After no shortage of controversy, west Mayo has a new road around which to build its future

The official opening of the new 20-kilometre N5 dual carriageway between Turlough and Westport attracted a visit by An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and much fanfare - yet was not deemed to be headline news by our national broadcasters, RTÉ.

The €250 million project, described to be the biggest ever government investment in Mayo, was not short of controversy during its three-year construction stage, not to mention its long planning phase.

It caused particular anxiety and stress for the families whose homes were knocked to make way for the new highway while there was also an extended period of disturbance for the residents of Breaffy Road in Castlebar due to prolonged rock-breaking and other works, forcing some to leave their properties for durations of time.

Lack of communications between the contractors, Wills BAM, and residents in the early stages led to a great deal of frustration and dismay.

There were also issues in regard to traffic delays, freedom of access and a row over the restoration of a wall in Islandeady, all of which epitomised the level of disruption that infrastructural projects of this nature invariably cause.

It was good to hear that those who were inconvenienced most were invited to attend the opening ceremony, some of whom did while others did not.

In the final analysis, the consensus is that west Mayo has been provided with a very good link between the busy towns of Castlebar and Westport which is certain to be beneficial to both in the long term, economically, socially and otherwise.

There are a few issues that have caused concern for some since its opening, most notably the absence of hard shoulders along the route and the apparent lack of access points for emergency services in the event of an accident.

A meeting of Mayo County Council’s tourism strategic policy committee was told by its chairman, Councillor Michael Loftus, that 11 accidents had already taken place on the dual carriageway since it was first opened to traffic some weeks ago, although the section between Islandeady and Westport did not open to traffic until last Thursday of last week.

This figure, it must be stated, has not been officially verified, but it’s a timely warning to motorists to exercise care on a road that may lend itself to driving faster than one might normally do.

From a scenic point of view, it shows up west Mayo at its best with Croagh Patrick very prominent on the approach to Westport.

Quick off the mark, just as he was during his football career, local TD Alan Dillon has wisely called for an economic study to further capitalise on the development.

He appealed to the Western Development Commission (WDC) to commission an economic study on the route with the objective to further develop critical infrastructure, enterprise and job creation as well as further enhancing our tourism sector.

As far as the writer can recall, Mayo County Council commissioned a study some years ago into how the project could establish closer commercial and community links between the two towns with the intention of establishing a west Mayo hub.

Now is the time to roll out the results of this analysis, if it has been completed, because such a blueprint for the future would be nothing short of invaluable.

Not that we will ever see the day when the two towns come together to amalgamate their forces in the sporting sphere, but there is potential for it happening in many other respects.

And that’s how it should be.