High Court to hear challenge to proposed €220m M28 Cork to Ringaskiddy project
The High Court will tomorrow hear a challenge to An Bord Pleanála’s decision to grant planning permission for €220m works that would upgrade a national road in Cork to motorway status.
The 12.5km M28 development links the Bloomfield Interchange on the existing N28 junction with the N40 South Ring road junction and the Port of Cork to the east of the village of Ringaskiddy.
An Bord Pleanála gave the development the green-light last June following a lengthy oral hearing at which a number of objections were raised.
Tomorrow Mr Justice Michael McGrath will hear the objections of the M28 Steering Group, an umbrella organisation of residents' associations representing some of the households living in areas close to the route of the proposed motorway.
It is expected to cite issues such as a lack of notice and consultation, failure to comply with relevant EU directives, and project-splitting as reasons why the planning authority’s decision should be overturned.
Those in favour of the route enhancement say it will improve safety standards and is necessary to service the Port of Cork’s relocation to Ringaskiddy.
Proponents say the motorway is necessary for freight transport to access the new port location, and that the infrastructure will play a key economic role in the region.
Among the concerns expressed by objectors is the proposed motorway’s proximity to homes in Douglas, Rochestown, and Maryborough Hill.
Residents fear the noise levels coming from the road combined with the pollution from passing traffic will have a severely detrimental impact on their quality of life.
The Steering Group has previously said its preliminary legal advice is that there are “strong grounds for seeking a judicial review” of the decision.
Last September at the High Court Mr Justice David Barniville, who is the designated judge to hear challenges against decisions concerning strategic infrastructure developments, said the case was one which was suitable for inclusion in the fast track list designed to speed up hearings concerning strategic infrastructure.
The M28 Steering Group claimed the planning board’s decision is flawed because the application for permission was premature, incomplete and does not meet the requirements of national and European law.
It also submitted that there was a failure to consider the whole project or the cumulative effects of the proposed development.
The group claimed that it is proposed that material is to be extracted from a disused quarry, known as Raffeen Quarry, located along the route. It said the quarry has become of significance ecologically and is home to an array of protected flora and fauna.
No proper assessment of the proposed roadworks on the quarry has been carried out, it claimed. Counsel said it is the group’s case the material is to be extracted from the quarry to construct the roadway at a rate that is between 10 and 30 times greater than what is permitted.
In its proceedings the group sought an order quashing the planning authority’s decision of June 29 last approving the project. It also sought declarations including that the council failed to assess the environmental impacts of the proposal as a whole and that it failed to carry out an environmental impact assessment.
