Dear Editor,
An Taisce would not normally agree with anything said by the NRA (National Roads Authority). But it has been reported that the NRA have said, that to build a major new arterial road out from Galway city into the heart of Connemara, would not represent "good value for money" ..... then we heartily agree.
We trust that a stake has now finally been driven through the heart of this environmentally unsustainable and quite destructive project!
Whatever about improving the quality of surface, and the safety of existing roads, building motorways into Connemara was never on!
With all this talk about roads, it is becoming all to easy to see that an election is on the way. This is especially when you hear government politicians, who seem to have no agenda available to them which promotes a responsible approach to transport planning, but who continue to support an unsustainable large scale roads building programme which they believe will, somehow, resolve Galway's growing problem with traffic congestion.
The problems that have been created in Claregalway by crass bad planning, were foreseen by An Taisce many years ago. But as usual, no one listened. The fact that bad spatial planning decisions have destroyed this once peaceful village and, have created a commuter driven nightmare in its place, was, somehow, not seen by planners and politicians is almost incredible. It is simply daft that there are now to be two roads built to relieve Claregalway of its traffic congestion problem.
The building of a short-term 'temporary' bypass, promoted by thoughtless 'vote-seeking' politicians, while at the same time they continue to promote an N17 Road Improvement Scheme, which seems to be further away than ever, seems to be planning gone mad.
It is weII known at this stage that Ireland cannot continue with an unsustainable largescale road-building programme, or its unbalanced approach to transport infrastructure provision. For instance, a key finding made Iast year, using data from the Booz Allen Hamilton report into Irish railways, the Strategic Rail Review was that railways are returning an extraordinary - and unaccounted for - 900 million euro annually to Irish society in indirect benefits (time saved, emissions curtailed, accidents prevented, etc).
A good enough reason surely to speed up development of the Western Rail Corridor? Especially from Tuam to Galway ! We now also have a better picture of the economic impact of climate change - NUl Galway bas the National Climate Change Institute on campus - resulting in deteriorating air quality, congestion, social stress and escalating oil prices. Thus, as the economic benefits of a roads-hased culture decrease significantly, SO the economic benefits of public transport increase dramatically.
With this information available to them, what do our politicians do ? They starve public transport utilities of funding, and continue to build more roads.
Now that the British are to consider roads pricing' and the NRA are to charge a toll for those using any Outer By-pass which may, or may not, be built around Galway. Surely it is time for the Grealish's, O'Ciuv's (sic) and Fahey's of this world to start talking about Galway's real need, which is for the development of a decent public transport system wbich serves us all ?

Yours faithfully
Derrick Hambleton,
Chairman,
An Taisce - Galway Association.

A Connemara councillor said this week that, without the development of a proper roads Structure in Connemara, the problems of depopulations and under development would continue. Councillor Seosamh Ó Cuaig said that it was the decision of Galway County Councillors that a new road was needed from Galway into Connemara.

Councillor Ó Cuaig was teacting to a statement from An Taisce (see left) which Welcomed the fact that the National Roads Authonty had said it would not fund such a new road .... but he pointed out that the NRA had already ruIed-out major development of the existing main road because of the number of openings on to the existing road.

The NRA said in a letter to Minister Éamon Ó Cuív TD on May 30 that it could "not support any plan to build a new road directIy from Galway to West Connemara. between existing N59 and R366 roads" for a number of reasons .... the road would serve a very Iimited population, and the population was concentrated along the coast and along the N59, it pointed out.
It also said the route proposed was, in part, a Special Area of Conservation and would require compelling reasons for the NRA to build there, and the proposed route would be very expensive, involving construction through hills and bog.

Reacting to the situation Councillor O Cuaig said he was dismayed that a meeting between the NRA and Minister Ó Cuív had gone ahead, but that local councillors had been excluded from the meeting ... yet the Roads and Transportation Committee of Galway County Council had decided that a new road was needed. Local councillors should have had the opportunity to make an input to such a meeting, not Oireachtas members.

The NRA itself, said Councillor Ó Cuaig, had admitted that the upgrading of the existing road was impossible because of all the openings on to that road . ... there are 110 openings between Barna and Casla, he pointed out.
He pointed out that the County Council had been in touch with the Department of the Environment directly on the issue of a new road seeking money to prepare a plan for such a road, and after that the issue of the route of such a road would arise.
He said that the community in Connemara in some cases was 'dying on its feet' because of lack of development and opportunity. For instance, how could developments such as Rossaveal (sic) Harbour, and Cill Chiaráin as a centre of excellence in the fish-farming area, go ahead with a road structure that could not support such development. He wouldŠ(sic)

an dá alt seo ón An Cúradh Chonnachtach 17/6/05