N72/N73 Mallow Relief Road

Option Selection – Preferred Option

Project Update

The N72 and N73 national secondary routes along with the N20 national primary route, form the strategic transport corridor around Mallow. The potential scheme proposes to free up the town centre road network for access and local traffic, and to enable national road traffic to travel more efficiently.

Cork County Council are progressing the development of a scheme within a study area commencing from the existing N72 east of Mallow and extending to the existing N20 to the north side of Mallow in Co. Cork.

The project is currently at Phase 2 (Options Selection) of Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) Project Management Guidelines. Following the first public consultation last year, presenting the initial options within the study area for the scheme, the Stage 1 Preliminary Options Assessment was completed in December 2020 with the shortlisting of options. Stage 2 of the Option Selection Process commenced in January 2021 where five main options and six option variants were assessed under 6 criteria: Economy, Environment, Safety, Accessibility and Social Inclusion, Integration, and Physical Activity to identify the Emerging Preferred Option. The assessment determined an impact score for each criterion in accordance with the TII Multi Criteria Analysis and these scores established preferences between options. Each option was then critically reviewed and concluded that Option C had the most preferred ranking and was confirmed as the Emerging Preferred Option. Following on from the Public Display of the Emerging Preferred Option, the feedback received was considered by the Project Team leading to the adoption of the Emerging Preferred Option as the ‘Preferred Option’, and this will be taken forward to form the basis of TII PMG Phase 3 (Design and Environmental Evaluation).

The Preferred Option Corridor is typically 200m wide. The 200m corridor does not represent the actual width of the road scheme nor the lands to be acquired; the corridor indicates the lands within which the Mallow Relief Road scheme could be developed. The exact details of the land take, earthworks, junction and side road design and property impacts will be developed during the next Phase of the planning and design process.

The relief road will be a protected road and no direct access junctions will be permitted. The Preferred Option will include pedestrian / cycle facility along its full length. The Preferred Option includes offline active travel facilities that will provide a shared footway / cycle facility from the proposed relief road at Ballyviniter Lower to Beechers Street junction and include a direct link into Mallow train station. The Preferred Option will also include a link from the junction at the eastern end of the scheme to link up with the existing footway outside Mallow GAA complex that continues into Mallow Town.

The Preferred Option public consultation period will run between Monday 17^th of October 2022 and Friday 18^th of November 2022. During this non-statutory public consultation, we are inviting feedback on the Preferred Option. This can be done by accessing the Public Consultation virtual room at https://www.innovision.ie/mallow.

Drawings showing the Preferred Option are also available for inspection at the following locations:

View / Download online at mallowreliefroad.ie or using the virtual room at https://www.innovision.ie/mallow;
On display in the front window of Mallow Library, Main Street, Mallow;

The Preferred Option is also presented in this article below.

Queries can be submitted via the project customer services phone line on 0818 933 033 or by email at mallowrr@corkrdo.ie and arrangements will be made for a member of the project team to get in touch. Queries can also be posted to:

N72-N73 Mallow Relief Road Team,

Cork National Roads Office, Richmond,

Glanmire,

Co. Cork

T45 WA44

Public Consultation No. 3 – July 2021

OPTIONS SELECTION – EMERGING PREFERRED OPTION

Project Update

The Emerging Preferred Option Corridor is typically 200m wide. The 200m corridor does not represent the actual width of the road scheme nor the lands to be acquired; the corridor indicates the lands within which the Mallow Relief Road scheme could be developed. The exact details of the land take, earthworks, junction and side road design and property impacts will be developed during the next Phase of the planning and design process.

The relief road will be a protected road and no direct access junctions will be permitted. The Emerging Preferred Option will include pedestrian / cycle facility along its full length. In addition to the relief road, an Active Travel Corridor has also been identified along the disused railway line that may provide an opportunity for a new pedestrian / cycle facility with links between a proposed relief road at Ballyviniter Lower and Mallow Railway Station.

The Emerging Preferred Option public consultation period will run for 4 weeks between 24th June and 23rd July 2021. During this non-statutory public consultation, we are inviting feedback on the Emerging Preferred Option.

Drawings showing the Emerging Preferred Option are available for inspection at the following locations:

• View / Download online www.corkrdo.ie/major-schemes/;

• On display in the front window of Mallow Library, Main Street, Mallow;

The Emerging Preferred Option is also presented in this article below.

