A series of events are set to take place showcasing the preferred route for the A29 Cookstown Bypass and Sandholes Link Road.

This exhibition will be held in the Burnavon Arts and Cultural Centre, Burn Road, Cookstown between the hours of 11am to 9pm on Tuesday 07 and Wednesday 08 December. Due to the Covid restrictions, a booking system of half hourly time slots is in place and appointments must be made with the booking office at the Burnavon Arts and Cultural Centre at 028 867 69949 (using Option 1).

Announcing the events, Infrastructure Minister Mallon said: "Last year I announced my intention to progress a number of strategic road improvement schemes as part of my plan to aid economic recovery and community transformation and address regional imbalance. One of these projects was the A29 Cookstown Bypass so I am pleased that we are now in a position to provide details of the preferred route to the local community.

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"The proposed route which is approximately 4km has been designed as a wide single carriageway, with overtaking opportunities in both directions. As part of my commitment to delivering green infrastructure and providing greater opportunities for active travel I am pleased to confirm there will also be provision of a footway/cycleway along the entire scheme. The project also includes plans to upgrade the Sandholes Link Road including the provision of a footway/cycleway.  

"The Cookstown Bypass scheme provides a significant opportunity to remove strategic traffic from the town centre of Cookstown. In parallel with design development of the bypass scheme, it is also planned to commission a separate feasibility study on how the decongestion benefits of the proposed bypass can facilitate the enhancement and reshaping of Cookstown town centre to promote sustainable travel choices, connect people and communities and create a thriving and liveable space.

"I would encourage the local community and interested stakeholders to book into the slots for the public information events where they will have the opportunity to view the plans and discuss the details with my officials."

The scheme exhibition and brochure can also be viewed virtually and this will be available from Tuesday 07 December here.

This will also provide an opportunity to engage with Departmental staff and the engineering consultants who can provide detail on work to date and the emerging plans to progress the scheme.