Tipperary bypass project 'shunned' says local councillor

Councillor Micheál Lowry has said that the Thurles bypass project has been “shunned”.

He said that although the project was essential, there has thus far been a reluctance to progress the bypass project.

“It think its clear that, at a national level, the project has been shunned, said Cllr Lowry. Cllr Lowry said he hoped that the inner-relief road would be successful, indicating what can be done with a bypass.

He made his comments in support of his district colleague Seamus Hanafin at the Tipperary County Council budget meeting this week.

Cllr Seamus Hanafin called for the bypass project to become a priority. He said the roads in Thurles are too narrow and were not designed to accommodate this level of traffic.

“That cannot be hammered home enough.

“We have to find a way to get it,” said Cllr Hanafin.

Speaking about the inner-relief road, Cllr Hanafin said the project “must be finalised.”

He said that although it will not solve the congestion problems in Thurles, it will provide a second river crossing.

This will be essential if the education institutions are to expand, he said. Director of Roads at Tipperary County Council, Marcus O’Connor, said that they had done quite a bit of work on the bypass project ten years ago.

“Unfortunately, it didn’t appear on the National Development Plan, so in other words, TII won’t fund it,” said Mr O’Connor.

On the inner-relief road, Mr O’Connor said they are still working on acquiring the land.

However, he said that progress has been made in the past few days,and they will have an update shortly.