Anticipating an expansion of its population, Cork City Council has appointed SNC-Lavalin’s Atkins as lead technical advisor on a project to upgrade a congested highway considered vital for economic growth.
Congestion now causes unreliable peak-hours service on the 15.5km N40 ring road.
The stretch to be upgraded runs from the Dunkettle Interchange to the east of Cork to the Poulavone Junction (N22) to its southwest.
Atkins’ associate director John O’Donovan called it “a great multi-disciplinary win that will include concept design, feasibility and option selection”. The company will assess design solutions, including for the stretch’s 11 grade-separated junctions.
John Stapleton, Senior Engineer at Cork City Council, added: “Cork City is set to experience significant population and economic growth in the period to 2040 as referenced in Project Ireland 2040, the National Planning Framework and the National Development Plan.”
Atkins will also use its Carbon Assessment Tool to calculate the carbon impact of various transport options being considered.
