€7.5m of roads projects

Considering the strictures on state finances, Cavan County Manager, Jack Keyes, is reasonably satisfied with the allocation of €7.5m by the National Roads Authority (NRA) for national projects in Co. Cavan this year. He particularly welcomes the €3.2m for the Belturbet bypass - an allocation that further pushes the project towards tender stage. This latest allocation for the Belturbet bypass follows on from a similar allocation in 2009 and will complete ancillary works including land purchase. "We don't have permission to go to tender yet but I always regarded 2011 as the hopeful date. We are now exerting every pressure and every means of persuasion to try and get the go-ahead later this year," said the Cavan County Manager. The Belturbet bypass is estimated to cost €40m to complete. It will link the new road at Aghalane to the Cavan bypass at Annagh a distance of about 4kms. While the Cavan County Council may have hoped for a larger roads allocation, Mr. Keyes does acknowledge that Co. Cavan schemes are moving forward whereas similar projects in other areas of the country aren't progressing at the same pace due to the current difficult economic climate. The latest round of grants from the NRA is slightly less than the 2009 allocation of €8m, which formed part of a €30m package for national and non-national roads in the county. The non-national road grants are expected to be announced in the coming week. The €7.5m funding for Co. Cavan's national roads has been welcomed by the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Brendan Smith and Senator Diarmuid Wilson. The Minister said it was imperative to keep the momentum going with the continuous improvement of the national roads structure in the county. Besides the Belturbet bypass, other significant allocations to be announced by the NRA include €1.4m for the Corduff to Ballytrust realignment on the N55 and €625,000 for the Ballyconnell inner relief road to help finalise land acquisitions. The M3 is due to be completed in a few months time. A major national project, it will dramatically shorten travel times from Cavan to Dublin and is one of the largest infrastructural projects ever undertaken in the State. The motorway ends at Whitegate on the Cavan/Meath border where it rejoins the existing N3. The opening of this new national road corridor will be watched anxiously by planners both at national and local level for its impact on the traffic flow in the town of Virginia. Plans for a Virginia bypass are on the table for several years now. A two plus one road was originally agreed but it was later decided that the Virginia bypass should form part of a dual carriageway linking the M3 with Cavan town. The Cavan County Manager stated that this project is being re-assessed with a view to having it completed on a phased basis. County councillors anxiously await the announcement of the non-national roads grants next week. A figure of €18.2m was awarded for Co. Cavan's non national roads last year plus a sum of over €900,000 for Local Improvement Scheme laneways. The county council will hoping that this level of funding will be maintained to ensure the upkeep of the network, which has suffered considerably due to recent flooding and the prolonged freeze up.