Independent Cllr Kieran McCarthy has noted it has been people power, which has led to changes to the National Transport Authority’s Cork Bus Connects project phase 1. Cllr McCarthy has now called on affected local residents to continue their engagement with the phase 2 of round of public consultation.

The National Transport Authority’s second phase of public consultation will run from 30 March until 25 May 2023. The latest round of public consultation centres on the Preferred Route Options are available to view on the Cork Bus Connects website.

View: Cork | Busconnects

Following the first round of public consultation, the NTA has been reviewing the almost 3,000 submissions made by the public and engaging constructively with 35 residents’, business and special interest groups across the city. Community Forums were also established for each corridor to enable a two-way dialogue with local communities to help inform the review process.

Cllr McCarthy noted:

“It has been a very long nine months in my local area as local residents worried about the results of the NTA consultation. The array of climb downs on proposed changes to local roads is to be welcomed. In Douglas and Ballinlough, the original proposals involved mass tree destruction of road side trees along Boreenmanna Road and urban forestry in the Mangala as well as vast CPO-ing of property across a number of local roads including Well Road. During last summer I was vocal that many of the proposals could be described as environmental vandalism.

I had so many impacted residents highly worried that their neighbourhoods would become wide motorways devoid of biodiversity and taking large chunks of their front gardens. My sincere thanks to the many residents’ groups who formed and lobbied for effective change, compromise and alternatives in the proposals. Great credit is due to their energy and effort.

The nature of Douglas Road’s future landscape is still in limbo. Residents and I still have concerns over the proposed half a kilometre of dismantling of historic stone wall and clearing largescale road side biodiversity.  I call on the NTA to listen to resident’s alternatives and to rethink about the large scale destruction of the road’s heritage. It is also highly important that affected residents attend the upcoming public consultation meetings and express their concerns”, concluded Cllr McCarthy.