‘The roads are falling asunder’ – Cllr

Councillors are planning to lean on the additional local representation with the hallways of Leinster House for support in attaining additional funding for the county but, for now, they are preparing to write to the newly installed Minister for Transport asking him to increase the allocation for regional and local routes in Cavan.

Minister Darragh O’Brien, who is familiar with the Breffni county and its representatives from his time at the helm of the Department for Local Government, is to be asked to look favourably at any future road funding applications.

A discussion took place at the February monthly meeting of Cavan County Council, which took place at The Lavey Inn last week, and on foot of a motion tabled by Independent Brendan Fay.

His motion placed ‘particular emphasis’ on Restoration Improvement Grants ‘to enable our local and regional roads to be brought up to an acceptable standard to enable local business to function properly’.

He had tabled the motion in January without the context of impact caused by Storm Éowyn, but said the shock and damage left in its wake had opened people’s eyes to the importance of a well-maintained network.

In his own Cavan-Belturbet MD area, Cllr Fay said the L1250 connecting to Killeshandra was simply not now “fit for purpose”.

“We have to get more funding,” he told the meeting, adding that while there was “great work” being done across the county in patching up worn surfaces, any efforts to be proactive in addressing problems of deterioration before they get worse was hamstrung by a serious lack of fresh resources.

“The need for upgrading shouldn’t be left to the County Council to have to pay for,” opined Cllr Fay, noting that there are businesses operating in Cavan employing thousands of people and their future success is linked to the “need for better roads”.

His calls were seconded by Fianna Fáil’s John Paul Feeley, who said the problem is that funding remains at the same level of investment as just before the economic crash of 2008. And that’s without taking into account inflation, the rising cost of materials, and the need for more manpower.

“We need to be more ambitious,” encouraged Cllr Feeley, who highlighted the need for investment on the R2000 connecting Killeshandra and Carrigallen, and the Dernacreeve to Corlough road.

His party colleague referenced the Programme for Government and the promise to increase funding for new roads and the maintenance of existing roads. “I hope there will be a decent allocation for this council.”

Fine Gael’s Trevor Smith said that the council had sent a delegation to Dublin to meet with past ministers and their officials, suggesting that 2025 may be a make or break year for local roads.

He said close to a million euro was spent in the Ballyjamesduff MD in 2024 but more was needed.

There were potholes said Cllr Smith that were being filled but that, in as little as three weeks, they needed mending again.

“The material put in isn’t sticking,” said the Ballyjamesduff representative.

His party colleague, Winston Bennett, recommended that the whips from each of the parties and officials from council’s executive form a delegation that could represent their plight at any arranged meeting.

“The roads are falling asunder,” lamented Cllr Bennett. “Anyone who says they aren’t isn’t dealing with facts.”