Welcome
During the course of the project, relevant information and project updates will be posted on the project website: https://mallowreliefroad.ie/.
Project 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.
What’s Happening Now
The project is currently at Phase 3 (Design and Environmental Evaluation) of Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) Project Management Guidelines.
Following the first public consultation, 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. Each option was then critically reviewed and concluded that Option C had the most preferred ranking and was confirmed as the Emerging Preferred Option.
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 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.
At Phase 3, Design and Environmental Evaluation, the purpose of this phase is to develop the scheme from the identification of the preferred option to a stage where sufficient levels of detail exist to establish land take requirements, to identify and mitigate Project impacts, to develop the environmental reports as required and to progress that stage through the statutory processes.
What’s Happening Next
The next stage of the process is Phase 4 under the TII Project Management Guidelines for the preparation of the Statutory Documents. This will involve the preparation of the land take drawings for the affected landowners, the publication of the Compulsory Purchase Order, and the submission of the required information to An Bord Pleanala to apply for permission for the construction of the scheme and to purchase the required land. An Oral Hearing may also be required at this stage.
Further links
Further information can be accessed on the project website: https://mallowreliefroad.ie/.
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.