Park and Ride is essential to addressing the rush hour traffic issues facing motorists coming into Galway City, says Fianna Fáil candidate in the General Election, Cllr John Connolly.
Cllr Connolly was recently informed by the NTA that they are pursuing the provision of 320 car park spaces on a site on the N83 in Claregalway and that two possible site options have been identified by the NTA Park and Ride Development Office with discussions with the landowners ongoing to see if one of these sites could be acquired by agreement.
In a further update, the NTA have advised Cllr Connolly of the progress made on the provision of a Park and Ride on the N6.
“According to communication received from the NTA, two emerging sites are being examined at Junction 16 on the N6 as options for a 550-space site for Park and Ride. The NTA have advised me that efforts to acquire the necessary lands by agreement have not been successful and it is now likely that a compulsory purchase order (CPO ) will be required, irrespective of which site is selected,” he said.
“Following finalisation of the site selection process in the next couple of months, the Park and Ride Development Office will then commence design on the selected site with a view to preparing planning consent and CPO documentation. Subject to planning consent, and the availability of funding, construction is expected to commence in early 2026.”
“I am asking the NTA to purposefully engage with both local authorities on this matter. The old airport site is adjacent to Junction 19 and there have been repeated calls for that site to be assessed as offering potential Park and Ride.”
Park and Ride at strategic locations around the city together with bus corridors are essential to addressing the rush hour traffic issues facing motorists coming into Galway City says Fianna Fáil candidate in the General Election, Cllr John Connolly.
“The development of Bus lanes is a central aspect of the Galway Transport Strategy. We haven’t progressed this at sufficient pace. There hasn’t been a bus lane built in Galway city for over a decade. Too much of our transport policy is determined by the department in Dublin who lack local insight.”
Cllr Connolly said that the development of a Park and Ride facility on the N6 would address the periodic traffic congestion approaching Coolagh Roundabout, though this would have to be supplemented with some level of bus priority in the westbound direction, probably in the form of a hard shoulder.
“If I am successful in this election, I will make the provision of park-and-ride sites served with Bus lanes to the city my top priority. This is the only way we will deal with long traffic queues morning and evening during peak time, on all routes in and out of the city.”
