Ballina to Bohola dual-carriageway plan turned down

An Bord Pleanala has turned down Mayo County Council’s plan for a dual carriageway, linking Ballina to Bohola and by-passing Foxford, because the road would intrude on the River Moy designated habitats.

Plan for new N26 to by-pass Foxford turned down by An Bord Pleanala.

The local authority and the National Roads Authority (NRS) have been asked instead to produce a “more modest” plan for the 19km N26 road which business and community leaders say is critical to the economic development of North Mayo.

Refusing permission for the road, the appeals board said it would “constitute an unacceptable intrusion into the Moy river valley and its designated habitats, and would be contrary to the proper planning and sustainable development of the area”.

The board described the Moy as “a salmon angling resource of major international significance” that  contributed to the economy of Co Mayo, noting that it had been designated as a special area of  conservation (SAC) and was also a proposed natural heritage area (NHA).

The blueprint, which included two major bridges over the Moy and two interchanges to serve Foxford, had been designed as a dual-carriageway even though an earlier upgrade of the N26 between Ballina and Mount Falcon was a wide single-carriageway.

Referring to existing and future predicted traffic volumes, the board said: “It has not been demonstrated that the proposed road scheme . . . is justified and that a more environmentally and economically sustainable road upgrade scheme is not available.”

In deciding not to accept the planning inspector’s recommendation to grant approval subject to conditions, the board noted the inspector’s concerns about the impact of the two proposed bridge crossings on sites for over-wintering whooper swans.

“The board considered that a precautionary approach needed to be taken in this case, having regard to the predicted traffic flows on the route, and that a more modest upgrade may be acceptable which complements the important resource of the river Moy,” it noted.

Fine Gael councillor Jarlath Munnelly, chairman of the Roads and Transportation SPC of Mayo County Council, described the news as an “enormous setback for the entire county”.