Cahir to Waterford is going through those homes, and there’s 2,200 landholdings that are indefinitely sterilised because of it,” Cllr Murphy said.
Tipperary town councillor Annemarie Ryan said that the town has desperately needed a bypass for many years, and hoped that any works on the N24 could start around the town.
"When we get to the stage of building it, can we start in Tipp town?
"The town is struggling the most, but my worry is always that Tipperary town is the driving factor for delivering this project and I don’t want it to lose out again,” she said.
Director of services Damien Ginty said that it is “essential” that the wider N24 project goes ahead.
“It’s absolutely essential that the N24 project progresses, and prioritising a piece of infrastructure around a place like Tipperary town, while it is welcome, might simply solve a problem at one location and create a problem at either end of that infrastructure,” he said.
"But it’s absolutely essential that the entirety of the route is progressed, and it needs to be recognised that this route is of significant social and economic benefit, not just to Tipperary town, but to the entire southern part of this county.
"It’s absolutely essential that the pressure is kept on TII and a clear message needs to go out that we want this route in its entirety,” Mr Ginty added.