Motorway route will go via Mallow/Buttevant/Charleville

It has been confirmed that the route for the Cork/Limerick Motorway will go through Mallow, Buttevant and Charleville. The news was given to elected representatives at a meeting in Charleville yesterday (Wednesday).
In recent months there had been proposals from some quarters to abandon the Mallow/Charleville route and instead extend the existing Cork/Fermoy motorway to Cahir, but Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) said yes-terday that the route through Mallow was the best option.
Speaking to the Mallow/Vale Star after the meeting, Deputy Seán Sherlock welcomed the news, saying that it “knocked on the head” any speculation about the route of the motorway. He added that it could take another two years for a planning application to be made to An Bord Pleanala, “but at least we are confident about the route corridor being selected.
“The report also identified Mallow as a key hub for population growth in years to come,” he added, saying that TII is planning to speak to Irish Rail about the possibility of making Mallow a hub for rail travel.
The news was also wel-comed by Cllr Gearóid Murphy, who said it was an extremely important issue for local people and businesses. “The statistics show that the current road between Cork and Limerick is the second most dangerous road in the country.” Cllr. Murphy said. “It is really important that we have a motorway between the second and third biggest cities in the Republic, and that it can run as close to the current route of the N20 as possible. Any other route would be a disaster for North Cork, and would lead to Mallow, North West Cork and West Limerick being forgotten about.”