The need for the Galway City Outer Bypass is greater than ever, especially after last week’s traffic gridlock when the city witnessed some of the longest commuter delays in living memory.
This is the view of Fine Gael Galway West TD Brian Walsh who said the combination of high volumes of traffic and the various road works resulted in the gridlock and saw some motorists endure journey times of up to two hours between the east and west approaches to the city.
“Last week showed how just a series of minor road works could choke the main traffic arteries of the city and bring Galway to a standstill,” said Dep Walsh. “It served to highlight the dire need for additional and improved road infrastructure in the region.”
The An Bord Pleanála decision to grant permission for the proposed Galway City Outer Bypass was the subject of a legal challenge and the Supreme Court recently referred the matter to the European Court of Justice for a preliminary ruling on matters concerning European Law.
However Dep Walsh said there are also other factors causing a delay in the bypasses construction.
“The bypass has been in the pipeline for over 14 years but there hasn’t been the political will to make it a reality,” he said. “This has been used as a political football for too long. We need to stop playing games and do whatever needs to be done to bring this to fruition.”
Dep Walsh said Galway is now the only city in the State without an outer bypass and he believes this is proving to be “a major impediment” to the continued growth and development of the city.
“The bypass is critical to alleviating traffic congestion and integral to facilitating the redevelopment of Galway Harbour because access is going to be a major consideration in deciding whether planning is granted for that project,” he said.
Dep Walsh said construction of the bypass would create investment and employment and its completion would result in the alleviation of traffic problems.
