Michael Moynihan (Cork North West, Fianna Fail)
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I welcome the opportunity to discuss the issue of the junction at Ballymaquirke. I note that the Minister of State, Deputy Joe O’Brien, is taking this Topical Issue. He might know the area reasonably well because it is on the Mallow to Killarney road. This is a dangerous junction. It intersects Kanturk and Banteer, and on to Cork and Nad. The junction has been classified at Cork County Council level as one of the most dangerous junctions in Cork and indeed in Munster. A huge body of work has been done locally to try to get a solution. Councillor Bernard Moynihan organised the petition locally. Some 3,000 people signed the petition because of the urgent need for work to be done on the junction. As I understand it, a design has been approved. An Bord Pleanála has given its approval. It went in as one of the major projects directly to An Bord Pleanála and planning has been given. It is my understanding that Cork County Council has submitted an application to Transport Infrastructure Ireland, TII, to get funding for this work.

I cannot over-emphasise the importance of this junction to the people of Duhallow and north Cork in particular; to the people who are crossing that junction on a daily basis in their commute from the western and northern end of Duhallow, from Kanturk, Newmarket, Rockchapel and Cork; to those who are coming from western Duhallow from the Kerry bounds; and to those coming from Kerry who are crossing the junction and going on to Mallow, Banteer and onwards to Cork. Local people use that junction on a daily basis, whether they are going in or out of Kanturk or whatever they are doing, as are people from the farming community and elsewhere.

This junction has been the subject of many discussions at local authority level and indeed here in Leinster House. It is high time that we ensured that funding is made available for it. There are plans that have been approved and it has gone through the various steps in planning, land acquisition and all the other necessary statutory processes that have been earmarked. A huge body of work has been done by the senior officials in Cork County Council. They liaise with the Department at all stages, as well as with Transport Infrastructure Ireland on advancing this work. Transport Infrastructure Ireland gave funding in terms of submitting to An Bord Pleanála.

Here we are with a shovel-ready project. We cannot wait any longer to get this project done because it will save people’s lives. It will save people who are crossing the junction and who are putting their lives at peril on a daily basis. Whatever side one comes from into the junction, it has stood out as a dangerous junction. It has been heralded as that and it has been acknowledged as that.

I ask the Minister of State to outline the next steps. Does Transport Infrastructure Ireland have the necessary funding available so that work can go ahead at Ballymaquirke as soon as is humanly possible? We have all the building blocks in place.

Joe O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Green Party)
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The Department of Transport has responsibility for overall policy on Exchequer funding regarding the national roads programme. Once funding arrangements have been put in place with TII under the Roads Act and in line with the national development plan, NDP, the planning, design, improvement and upgrading of individual national roads will be a matter for TII in conjunction with the local authorities concerned.

TII ultimately delivers the national roads programme in line with Project Ireland 2040, the national planning framework and the NDP. In the new NDP, which was launched in October 2021, approximately €5.1 billion was earmarked for new national road projects to 2030. This funding will enable improved regional accessibility across the country, as well as compact growth which are key national strategic outcomes. The funding will be provided for the development of numerous national road projects, including the completion of projects that are already at construction stage and those that are close to it, as well as the development of a number of others.

Due to the fact that a great proportion of NDP funding for road projects will become available in the second half of the decade, there was a constraint on the funding available for new projects this year. However, most national roads projects in the NDP will continue to progress in 2022. In addition, a major priority in the NDP, in line with Department’s investment hierarchy, is to maintain the quality and safety of the existing national road network. The NDP foresees an Exchequer allocation of approximately €2.9 billion for the protection and renewal of existing national roads over the ten-year period to 2030, allocated fairly and evenly across the decade.

The N72 is a national secondary road that runs east-west from its junction with the N25 near Dungarvan in Waterford to the N70 in Killorglin in Kerry. The N72 passes through a number of towns, including Lismore, Fermoy, Rathmore, Killarney and Killorglin. TII allocated €3,000 to Cork County Council for minor works at the Ballymaquirke Cross in 2022. Cork County Council has recently tendered the works contracted for the development of a new junction at this location. This may include the construction of a new roundabout and the realignment of a section of road.

The Department of Transport has been informed by TII that tenders have recently returned to the council which will now be assessed. It is hoped that this scheme will commence construction in 2023. Another NDP project on the N72 in this region is the Mallow relief road for which funding was allocated in 2022. This project, which is at planning and design stage, will improve connectivity in the north Cork area. It will also enhance the urban environment of the town of Mallow, reduce congestion and provide benefits to walkers, cyclists and vulnerable road users.

Michael Moynihan (Cork North West, Fianna Fail)
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Specifically on the topic of the N72 and on Ballymaquirke, the Minister of State is confirming that the tenders have been returned, have been approved and that a contractor has been approved for the construction of the roundabout and the realignment at Ballymaquirke. He said in his statement that it is hoped the construction will start in 2023. Have the Department or Transport Infrastructure Ireland responded to the Minister of State, giving an exact time for the construction?

If there is any message that I want taken away from today's discussion in Dáil Éireann, it is the urgency of this matter. It is a safety issue. It is of paramount importance that this junction is dealt with immediately. A huge pile of work has been done and I credit Councillor Bernard Moynihan for the amount of work that he did on it heretofore. It is now time for us at a national level to stand up and make sure that it goes to construction without delay. The Minister of State said the tenders were returned to Cork County Council. Can he confirm that a contractor has been appointed or is about to be appointed and that Transport Infrastructure Ireland has informed the Department that construction will be completed in 2023?

Joe O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Green Party)
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Approximately €616 million of Exchequer capital funds have been provided to TII for national roads in 2022. In line with the NDP and Government policy, TII is allocating national road funding for local authorities for 2022 in a manner which seeks to achieve the following key outcomes: the protection and renewal of the existing national road network; progressing major projects in or near construction; progress of major projects that are pre-construction but well advanced in the development pipeline; and prioritising remaining funds for major projects that provide for local bypasses and compact growth in Ireland's towns and villages.

Improvements such as the upgrade of the junction at Ballymaquirke Cross, while relatively minor, deliver significant safety benefits for all road users. The Department of Transport is happy to note the progress that has been made on that junction.

To answer the Deputy's specific question, I do not have information on whether a contractor has been finalised and approved. Nor do I have a detailed timeline of the plans for 2023 other than that it is expected to start that year. I acknowledge the Deputy's points about the urgency of doing something about the junction, given the serious safety concerns.

Michael Moynihan (Cork North West, Fianna Fail)
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Will the Minister of State take my points back to the Department and ask it to respond to me on whether it has a timeline?

Joe O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Green Party)
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I will indeed.