Have your say on Drogheda’s future as part of Ireland 2040 proposals

THE 2040 Draft Plan does not take into account the growth of the town of Drogheda and its hinterland, which is well served to be a hub for population growth and industry in the next three decades. Drogheda - be it by design, planning, poor planning or just luck, has now grown to such an extent that it has outflanked Waterford as a city - in terms of size - and needs to be recognised for that.

Just a handful of kms down the coast is Bettystown - now a town with a population of 10,000 in the last census.

Dublin, Galway, Cork, Waterford, Limerick - and a new North Eastern gateway city - Drogheda - is the ambitious, forward thinking and forward planning attitude that this plan needs and at present, lacks.

For too long, high population areas like Drogheda have not been given the resources to go with ever increasing expansion.

Too many people jump on trains, buses, cars and even planes to leave the area each morning for work. This impacts on family, quality of life, congestion, health. The people are here - bring the jobs to them and not the other way round.

The vast lands either side of the M1 are ripe for expansion. With Dundalk Institute of Technology down the road, the education and training system is there.

Roads through the area link the whole country, there is mainline rail and Dublin Airport.

Why do those creating jobs take people from the airport through the crowded streets and roads of Dublin City, instead of turning left and north, heading into a new world of opportunity and chance and a workforce to match any in this district - including Bettystown and Ardee.

Why are those that plan our country for the years ahead afraid of change?

Move outside the structures that have held us back as a country for too long and invest in a new approach to work and life.

Adding to built up areas creates even more hardship - as has been proven in the past.

Drogheda and its hinterland is the basis for a new ‘ Area of Interest’ in this plan.

Conduct a root and branch review of this region and you’ll be surprised at what you’ll find. People with hope, from various nations, an economic corridor waiting to be opened and explored.

By walking away from including Drogheda as a viable option for future investment within this report, planners are depriving a generation of people from this area of a chance to shine and drive this area forward as should have happened many years ago.

People should have their say on Ireland 2040 and submissions can be made up to 12 noon on Friday, November 3rd by emailing npf@housing.gov.ie. The draft plan can be accessed at www. ireland2040.ie.

Every person in this region should send in a comment to send an equally loud voice to our government.

Drogheda’s children of tomorrow - and those in this entire region - now need us to make a stand for them.