Update issued on plans for roundabout at treacherous junction in Limerick

LIMERICK City and County Council is to buy 33 patches of land and close eight rights-of-way in south Limerick, in a move which will pave the way for a new roundabout at a known accident blackspot.

The local authority has long planned to build the roundabout at O’Rourke’s Cross in Bruree.

This is because as things stand, the busy crossroads has been the site of more than double the number of collisions expected in a section of national road like this.

READ MORE: 'Making it easy to charge wherever you are': New high-power EV charging locations for Limerick

Executive engineer with council, Deirdre Clarke, has previously outlined that there has been 19 material damage collisions, four minor, one serious collision and one fatality at O’Rourke’s Cross.

Last month, Limerick Live revealed that An Bord Pleanala had cleared the way for the council to compulsorily purchase the land to build the roundabout.

At the time, a spokesperson for the council confirmed it would be publishing a notice of this approval in a local newspaper, in accordance with legal requirements.

This has now happened, with the confirmation appearing over two pages in last weekend’s Limerick Leader.

The authority also added talks will take place with Transport Infrastructure Ireland to secure funding to advance the project to the design and construction stages.

This week, a council spokesperson said there was nothing further to add to this.

Members of the public who wish to view full details of the Compulsory Purchase Order approved by An Bord Pleanala can do so in a number of ways.

Between now and Wednesday, July 30, they can get details from the council’s corporate headquarters at its offices at Merchant’s Quay in the city, as well as its offices in Dooradoyle and Kilmallock.

By appointment only, the details can be viewed in the Mid-West Roads Design Office elsewhere in Dooradoyle.

On top of this, it can be viewed online here.

If there are no appeals against the decision to grant the Judicial Review will become operative at the end of this month.

There is a long history behind the provision of this roundabout.

Ultimately, council hopes to construct a new roundabout, and new approaches on the N20 to the junction.

A new cycleway and footway are proposed plus the relocation of bus stops, in order to do the work.

Councillors had initially approved the plans, a move which was rubber-stamped by An Bord Pleanala in 2021.

However, the scheme has attracted opposition from James Beechinor, who owns the N20 Service Station at the junction.

He is concerned about an inability to develop his business further with the roundabout in place, and effectively being left cut off by the development.

Mr Beechinor expressed the view in the past that a fifth arm to the roundabout would accommodate a seamless movement in and out of his service station without impeding safety.

He appealed An Bord Pleanala’s 2021 decision to approve the compulsory purchase of land to the High Court.

A judge quashed An Bord Pleanala’s ruling, forcing council to resubmit the application.

Now, following an oral hearing, the national planning authority has once again ruled in favour of the council's bid to compulsorily acquire the land.

Cllr PJ Carey previously said the junction can be “treacherous” and welcomed the news.

“The roundabout is obviously needed. I know a lot of people who work in Croom Hospital and in Limerick and they need this roundabout. They are caught on the Bruree side every morning and every evening,” he said.