Sinn Féin spokesperson on Transport and Communications, Martin Kenny TD, has said that the €600 million funding promise from the Irish Government for the A5 is "welcomed on both sides of the border".

Mr Kenny's comments come as the Government pledged approximately €600m towards the project, which has previously seen funding from Dublin removed during the recession. He said that his colleagues in Dublin and in the north "have been calling on Transport Minister Eamon Ryan to reaffirm the state's commitment to funding the upgrade for some time now".

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As the funding promise was made yesterday, 20 February, Teachta Kenny shared his thoughts with "the families and friends of those who have lost their lives on this treacherous road, and for whom this funding promise has come too late".

He said: "I hope that the promise of funding towards the upgrade can provide them with some solace that the upgrade is a step closer."

Mr Kenny added that the "announcement of a €600m towards the upgrade is very much welcomed on both sides of the border today. It is vital that this project now proceeds at pace, given the rate at which people across our communities are losing their lives when travelling on this road."