Jackie Cahill (Tipperary, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I will address rural and community development. I represent a rural constituency and, in the short time available to me, I will raise a few major issues regarding the need for investment in Tipperary. The first issue I will talk about is the urgent need for a link road for Tipperary town. The chamber of commerce has spearheaded a coalition of other local groups which has highlighted the great issues facing Tipperary. Jobs4Tipp, the recently formed task force, March4Tipp and other such organisations have come together. The town is on the N24. Post Brexit, it will be even more severely choked with traffic. This road will be the major route from western Ireland and the mid-west to the ports of Waterford and Rosslare. It is often stagnant because of the traffic congestion in the town. The town urgently needs a relief road. I urge the Minister of State to consider this. There are plans for major infrastructure between Oola, Limerick Junction and Cahir. Unfortunately, this is still in pipeline, although it will come in time. If Tipperary town is to survive commercially, however, it needs a relief road immediately. The town speaks with one voice in this regard, as do all the public representatives in the area. The town has to get this if its economic life is not to be strangled.

I will speak on a number of other issues in my county. I proposed a greenway between Nenagh and Dromineer a number of months ago. I have been working with locals for some time in respect of this proposed greenway which would link the town of Nenagh to the lakeside village of Dromineer. There is an enormous appetite in the area for this project to be developed. Dromineer is on the shores of Lough Derg and is a popular tourist destination. Nenagh is one of the largest urban centres in Tipperary. There is major potential to link the two. It is only an eight-mile route, but it would have a great infrastructural benefit both for tourism on the lake and for the town of Nenagh. There is already a recognised walk in the area which covers 80% of the proposed greenway. I urge the Minister of State to take this on board as the project would be of great benefit for tourism and for the town of Nenagh.

The Ballybrophy rail line also needs to be utilised. There is serious untapped tourism potential in the Nenagh area. This line links Nenagh to Limerick, Cork and Dublin. There is major potential to attract tourists to Nenagh, who could spend a number of days in the area and avail of the greenway and other holiday amenities. I have already contacted the Minister for Rural and Community Development about funding for this. This is again a project which would have great benefits for the rural constituency I represent.

There is also great potential for a greenway from my own town of Thurles to Holycross. As it would run across a lot of public land, it would be easily achieved.

It could go through the Cabragh wetlands, which has unique features that people come from all over the country to see. A walkway from Thurles to Holycross would be roughly four to five miles long. There is huge potential there.

Community allotments have a huge part to play in communities as well, both from a physical aspect and from the point of view of people's mental health. Retired people and people with a bit of time on their hands find these most therapeutic. I have been involved with the Nenagh Community Allotments group in recent months and it has had to relocate from one location to another. It finds it hard to get any funding to help it along the way. It has to get a new water connection and it also faces other relocation expenses. A small bit of funding for these allotments in all parts of the country would have huge community benefit. It is a growing phenomenon. It had been in the large urban centres before but it has spread countrywide. I urge the Minister of State to provide funding for these allotments. We have it for other community groups and initiatives but allotments, unfortunately, do not have any sources of funding available to them. I ask the Minister of State to consider those organisations for funding as these are real community developments at the heart of our communities. I urge the Minister of State to consider these proposals.

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