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

It is well known that Cork has the longest road network in Ireland. A statistic that is probably less well-known is that last year Cork had the highest number of road fatalities. There were 14 fatal incidents in Cork last year with 11 of those in the western division in west Cork. Despite those alarming statistics, Cork ranks third lowest in funding for the road network. On average it has €1,000 per kilometre less than the average for other counties. It is high time that Cork started getting the investment in its road network that it deserves. It is high time that important roads like the N71 serving areas like west Cork are funded. It is all well and good to talk about reducing speed limits. However, on most sections of the N71 it is not possible to reach 80 km/h and so that would make no difference. We need substantial investment in our roads in Cork. I ask the Taoiseach to make that a priority for budget 2024.

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