Families of A5 victims meet minister to press case for road upgrade

Members of the Enough is Enough group travelled to Parliament Buildings, Stormont for a meeting with John O’Dowd on Tuesday.

A scheme to turn the road into a dual carriageway was first approved by the Stormont Executive in 2007 but it has been held up by legal challenges and uncertainty over funding.

Lobbying for progress, the Enough is Enough campaign group has highlighted the high volume of fatal collisions on the route, which links Londonderry with Aughnacloy in Co Tyrone.

There have been more than 50 fatalities on the road since 2006.

Minister O’Dowd is currently giving consideration to a report compiled by the Planning Appeals Commission following last summer’s public inquiry into the road-building project.

Kate Corrigan, whose son Nathan was killed on the A5 in December 2021, was among those who met the minister at Stormont.

“I was very taken by how he listened to me quite intently whenever I was saying about losing Nathan and the impact his death has had on us as a family and living in the local area of Garvaghy, how challenging it is for us to be there, given the diverse nature of traffic that’s passing through.

“I come at it from a very personal level, obviously having lost Nathan, but I’m from Garvaghy, I live along the A5, I’ve lived along there all my life.

“I’m doing all of this in Nathan’s memory and to make the change for our other son, for my family members, for the local community who still have to travel along that road, who have to negotiate busy junctions, congested areas.

“And so it’s for them that we’re here, we want to make the change. We just don’t want any other family, no more communities, being devastated in the way we have been and our lives have been impacted and changed.

“You wouldn’t wish it on your worst enemy and you just don’t want any other families having to go through what we’re going through. So that’s why we’re here. That’s why we want to make the change and we just hope what we do does make a difference.”

Niall McKenna, chairman of the Enough is Enough group, said the main concern was the prospect of another legal challenge if the upgrade is approved by the minister.

“We had a very positive meeting with the minister and the officials this morning,” he added.

“We were very impressed with his level of technical knowledge on the scheme.”

Mr McKenna added: “He’s very acutely aware of the pain that the families have gone through that have lost people and the need for a decision on how to stop the carnage on the road.”

Minister O’Dowd said it was “heartbreaking” listening to the families.

“It brought home to me starkly the responsibility I have in relation to road safety, to ensuring that we make an announcement in due course that is legally sound and that will create the change and deliver the Executive’s obligation in this regard in relation to the A5,” he told reporters at Stormont.

Mr O’Dowd said he was unable to give a timeline on when he would make his announcement on the road, insisting any decision he takes had to be “legally robust” to withstand likely future legal challenges.

He said anyone considering mounting a fresh legal bid to thwart the project should first listen to the bereaved families.

“It’s heartbreaking to listen to the experiences of families who’ve lost loved ones on this road, which is not fit for purpose, and who’ve lost loved ones on the road since the announcement was made 17 years ago that the Executive was going to upgrade this road,” he said.

“So it’s a road safety issue, it’s a humanitarian issue, it’s about delivering on an Executive commitment.

“Now, I have to make sure that I live up to my statutory obligations, and I will do that as I move forward towards my announcement. But this, when you bring it all back, this is a human story. There are too many people have lost their lives on this road.”

Members of the Enough is Enough group outside Parliament Buildings, Stormont after their meeting with John O'Dowd. Families who have lost loved ones on the A5 shared their stories with the Infrastructure Minister (Photo by PA)