18 October 2019
By Mary Bermingham
mary@TheCork.ie
Some (including TheCork.ie for the sake of shorter headlines!) are calling it the “Macroom bypass”, but it’s so much more. The red line on the above map shows how the route bypassed Balllyvourney also, including the infamous bad bends.
The development will provide a 22 km road improvement from the Cork side of Macroom at Coolcour, will bypass the town of Macroom, the villages of Baile Mhic Íre and Baile Bhuirne, the infamous ‘Ballyvourney Bends’, and will finish west of Baile Bhuirne itself before the County bounds with Kerry.
Cork County Council has welcomed the announcement of government approval for funding of a €280m major road project for Cork and Kerry. The long-awaited Baile Bhuirne to Macroom Road Development, which has been in planning for years, will start construction this year and will take between 3 and 4 years to complete.
The improved road will greatly improve road safety, enhance connectivity between Cork and Kerry, reduce journey times, and improve the public transport corridor in the region. The road will remove huge amounts of through traffic from Macroom town.
Welcoming the scheme, Mayor of the County of Cork Cllr. Christopher O’Sullivan said “This very significant development for Cork and Kerry marks the largest single investment by government in this region to date. The benefits of this scheme for the people of Macroom, Baile Bhuirne and the surrounding areas are huge. The development of this road will greatly reduce journey time in the region, will improve access to rural areas, and greatly improve the quality of life for people living in and around Macroom by removing the current bottleneck congestion. By taking traffic out of the town centre, the development will lead to a significant improvement in air quality and give the town the space it needs to revive and thrive. This marks a new beginning for the people of Macroom.”
Chief Executive of Cork County Council Tim Lucey added that “This is a hugely important infrastructural development for the entire region. The construction phase will bring an economic boost to the area and in the long run the social and economic benefits will be very significant indeed. Engineers have been carrying out preparatory works, ground investigations and archaeological excavations and the route is primed for construction once the contract is awarded. The work that has been done over the past number of years in preparation for this by Cork County Council staff has been incredible. I am extremely grateful for their persistence and tenacity in bringing this project to construction stage. They are a credit to the Council.”
