David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Ceann Comhairle's office for selecting this matter. I also thank the Minister of State for attending. While she is not a Minister in the Department of Transport, it is great she is here.

I have raised a number of times the need to upgrade the N25 between Carrigtwohill and Midleton, County Cork, and will continue to do so. The House just debated housing. The good news is that there are plans to build over 2,500 housing units just outside Midleton. The process is well under way and planning applications have been made, or are in the process of being made, for some of them. Some of the developers are going ahead and it is looking good. However, I have looked through the traffic and transportation assessments made in respect of three projects and which the council has also done. They all state that the N25 road needs upgrading. One assessment states, for example, that the existing junctions will be operating above capacity and will require upgrading. An analysis shows that the junction can accommodate the proposed phase 1 but, after that, it will be at its limit and further development would be reliant on a Cork County Council infrastructure upgrade. Another assessment states the interchange would be unable to accommodate future planned population growth unless road infrastructure improvements are implemented, and so on.

Transport Infrastructure Ireland, TII, has stated that the proposed development shall be undertaken strictly in accordance with the recommendations of the transport assessment. The transport assessment states the road need upgrading. My concern is that this housing development could be put at risk unless the road is upgraded.

There were plans afoot for, and €1.3 million was spent on, the Midleton to Carrigtwohill road scheme. The first public consultation was held in October 2020 and the option selection process went ahead after that. The public consultation presented feasible options for developing the scheme within the defined study area. That was on display from July 2021 to September 2021. However, the plug was pulled on the entire project in December 2021. I have been raising this matter consistently.

I have just come from a select committee meeting with the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Deputy Coveney, at which we spoke about an unbelievable IDA Ireland-owned site beside the N25. It is fully service and has been idle for the past 15 years. It covers 133 acres, with water and sewage services provided at great expense to the taxpayer all those years ago, but cannot be used because the road infrastructure is not adequate. IDA Ireland tells us the reason the site is not used is that the road is inadequate. The agency has people looking for sites like this one but they cannot locate at this site for that reason. The Minister indicated that if a developer or project were to appear on the horizon, the State would move in and do the road.

Much work has already been done on this road and a lot of money has been spent. Why stop it now? Why not just continue? Even with the best will in the world, it will take a number of years before we see shovels in the ground because land has to undergo compulsory purchase orders and people have to apply for planning permissions and all kinds of other things. The plug was pulled halfway through.

The other major issue that concerns me is that this road is extremely busy. There are 30,000 vehicle movements a day on it that move very quickly. I have written to Transport Infrastructure Ireland, TII. It agrees with me that there are serious safety worries regarding this road and it talked about addressing them. If it is to do so, it will cost an awful lot of money to make the road safe. The answer is to proceed with the original plan, build the other road that was proposed, take away my concerns with respect to the housing development, open up the IDA site, which will have investment, and make the road safe.

I raised this matter with the former Taoiseach, Deputy Micheál Martin, and he did not disagree with me. He was there when Amgen came to Ireland and planned to build a major factory employing 1,100 people a long time ago. I want to hear what the Minister of State says regarding this matter.

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