The A29 Cookstown Bypass was first proposed as part of the East Tyrone Area Plan in 1978, and some 46 years later the traffic congestion in one of Mid Ulster’s largest towns continues to build.
While a further 20 years of the Troubles led to best laid plans for infrastructure falling to the wayside, the two mile bypass still remains a distant dream of the 16,000 who pass through the town every day, 26 years on from the Good Friday Agreement.
A costing for the project in 2005 set an estimated price to just over £10m - almost 20 years later that has ballooned to more than £70m.
After renewed optimism at the inclusion of the project in the Mid South West Growth Deal, there will have been audible groans in Mid Ulster at the announcement of the UK government pausing the funding deal after a spending review.
A handsome £43m of the Cookstown Bypass funding had been earmarked from the Mid South West deal, and while some in Stormont still believe Downing Street’s arm can be twisted to “unpause” it, significant scepticism remains.
And so goes on the merry-go-round of investment in major infrastructure in Northern Ireland. A public inquiry is to begin next month into the project - all the while a cloud of uncertainty hangs over how the thing will be paid for.
The Stormont department responsible for the bypass says it remains committed to the “much needed project” but did not comment on the funding black hole now associated with it.
A spokesperson for the Department for Infrastructure said: “There is £43m of Executive funding identified for the Cookstown Bypass scheme within the Mid South West Growth Deal.
“The department continues to prepare this project for public inquiry which is scheduled to commence on 22 October 2024.
“The minister remains committed to this much needed project which will deliver significant benefits for Cookstown and the surrounding area.”
DfI says the new bypass would reduce congestion and accidents, improve air quality and bring more shoppers into the town centre, which was once a bustling market town.
The carriageway plans amount to around 2.5 miles, extending from the A29 Dungannon Road roundabout to the south of Cookstown.
Long periods of inaction on the plans can be seen in a timeline compiled by roads researcher Wesley Johnston.
It shows that 11 years passed between two separate announcements of a preferred route for the bypass - firstly in 2010 and later in 2021.
- 1978 - Scheme proposed in East Tyrone Area Plan
- 1999 - Scheme included in Cookstown Transportation Study
- 2005 - Included in Regional Strategic Transport Plan
- 2006 - Included in Sub-Regional Transport Plan for Cookstown
- June 2007 - Consultants appointed to progress design
- Late 2008 - Initial report recommends eastern corridor
- 10 June 2010 - Preferred route announced
- 7 Dec 2021 - Preferred route announced for second time
- 1 April 2024 - Draft legal orders to be published (as of Mar 2024)
- 16 April 2024 - Public exhibition
- 22 Oct 2024 - Public inquiry to begin 2026 - Best-case commencement of construction, assuming funding available (as of Aug 2023)
Mr Johnson says successive Infrastructure ministers have committed to the need for the bypass, but without the money the project will simply not go ahead.
“In a best case scenario, and assuming money is in place, work could get underway in 2026,” he says.
“However, there is now a question mark over this as over half of the £70m needed to complete the road is to come from the Mid South West Growth Deal, which is now in doubt.
“DFI will continue to progress the scheme, but without the cash, there will be no bulldozers on site.”
The office of Patsy McGlone, SDLP Mid Ulster MLA, sits on William Street in the town and he says the lack of progress on the bypass is hugely frustrating. He says he now does not have confidence that he will ultimately see the road built.
“I don’t know where we go from here to be honest,” Mr McGlone told The Irish News.
“The longer it goes on, the more expensive it becomes and the more unrealistic it seems.
“It did look with this funding that things were moving in the right direction, but we are well used to false dawns with this.
“It’s much needed - all you have to do is stand on Cookstown street to see why.
“You always live in hope and I do hope it happens, but roads aren’t built with hope, they’re built with tar.”
