Plans progressed for park-and-ride facilities at three locations in Limerick

THREE new park-and-ride facilities are being planned for locations on the fringes of Limerick city.

Buses will pick up passengers and take them into, or across Limerick in the Raheen area, plus at either Clondrinagh or Coonagh near the county boundary .

The local authority has already bought lands near the Mackey Roundabout to facilitate a park-and-ride facility which will serve Castletroy and the city centre.

Information about the proposed park-and-rides on the northside and in Raheen came to light following questions at this month’s metropolitan meeting.

Fine Gael councillor Olivia O’Sullivan was told the local authority and National Transport Authority (NTA) are scoping out sites for park-and-ride facilities in Coonagh or Clondrinagh, where a new service station recently opened.

“Consideration is being given to a temporary park-and-ride facility to serve commuters in the short term. This option is in the early stages of development,” wrote council transport executive Ciara Power.

Labour councillor Joe Leddin was told that talks are ongoing with local landowners in the Raheen area to acquire a site for a park-and-ride there.

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Cllr O’Sullivan has welcomed plans for a park-and-ride on the northside, pointing out many people use Ennis Road and Condell Road to access the city.

“There is a lot of traffic. You have to remember, we have people coming to work in the city from Clare. For the first time we are getting a bus running from Coonagh Cross to UL. It's really important for our side of the city because it's been difficult to get UL students out. Students will come in from Clare, be able to come to a park-and-ride and be bussed across to the university,” she said.

This new service is due to be introduced as part of the BusConnects scheme - to be rolled out next year.

“If we are talking about removing traffic through our city, park-and-rides are a solution to it,” added Cllr O’Sullivan.