Christopher O'Sullivan (Cork South West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The last part of the Minister of State's statement on the procurement of technical advisers is encouraging. It sounds familiar and I feel like I have heard it before when it comes to the section between Owenahincha and Rosscarbery. We need to get cracking with significant improvements. There have been several incidents along this route and there have been fatalities.

There are two problems that stick out in the reply the Minister of State has given me. He stated that there has been significant funding of the N71 since 1994. It was around 1994 that the section between Cork city and the Halfway roundabout was done, which was the last significant improvement. The problem is that the Minister of State said that €150,000 has been allocated for the bypass in Bandon. As the Minister of State can imagine, with the cost of construction works that €150,000 might fund a feasibility study or something.

I do not mean to be flippant but I am just asking for a ball of cash to bring back to west Cork to carry out significant improvements. That is what is needed and what has been lacking. Other national routes have benefited from significant funding over the years. Macroom has a fantastic new bypass that is state-of-the-art and that will serve that region so well, right into Kerry. West Cork and the N71 have been forgotten and that needs to stop. We need to fund significant improvements.

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