Accidents on N73 ‘almost daily’
The subject of reduced funding for the N73 was a topic for two meetings with Cork County Council this week, but the funding allocation of €800,000 for the project has not changed.
A grand total of €581 million is going towards roads nationally in 2022, with €94,485,093 of that allocated to Cork County. Cork County Council has received the largest allocation of any local authority, followed by Mayo with just under €93 million.
The bulk of Cork’s funding is going to the N22 Ballyvourney to Macroom bypass, where just over €60 million has been earmarked. Other large projects are the M28 Cork to Ringaskiddy which is set to take another €13 million. The N25 Carrigtwohill to Midleton scheme received no funding for the coming year, despite ‘ considerable’ work having been done on the project by Cork County Council.
Further to the N73 Clogher Cross to Waterdyke upgrades, €100,000 was allocated to the the Annakisha South section of the road. Christchurch in Fermoy has been allocated €50,000, and Grange €30,000.
For maintenance, the council was allocated €1.29 million, a figure they criticised as insufficient, “given the age and condition of much of the network in the county.” The figure is the equivalent of what was provided in 2020 and 2021 combined.
Over €5 million was allocated to Greenways county-wide, the vast majority of that going to the Midleton-Youghal Greenway. Cllr Deirdre O’Brien wondered if Greenway funding was not misguided when roads like the N73 were awaiting work for, in some cases, decades: “Greenways are a fantastic amenity, but they don’t get us to work.”
With all these allocations, the TII does reserve the right to ‘redistribute’ any allocated funds as the year progresses, if the project is impeded or that ‘priorities change’.
“If the progression of any national roads project, programme or operation is impeded or priorities change, the funding will be redistributed by TII in accordance with its statutory remit, to other national roads projects, programmes, or operations.”
This fact was brought to light in September of this year when, despite designs for the worst section of the N73 road being complete, the council were prevented from progressing to the next stage by the TII.
Cllr Frank O’Flynn hoped the funding was not a ‘sop’’.
“I was disappointed because it seems that North Cork is the poor relation with funding allocation. This year it’s been reduced, and I hope this isn’t a sop to keep us happy. It’s a major issue, as it’s a huge economic driver for Mitchelstown, Mallow and Fermoy.”
He said that as far as Cork County Council are concerned, it is a priority project for them.
“All the groundwork and the preliminary works are done. The total cost of the road is going to be €9 million, and it is shovel-ready. The land acquisition is done, the route selection is done, and the design is done, so it’s ready to go to tender. I have been assured by the council that it is a priority project for them.”
TRUE FIGURE
Later on Monday, as crime figures for the area were presented to the council, Cllr Frank Roche recounted how there was an accident on the N73 ‘almost every day”, but stated that these accidents are not reported to Gardaí, meaning that the true severity of the road is not fully realised.
He told the meeting that he had heard of of ‘minor incidents’ like tips of mirrors are not reported as people affected would prefer not to ‘waste Garda time’ for what is a relatively minor incidents, and often between parties that are known to each other. In one case, two trucks that were damaged while passing one another were both owned by the same person.