Queries can be submitted via the project customer services phone line on 021 482 1046 or by email at mallowrr@corkrdo.ie and arrangements will be made for a member of the project team to get in touch. Queries can also be posted to:

Cork County Council

Cork National Roads Office

Richmond

Glanmire

Co. Cork

Public Consultation Brochure No. 3

Online Feedback Form

Emerging Preferred Corridor- Discovery Mapping

Emerging Preferred Corridor – Aerial Mapping

Emerging Preferred Corridor- Vector Mapping

N72/N73 Mallow Relief Road Shortlisting – January 2021

Cork County Council are progressing the development of a scheme within a study area commencing from the existing N72 east of Mallow at Carrigpark and extending to the existing N20 to the north side of Mallow in Co. Cork.

The Phase 2 Stage 1 option selection process is now complete. Initial options presented during the first public consultation of July/August 2020 have now been assessed in accordance with TII Publications, leading to a short list of options.

In total 22 initial options were developed following consideration of the feedback from the public consultation and the identified constraints. All of these options were assessed under three criteria: Engineering, Environment and Economy. In order to develop the option design, preliminary ground level information within the study area was used to generate a preliminary 3-dimensional digital terrain model and preliminary assumptions were made for each option as to potential junction locations, side road crossings and realignments, river crossings and the like. Environmental specialists were engaged to provide a preliminary assessment of the options, and provide guidance as to the preference of the options.

The Shortlisted Options have been rationalised to facilitate straighter alignments to allow for safe overtaking opportunities. Each of the shortlisted options incorporates a typical 200m wide corridor to allow for further refinement of the option as the scheme develops. The corridor width does not represent the actual width of the scheme, nor the lands to be acquired for the scheme. They indicate the lands within which a scheme may be built, and where we will carry out walkover surveys, studies and design work in the next phase of the project. It should be noted that the boundary of an option corridor may be subject to change as the project develops to address any new or previously unidentified constraints emerging during the design process.

The shortlisted Options will be further assessed under Stage 2 of the TII Option Selection process. The assessment criteria will be ‘Economy’, ‘Safety’, ‘Environment’, ‘Accessibility and Social Inclusion’, ‘Integration’ and ‘Physical Activity’. The Options will be appraised under a number of sub-criteria under these main criteria to identify a Preferred Option.

The proposed road options will include pedestrian / cycle facilities along its full length. In addition to road options, Active Travel Corridors have also been identified that may provide opportunities to provide new or improved pedestrian / cycle facilities with links between a proposed relief road and Mallow Town and Mallow Railway Station. Consideration of active travel measures will also be investigated and assessed over the coming months.

At the end of Stage 2 of the Option Selection Process a further period of non-statutory Public Consultation will take place and the public will be able to make submissions or comments on the ‘Emerging Preferred Option.’

Drawings showing the Shortlisted Options and the potential Active Travel Corridors are available to view or download on www.corkrdo.ie/major-schemes/.

Any comments, or queries, can be submitted to mallowrr@corkrdo.ie or by phone on 021 482 1046

An indicative timeline for the way forward is set out below:

*subject to approval to proceed

Background

Cork County Council and Transport Infrastructure Ireland have been investigating options for the alleviation of traffic congestion in Mallow Town Centre and its approach roads. Previous schemes have been considered that include relief road route options to accommodate traffic flows on the national road network around Mallow, i.e. traffic travelling between the N72 Mallow-Killarney route to the west, the N72 Mallow-Fermoy-Dungarvan route to the east and the N73 Mallow-Mitchelstown to the northeast.

The N72/N73 Mallow Northern Relief Road is mentioned in the National Development Plan under National Strategic Outcome 2 – Enhanced Regional Accessibility. This designation for National Strategic Outcome 2 comes directly from Project Ireland 2040 – National Planning Framework. On the issue of Regional Development, Project Ireland 2040 refers to regional development as being an “essential cog for translating and delivering national policy at a local scale.”

N72/N73 Relief Road for Mallow Contract Signing in November 2019

In November 2019, a contract for the design preparation of the N72/N73 Relief Road for Mallow was signed by Cork County Council Divisional Manager James Fogarty with Barry Transportation Ltd. This signing marks the commencement of the concept and feasibility phase of the planning and design.

An Irish firm of engineering consultants specialising in the development of road infrastructure, Barry Transportation Ltd, have been appointed as Technical Advisors for the preparation of the design and associated environmental reports for the Scheme. The firm will provide all engineering, environmental, economic and appraisal services required to deliver the project through the planning and design phases.

Project Objectives

A number of objectives have been established for the project including:

– Improving regional accessibility;

– Reducing traffic congestion in Mallow Town;

– Improving journey times; and

– Improving safety along the route.

