Ardee bypass must proceed
‘ THE Ardee bypass has to happen and it is incumbent on us to make it happen for the future generations in this town’.
The words of Cathaoirleach of the Ardee Municipal District Council Dolores Minogue this week, amidst growing fears that the proposed €30m bypass for the town could be shelved indefinitely.
A major meeting takes place with the TII on September 18th, with further detail about the project expected to be revealed.
It was announced last week that the awarding of the contract was ‘on hold’ - with the future of the 4.5km stretch of road through Ardsee Bog uncertain.
There have been a number of reports about the problems that now seem to be emerging, from the environment to concerns being expressed by residents and other groups.
But for the Cathaoirleach, the pathway remains clear - ‘ this bypass is vital for Ardee and it must happen. If we need to sit down and sort out the route again or meet the challenges that have arisen with it, then so be it. But there is no way the town of Ardee is going to lose this bypass, that cannot happen.
‘ There was a need for this 20 years ago when the plans were drawn up. Today, that need is much greater and day by day the traffic is getting worse in the town.
‘We have a number of new developments planned in various parts of the town and others are almost completed. We cannot keep adding traffic and saying it will be fine.
‘Not so long ago Ardee was a great place to cycle but now parents are afraid to allow children to cycle to school. It’s all cars.’
She feels that the Ardee bypass will be a defining moment in the history of the town.
‘We have to look at our future and how we want the town to develop in the next decade. Taking lorries and and cars onto a bypass is vital. Last week, I came across 15 lorries backed up on the Kells Road trying to turn into the town at Sizzlers. That is not sustainable. They must have a route around the town.’
She says safety, of motorists and pedestrians, is paramount and the TII must consider that too.
‘We can’t come out of this meeting with the TII with no firm way forward. We can’t accept an indefinite shelving of the bypass because we risk losing the millions promised for it.
‘We have come so far with this and it would be terrible to see it go at this stage.’
The council are continuing to work on fencing off the lands for the bypass as well as diverting a gas pipeline.
‘I want to see the tender approved and the process to commence before Christmas. If we have to work on routes and other issues, fine, but why has this plan, approved for 20 years, suddenly become a problem. The town is bursting at the seams, this bypass must happen,’ she stated.
Local TD and Chairperson of the Transport, Tourism and Sport Oireachtas Committee, Fergus O’Dowd, has confirmed that both the TII and Louth County Council CEO will appear before the Oireachtas Transport Committee next week to discuss a review that has been requested by TII on the vital mid Louth Bypass project.
O’Dowd said: “I was deeply concerned to receive correspondence from the Head of Roads Capital Programme TII, Geraldine Fitzpatrick, outlining that TII had requested Louth County Council to review the scheme to consider and address the technical and environmental issues in the interest of the residents and the tax payer.
“I want to drill down on the specific reasons behind the decision to request a review and I want to see firm commitments given that will see the bypass project ringfenced and protected.”