Debate contribution: Roadworks: South Down

Debate contribution by Mrs Cathy Mason on 3 December 2024.

MLA

Mrs Cathy Mason

Party at the time

Sinn Féin

Date

3 December 2024

Type

Debate contribution

Business

Adjournment

Heading

Roadworks: South Down

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 4691447

Read the official Assembly record

Text

I thank my South Down colleague Diane Forsythe for bringing this important topic to the Chamber. I could not agree with her more: South Down is definitely the best constituency to represent. The debate could not be more timely, because, as winter conditions settle in and the darker evenings come in, icy roads are becoming the norm. It is critical that all road users feel safe and that they can drive with confidence. Our rural communities in particular face unique road safety challenges. It is imperative that their needs be prioritised. I welcome the announcement from the Minister of an additional £19 million investment in our roads and street lighting. That funding is a step in the right direction and will help ensure that roads are maintained, that street lights are repaired and operational and that our entire road network is as safe as possible, especially in the rural areas in which neglect has been felt most acutely. It is also welcome news that the Minister has fully funded the winter service. That will help ensure that our roads will be gritted and kept in the best possible condition during the colder months. Again, that is especially important for rural communities, where icy or untreated roads can mean isolation and, in some cases, life-threatening delays for emergency services. I welcome the completion of the £350,000 resurfacing and footway refurbishment of Church Street in Downpatrick. That project was jointly funded by the Department for Infrastructure and the Department for Communities. It has transformed a key gateway into the town, improving road safety and enhancing the area's overall appearance. Additionally, I welcome the ongoing work on Irish Street and Market Street, which includes the upgrading of traffic signals and further resurfacing improvements. Those works are vital not only for the residents of Downpatrick but for visitors and businesses that rely on the town's infrastructure. They show what can be achieved with targeted investment, and they serve as a reminder of the potential that fairer funding could unlock for our rural areas. I thank and congratulate the Downpatrick regeneration working group, which has championed those projects. While those measures offer much-needed relief to road users in the months ahead, it must be acknowledged that they come against a backdrop of years of underinvestment and cuts that British Governments have imposed. Decades of austerity have taken their toll, leaving many rural roads in South Down and, indeed, across the North in an unacceptable state of disrepair. For too long, rural communities have been forced to bear the brunt of underfunded infrastructure. Fairer funding from the British Government is urgently needed in order to address those disparities and to deliver long-overdue projects, such as the Ballynahinch bypass, which my South Down colleague mentioned. That vital project will not only reduce commuting times for workers and families who travel back and forth to Belfast and other local amenities but enhance road safety and accessibility for rural residents. Fairer funding is also critical for improving rural connectivity. For too many of our rural communities, poor infrastructure means longer, more expensive commutes, higher transport costs and limited access to essential services. Investing in our rural roads will help drive local economies, strengthen our agriculture sector and reduce the inequality that persists between urban and rural areas. Additionally, fairer funding would allow for long-term flood mitigation interventions, such as those that are urgently needed in Newcastle and Downpatrick and along rural roads such as the Carnreagh Road. Rural residents should not have to live in fear every time a storm warning is issued, wondering whether their home and community could be cut off or flooded. The interventions are not just about infrastructure but about giving rural families peace of mind and security in their daily lives. The roads in our rural areas are lifelines for those communities. They connect workers to jobs, children to schools and families to services. Poor infrastructure isolates those communities, making it harder for businesses to thrive and for young people to stay in their local area. Fairer funding would help reverse those trends, allowing us to build a road network that supports sustainable growth in our rural economies and enhances the quality of life for everyone. The Minister and Sinn Féin remain steadfast in our commitment to strengthening public services and addressing the neglect of rural infrastructure. It is imperative that we continue to press the British Government for fairer funding, recognising that investment in our roads is an investment in the safety, prosperity and well-being of our people. Our vision is one in which rural and urban communities are equally valued and in which no one has to endure poor road conditions, poor connectivity or the isolation that comes with inadequate infrastructure. It is about more than fixing potholes or gritting roads; it is about ensuring that all communities, no matter how rural, can thrive and prosper.

I ask the Minister — I look forward to hearing his response — and all the representatives in the Chamber to stand together with our rural communities in South Down. Let us work together to deliver the investment that our road network needs, the fairness that our rural residents deserve and the safety that all road users expect.

872 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

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Assessed 21 October 2026 at 11:43 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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