Traffic plan is critical to success of cable laying

A workable traffic management plan ‘that’s well policed’ will be the key to a smooth completion in the laying of a 110 kilo volt electric cable linking Ballybrit to Roscahill, according to a local councillor.

Work on the 26 kilometre (16 miles) link is expected to start over the coming summer, and when completed, the power sub-station at Ballybrit will be linked into a Connemara wind farm.

Menlo councillor, Frank Fahey, told the Galway City Tribune, that the project was a very positive one for the city and region but there were obvious concerns over the impact of the work on traffic management.

“In fairness to SSE Renewables [the energy company involved in the project] they have been in very close contact with the local communities.

“With a detailed and workable traffic management plan that’s well policed, then it’s a project that should be able to be carried out with the minimum of disruption to traffic,” said Cllr. Fahy.

A spokesman for the City Council told the Galway City Tribune that a detailed traffic management plan would have to be submitted to the Council by the company involved in advance of the work being carried out.

“There will some temporary road closures during the course of the work but all of those will be contained in the Traffic Management Plan to be submitted by the company,” said the spokesman.

The projected output from the Galway Wind Farm project is expected to be enough to provide ‘green energy’ power for 84,000 homes.

Part of the project will involve the laying of the 110kv line under the bed of the Corrib in line with a number of environmental considerations.

The Corrib will be crossed at a point south of Menlo Castle and the cable will then be laid along the roadway via the roadway adjacent to the Menlo Park Hotel and continue onto Ballybrit via the dual carriageway. West of the Corrib, the cable will be laid along the route of the N59 Galway/Clifden Road.

Cllr. Terry O’Flaherty said that the key to the smooth running of the cable laying project, lay in the preparation of a detailed traffic management plan.

“This is a very important energy link for both the city and county but it is important that traffic disruption is kept to a minimum while the work is being carried out,” said Cllr. O’Flaherty.

The Galway City Tribune understands that the project will be a ‘stand alone’ operation with no other service providers involved.

Sixty nine giant wind turbines, to be located in the Roscahill area and brought in through Galway Docks, will power the green energy link.

Overall the entire project is expected to create up to 300 jobs in the construction process and another 15/20 in more long term operation and maintenance positions. The cable trench will be 1.1 metres deep and 0.7 metres wide.

Galway Wind Park (GWP) will be a collection of four wind farms and the cable line from the 110kv sub-stations at Knockranny (Roscahill) and Ballybrit will, according to SSE, commence construction during this summer.

“As part of its ongoing community engagement, SSE Renewables met with Menlo community representatives and residents on two occasions last summer and late 2014, to outline planned works associated with the construction of this underground grid connection

“SSE Renewables remains committed to ongoing community engagement in advance of the commencement of works later this year,” the company said in a statement issued to the Galway City Tribune.