Tipperary farmer has reservations about new bypass plan

Tipperary farmer John Kavanagh has come out to say he doesn’t completely agree with the council’s plans for the N24 Waterford to Cahir project, which will cut across part of his farmland.

Mr. Kavanagh, who previously worked for Concern abroad on projects like building roads and hospitals there, said about the plans: “It seems like a lot of money to spend on a road that's not actually serving any village or town but is avoiding every single one of them. This is an example of a very rich country that can afford to do that. Poor countries link villages to villages and then those villages to towns.”

His past experience has given him a very different viewpoint than most locals living on the route of the proposed bypass. Most locals want a bypass as this would mean most traffic will no longer travel alongside their homes on rural roads.

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Of course the main reasoning behind the proposal of a bypass is safety, it would ensure there are less HGV’s travelling through towns like Tipperary Town. Mr. Kavanagh understands this and has proposed an alternate plan. Instead of building one big, long road passing through every town and village, build alternate roads alongside these towns and villages. He argues that companies building these roads have no incentive to make things cheaper for the taxpayer.

If they build a very long road they make more money, said Mr. Kavanagh. A smaller road alongside towns and villages where HGV’s pose a safety issue would be cheaper to build and therefore companies would not make as much profit.

“Everybody wants this, but is it necessary?” asks Mr. Kavanagh, who knows that HGV’s cannot continue to go through towns safely. He means everyone wants this long road that bypasses their own front door for their own benefit, but he argues it is a very expensive option compared to his idea of alternate roads alongside towns and villages.

He also commented that local farmers are not happy about the plan “Every farmer is against it.” said Mr. Kavanagh. He said that it will most definitely affect farming for everyone along the proposed route. Farmers will have to build underpasses if they need to move to the other side of the bypass, he stated. They will have to do this with their own money also. He said to look at the road build in Charleville to bypass the town. It was built at minimum cost and it solved the problem. Why can’t this be done here also, asked Mr. Kavanagh.

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