Decision due next March on new Galway ‘Cross-City Link’ bus route

A decision from An Bord Pleanála on the planning application by Galway City Council for the proposed new Cross-City Bus Link is now due by March 1 of next year.

The formal planning application by the local authority was lodged on October 18 by the City Council and followed on from a non-statutory public consultation process which began last year.

If the Cross-City Link – from University Road to the Dublin Road via Eyre Square – is given the go-ahead by the Planning Appeals Board, the project is expected to take between 12 and 18 months to complete.

Officially titled ‘the BusConnects Galway Cross-City Link’, the project is expected to have major implications for motorists currently using the city-centre as a ‘through-traffic’ route.

According to the An Bord Pleanála, the planning application does not involve either an Environmental Impact Assessment Report (EIAR) or a Natura Impact Survey (NIS).

The City Council is partnering with the National Transport Authority in the project which aims to provide a ‘public transport corridor’ linking the western and eastern suburbs of the city.

“This corridor will connect homes with places of work, study, retail and recreation, with improved public transport journey times and reliability.

“High-quality public spaces; new and upgraded pedestrian and cyclists’ facilities; and public transport priority, will be provided making it easier to move through the city and to access destinations by sustainable means,” the City Council stated at the launch of the public consultation process.

The Cross-City Link would start at the junction of University and Newcastle roads continuing on over the Salmon Weir Bridge, St. Vincent’s Avenue, Francis Street, Eglinton Street, Eyre Square, Forster Street, College Road and onto the Dublin Road.