No appetite in Foxford for by-pass of the town
THERE is no appetite among locals in Foxford for a by-pass of the town at this juncture.
That was the message delivered by local Councillor Neil Cruise to the monthly meeting of Mayo County Council yesterday (Monday).
A recent announcement about a by-pass had 'gone down like a lead balloon', he said, there having been no consultation with the community, business people or with elected public representatives.
He has looked at the scheme proposed and felt it wasn't fit for purpose.
It would ensure there would never be a new N58, which is needed to connect Ballina into the N5 and Castlebar and Westport.
He highlighted how 60% of traffic from Ballina goes to Castlebar.
The proposal, he added, had not come before the council's roads strategic policy committee (SPC) and he queried what was the point of sitting on the SPC so. Also, what was the point if it didn't come before the relevant municipal district, in this case the Claremorris-Swinford district.
He wanted the N58 back on the agenda and for the N26 projects to be completed before there is any talk of a Foxford by-pass.
Councillor Seamus Weir said it was a shock to him to hear about the by-pass proposal.
He has a motion in his municipal district about the Mount Falcon to Foxford stretch of the N26 and that was what has to be addressed first - the N26, which they are talking about the last 20 years.
The N26, agreed Councillor John O'Hara, is 'falling apart'.
Councillor Jarlath Munnelly said a new N58 road is regionally important. A route has been identified and it would connect Ballina to Castlebar and give onward connectivity to Galway.
They needed to prioritise their road projects in north Mayo, he added.
Director of services Tom Gilligan said an application had gone to Transport Infrastructure Ireland and it should have come before the SPC, for which he apologised.
On north Mayo, they were disappointed there was no mention of the N26 and N58 in the national development plan. When the N5 and Cloongullane bridge project are completed next year, they were basically running out of road and they needed more projects to be on the table.
Mr. Gilligan said he would love a new N58 but he forecast it was a long way into the future.
On the Foxford proposal, it needed to be looked at, he said. The town has a traffic management and congestion issue. He didn't think it would be the worst thing in the world to have a by-pass.
They were a long way yet from any announcement in relation to a by-pass, he added.