Cost of Glanmire's delayed traffic and infrastructure project triples
File Second Not Package Quarter Be Until Picture: 2026 Will Infrastructure Larry Pleted Cummins Glanmire's Of The
A transport and road improvement package to accompany housing developments in Glanmire is running five years later than planned and is set to cost three times what was initially expected.
The project was set to run in tandem with 300 housing units but will now service 408 units which were delivered in the area by the end of last year.
The infrastructure package will not be completed until the second quarter of 2026 — a similar timeframe for the development of transport infrastructure, road improvement works and parks in the south docks area of Cork City.
The projects were among 30 approved under the Local Infrastructure Housing Activation Fund (LIHAF) which had a four-year timeline from 2017 to 2021. The projects were expected to support the delivery of almost 20,000 housing units across the country.
However, a report published by the Comptroller and Auditor General said that six of the 30 were no longer proceeding. The total spend is expected “to amount to €197m for 24 projects completed, as compared to the original commitment of €147m for 30 approved projects.
Just 12 projects had been completed by the end of last year.
It said: “At the outset, 30 infrastructure projects were to proceed with LIHAF support, all to be completed by the end of December 2021. It was envisaged the projects would assist with the delivery of almost 20,000 housing units.”
The report added: “The department stated that there have been considerable price increases for construction materials since the original LIHAF cost projections. In particular, it notes that the cost of building and construction materials increased by 40% between June 2017 and June 2024.”
The report added that the cost of the Glanmire project increased by more than €9m — from €4.43m to €13.53m — due to revised cost estimates drawn up in 2020, with inflation and covid-19 also cited as increasing costs.
Meanwhile, a new distributor road planned for Mungret in Limerick has increased by €8.9m — from €7.88m to €16.74m “due to the specification of the road being increased to allow for installation of active travel measures and bus priority, and construction cost inflation.”
While it was initially envisaged that LIHAF projects would assist with the delivery of over 20,000 units, the figure was revised down to 16,000 units because six projects were not being pursued.