The new N5 dual carriageway from Westport to Turlough is now open to the public after An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar performed the official opening this morning.
An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and Cathaoirleach of Mayo County Council, Cllr Seamus Weir cut the ribbon on the €241 million N5 project in an official road opening ceremony along the new N5 in Islandeady.
The construction phase of the €241 million project from Turlough to Westport commenced in January 2020 and consists of 20.3km of Type 2 dual carriageway and 5.2km of type 2 single carriageway which will connect with the N59 at Barleyhill outside Westport.
The new road was constructed by Wills BAM JV and a 10km section of the N5 between Turlough and Castlebar was opened to the public in April while the remaining section to Westport opened to the public this lunchtime.
Speaking following the opening of the new N5, Leo Varadkar said that he was honoured to be in Mayo to perform the opening and stated that the new road will enhance connectivity in the region.
“This particular project is the largest infrastructure project ever constructed in County Mayo and is the Government’s largest single investment in the county, but it is certainly not the last. I can guarantee you that it’s going to greatly enhance connectivity, and will provide for safer and more predictable journey times in and out of the area. And we’ll make the area more accessible and bring even more investment and employment to the county,” he said.
Mr Varadkar praised the commitment of former Taoiseach Enda Kenny and current Mayo TD, Michael Ring to ensure the project remained alive at a time when there was little funding for such projects.
Mr Varadkar served as Minister for Transport from 2011 to 2014 and explained that at the time there had been calls for the N5 project to be suspended but Mr Kenny ensured it remained a priority.
“The first thing I had to do in my first budget was to cut €400 million out of the Transport budget. Officials in the NRA and the Department of Transport said to me that this project would have to be suspended and would perhaps have to be shelved. But Enda Kenny said to me, ‘Never mind with the officials. You’re the minister, you’re the Minister for Transport you need to keep this project alive and make sure it at least gets through planning. So sometime in the future when we have the money, we can make it happen’. It was great wisdom and the right advice.
“And then when it came to the Government that I had the privilege to lead, Minister Ring and I were sitting around the table and the bill came in. Minister Ring was a huge advocate for this project, made sure that the funding was allocated and that the road was built and of course, completed under this new government,” he said.
The project is the largest ever government investment in the county when it was given cabinet approval in October 2019 with the final cost of the project expected to reach €300 million. The project initially had a completion date of October 2022 but it was delayed for several months due to Covid and other delays.
During the construction phase of the project, eight homes were demolished to make room for the road and 100 acres of land was acquired from 250 landowners. In addition to the construction of the roadway, six roundabouts were built along with two railway bridges, 13 underpasses and eleven overbridges while 95,000 native trees and scrubs have been planted along the route.
Chief Executive of Mayo County Council, Kevin Kelly thanked all the different agencies involved in the construction of the project and said it will deliver investment to the county.
“The completion of the project made up of 20 km of dual carriageway and 5 km of single carriageway opens Mayo up for further investment and tourism opportunities as well as making transport easier and safer for those who travel this route daily, including vulnerable road users such as pedestrians and cyclists.
“The road will improve traffic congestion and indeed the positive impact on Castlebar can already be seen as we increase connectivity to other towns, such as Ballina, along with better linkages to the key national routes, such as the N59 and N60,” he said.
Westport-based TD Michael Ring said that it was a proud day for him and he was delighted to see the project completed.
“I have to say that I put a lot of my life into this road and I was delighted today that the Taoiseach and other people have acknowledged the work that I put into it. It’s a fantastic bit of infrastructure and all I can say is we’re proud of this development. This is the biggest single development since 1890 when the railway was brought into this county,” he said.
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