Clare County Council has moved to defend the controversial planned Limerick Northern Distributor Road.
A report has been issued to Councillors to emphasize the benefits of the €120 million route to local representatives.
Ahead of their April monthly meeting, Clare Councillors have been furnished with a brief report by Council engineer Tom Tiernan.
In this document, Mr. Tiernan says he is looking to bring clarity to suggestions that the road isn’t an important development for the region.
He outlines how the need for the road has been identified for over a decade, and says its objective is to promote balanced regional development in Limerick and South Clare.
The process by which the route corridor was selected is defended, and described as “detailed and methodical” – this has been criticised by locals in South-East Clare, and in particular Parteen where residents say it will divide the village in two.
However, Tom Tiernan insists the road will be designed so as to minimise the impact on communities and accomodate the needs of pedestrians and cyclists as much as is possible.
The Clare portion of the route was approved by local representatives here in 2015, but the Limerick section of the road was subsequently rejected there.
That process has since re-started and a vote on a new route there is expected in May.
