The Court of Appeal has refused an application to stop the controversial Shannon River crossing in Ballina – Killaloe.
The 40 million euro project, which aims to ease chronic traffic congestion in the twin towns, has been in the pipeline for several years.
The Shannon crossing project involves a new bridge along with link roads between Ballina and Birdhill…
The towns are currently linked by a single lane 14th century bridge…which causes chronic traffic congestion.
An Bord Pleanala held a 9 day oral hearing into the Shannon Crossing project in October 2012 before granting permission in April of 2013…however local residents and environmental campaigners opposed this and brought a judicial review to the High Court.
On the 4th of May last, the High Court dismissed the challenge to the 40 million euro project in Ballina – Killaloe and ruled it could go ahead.
However, this decision was then appealed to the Court of Appeal…where it has now failed.
In his ruling, Mr. Justice Paul McDermott dismissed claims that the High Court's decision didn't take into account points of law of exceptional public importance.
Peter Sweetman, the man behind the objections to the project, has said he will make up his mind about whether to take the matter further in the coming days.
40 million euro has been ring fenced for the project in the 2016-2021 Capital Investment Plan.
