Southern Relief Road bridge will ‘provide access for majority of vessels’: O’Dowd

He was responding to a question at Stormont from Newry & Armagh MLA, Justin McNutly, who asked for “his assessment of the merits of facilitating the construction of a lifting bridge, as opposed to a fixed bridge, as part of the Newry Southern Relief Road project, in relation to protecting and enhancing (i) the Newry Ship Canal; (ii) the Albert Basin; and (iii) Newry’s maritime history, heritage and future potential”.

There have been calls for Mr O’Dowd to reconsider his decision to forge ahead with a fixed bridge, which campaigners say will prevent tall-masted vessels sailing into Newry.

The new Narrow Water Bridge, just a few miles up the road, will have a lifting bridge.

But Mr O’Dowd seems to be not for turning.

In response to Mr McNulty’s question, Mr O’Dowd said his department “has engaged extensively with the Department for Communities (DfC) Historic Environment Division (HED), who have responsibility for the designated Scheduled Monument of Newry Ship Canal which is considered as being of high historical significance”.

He added: “A lifting bridge would introduce new features of greater mass within the setting of the Ship Canal creating a detrimental impact on the Scheduled Monument. In contrast, a 50m fixed bridge will add features that would generally be less conspicuous in this setting.

“Both options would permit vessels access to the Albert Basin. Whilst the lifting bridge would allow unrestricted access, the opening of such a bridge would be restricted to allow its operation as a strategic route. The fixed bridge option provides a clearance of 12m height, which would provide access for the majority of vessels using the Newry Canal thereby protecting and enhancing Newry’s maritime history and heritage.

“It has been demonstrated through modelling that the proposed scheme will contribute to notable improvements in air quality within Newry City Centre as it will redirect traffic away from the city and along a dedicated route to Warrenpoint. This will have health benefits for residents living in Newry.”

Meanwhile, Mr O’Dowd’s party colleague, Liz Kimmins, asked the minister “to detail the decision-making process for the fixed bridge design for the Southern Relief Road”.

"Following an Executive Formation Act 2022 decision taken by the department, I undertook a review of the fixed bridge option,” he responded.

"My review considered a range of factors including engineering, economic, heritage impact and environmental assessments.

“The additional cost to the project to include the provision of an opening bridge would be in the range of £25m - £30m.

“After carefully considering this information, I confirmed that the decision for a 50m span non-opening fixed bridge design for the Southern Relief Road remained unchanged.

“The publication of the draft Statutory Orders and EIAR for the NSRR scheme will provide an opportunity for anyone to comment on the current proposals.”