Westport 'is ready to boom' and needs southern relief road claims councillor
Cllr Brendan Mulroy calls on Mayo County Council to start plans for Westport Southern Relief Road
A WESTPORT councillor has called for the southern relief road for the town to be made a priority as he feels the numbers visiting the town will boom in the coming years.
The development of a southern bypass or relief road is a stated objective within the Westport Local Area Plan but it is not yet regarded as a top priority among officials in Mayo County Council or Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII).
The Westport Northern Relief Road was opened as part of the development of the N5 dual carriageway from Westport to Castlebar and joins the N59 Newport Road and local councillors believe it is time preparations are made to develop the southern relief road.
Speaking at the monthly meeting of the Westport/Belmullet Municipal District, Cllr Brendan Mulroy said that now is the time to prepare for the road as he believes traffic will only get worse in Westport.
“Westport has had its busiest year I have seen and is only going to get bigger and better,” he said.
“Westport House is ready to boom and their figures are off the charts and the Wyatt Hotel is expanding and the volume of people coming to Westport is great and something I have never seen. We need that southern relief road to happen as quickly as possible,” he said.
While the northern relief road has diverted traffic for Kilmeena and Newport from the town centre, motorists travelling towards Croagh Patrick, Louisburgh and Leenane still have to drive through Westport leading to traffic delays particularly in the summer months.
Cllr Mulroy, who is Cathaoirleach of the municipal district, said that while Westport is going to 'run into serious problems', they are 'good problems to have'. He added that the land corridor for the relief road has 'been sterilised for years' and the local authority should start planning for it.
Paul Hyland, Senior Executive Engineer with the Mayo National Road Design Office told the meeting that current projects being prioritised include the N26 from Ballina and the Ballina Relief Road and the Westport Southern Relief Road would be the 'next generation of projects'.