Public Consultation No. 1 – July 2020

The purpose of this public consultation is to inform the public of the initial potential options which have been developed to address the problems identified and the constraints identified to date. Public consultation forms an important part of advancing the design process and allows the involvement of the public in developing the Preferred Option.

A Brochure is available which gives an update on the project, its current status and the next steps. A Questionnaire and Online Feedback Form is also available to provide feedback and further information to the project team.

Public Consultation No.1 Brochure

Public Consultation No.1 Questionnaire – To be returned by the 18th of August 2020

Public Consultation No.1 Online Feedback Form

The project is currently at Phase 2 (Option Selection) of the TII Project Management Guidelines. One of the first stages of the options selection includes an examination of an area, within which all possible solutions could be identified. This area is referred to as the “Study Area”, which has now been established and is depicted in the drawing below.

N72/N73 Mallow Relief Road Study Area & Initial Preliminary Options

Within this Study Area, initial constraints have been identified and the planning and design work has commenced with the identification of the initial potential options. An option for improvement of the existing road network, including online widening of traffic management measures, shall also be considered. This Public Consultation will afford an opportunity for the public to be fully informed and to raise questions, concerns and comments for future consideration.

As part of the public consultation, drawings of the initial potential options and known constraints can be viewed at the following links:

Initial Potential Options Drawings

Stage 1 Route Options: 19415-BT-GN-ML-DR-C_4005_Stage 1 Route Options C01

Stage 1 Route Options with Constraints on Ortho Mapping: 19415-BT-GN-ML-DR-C_4014_Stage 1 Route Options, Ortho Mapping and Constraints C01

Mallow Relief Road Shortlisting: 19415-BT-GN-ML-DR-C_4028_Shortlist-Options-with-Active-Travel

Constraint Drawings

Monuments: 19415-BT-GN-XX-DR-Z_4200_Constraints Mapping_Monuments C01

Waste Facilities: 19415-BT-GN-XX-DR-Z_4202_Constraints Mapping_Waste Facilities C01

Groundwater Wells and Springs: 19415-BT-GN-XX-DR-Z_4203_Constraints Mapping_Groundwater Wells Springs C01

Groundwater Vulnerability:19415-BT-GN-XX-DR-Z_4204_Constraints Mapping_Groundwater Vulnerability C01

Groundwater Aquifer: 19415-BT-GN-XX-DR-Z_4205_Constraints Mapping_Groundwater Aquifer C01

Geological Heritage: 19415-BT-GN-XX-DR-Z_4207_Constraints Mapping_Geological Heritage C01

Quarries and Minerals: 19415-BT-GN-XX-DR-Z_4208_Constraints Mapping_Quarries and Minerals C01

Landslide Susceptibility: 19415-BT-GN-XX-DR-Z_4209_Constraints Mapping_Landslide Susceptibility C01

Crushed Rock Aggregate Potential:19415-BT-GN-XX-DR-Z_4210_Constraints Mapping_Crushed Rock Aggregate Potential C01

Bedrock Geology: 19415-BT-GN-XX-DR-Z_4211_Constraints Mapping_Bedrock Geology C01

Subsoils: 19415-BT-GN-XX-DR-Z_4212_Constraints Mapping_Subsoils C01

Corine: 19415-BT-GN-XX-DR-Z_4213_Constraints Mapping_Corine 2018 C01

Noise Day: 19415-BT-GN-XX-DR-Z_4214_Constraints Mapping_Noise Day C01

Noise Night: 19415-BT -GN-XX-DR-Z_4215_Constraints Mapping_Noise Night C01

Utilities: 19415-BT-GN-XX-DR-Z_4217_Constraints Mapping_Utilities C01

Geodirectory: 19415-BT-GN-XX-DR-Z_4218_Constraints Mapping_Geodirectory C01

Sensitive Receptors: 19415-BT-GN-XX-DR-Z_4219_Constraints Mapping_Sensitive Receptors C01

Health Centres: 19415-BT-GN-XX-DR-Z_4220_Constraints Mapping_Health Centres C01

Designated Areas: 19415-BT-GN-XX-DR-Z_4221_Constraints Mapping_Designated Areas C01

Combined Constraints – Eastern Study Area: 19415-BT-GN-XX-DR-Z_4226_Combined Constraints_Eastern Study Area C01

Feedback

Cork County Council values the opinion of the community on the project and welcomes comment from the public and interested parties. You can provide feedback by emailing the project team using the following email address mallowrr@corkrdo.ie. It would be appreciated if you could include the completed Questionnaire in any feedback to be provided.

RICHMOND, GLANMIRE,CO. CORK.

News