A call has been issued to Tánaiste Simon Coveney to commit additional government funding to drive forward the A5 road upgrade project.

The £150 million scheme aims to create a new stretch of road spanning 85km, running from New Buildings, via Strabane, Newtownstewart, Omagh and Ballygawley and terminating in the border area of Aughnacloy.

The project was stalled after the government redirected €27 million of its funding to help plug the overspend on the National Children's Hospital.

-- Advertisement --

Mr Coveney has already pledged commitment for funding from the Irish government to facilitate the project, but additional funds are needed to bring the scheme forward quickly.

Sinn Féin MP Órfhlaith Begley said: "The A5 road upgrade is a vital infrastructural project which we need to see delivered as soon as possible. 

"I along with my Sinn Féin colleagues have been working hard to secure the delivery of this much-needed upgrade.

"The completion of the A5 will not only improve road safety but will also provide a vital boost to the economic regeneration of the wider north west,” the West Tyrone MP added. "The A5 project has received widespread support and Sinn Féin will continue to lobby the Department of Infrastructure and the Irish government to ensure work begin and the project is delivered urgently."

The Department for Infrastructure is hopeful that stage one will commence in late 2019 or early 2020.

(CM/MH)