'Give Tipp the same as Offaly' - calls for urgent bog road repair funding

A discrepancy in funding between Tipperary and Offaly for the repair and upkeep of lanes and bog roads has been criticised by a local Councillor.

A war of words erupted at Nenagh Municipal District Council over a call by one councillor for a pilot scheme to be brought in to fix the bog roads around Lower Ormond.

Independent Councillor Michael O’Meara had submitted a notice of motion calling for funding to match the €160,00 that had been given to Offaly for similar types of roads.

“We have as many bog roads as Offaly,” he said after he was told by district administrator Rosemary Joyce that Tipperary had been chosen for a €4m scheme for non-national roads.

“This is a chestnut for me,” said Cllr O’Meara. “All you have to do is look at the roads in my area. They are deplorable.”
While he knew funding had been received for the Shannon Crossing at Ballina, he said that was “no good for the people in my area”.

He said one road of just 3.5km was “deplorable” and a farmer whi needs access to his land is finding the situation unworkable.

“We are second class citizens; we pay our road taxes. Several farmers have told me that milk lorries can't use the roads to collect milk from the farms”, Cllr. O'Meara pleaded.

He blamed dry summers for cutting the roads to ribbons as forestry planted along the edges had sapped water from under the road surfaces, leaving them depleted of moisture.

It was a new phenomenon which can be traced to climate change and longer hotter summers Cllr. O'Meara said.

“I won't stop raising the issue and I hope collectively we can get something done on it or we will face national media scrutiny and meetings in local community halls”, he said.

District Manager, Macus O’Connor said he noted Cllr O’Meara’s comments, but roads funding had been increasing.

“If there was more available we could spend it,” he said, adding that Tipperary had been particularly succesful on other pilot projects.

Mr O’Connor said that the money received by Offaly would only remedy “a kilometre or two”.

“It is a pilot project, just that, a pilot project. They only got a small amount,” he said.

Mr O’Connor disagreed with Cllr O’Meara that any area was left behind when it came to roads funding.

However, Cllr Joe Hannigan agreed that there were some roads in Lower Ormond that needed immediate attention.

“We need money targeted at these bog roads,” he said.

Cllr Ger Darcy agreed the roads were “particularly bad” in Lower Ormond.

He suggested the council try get money for the area as a special case.

“I'm a rural dweller myself and I see people having great difficulty accessing their lands and farmyards because the roads are unusable”, Cllr. Darcy told the meeting.