The Commission was appointed by the Department for Infrastructure Roads (DFI) in 2019 to hold a public inquiry under Article 67A of the Roads (Northern Ireland) Order 1993 into the A5 dual carriageway scheme in the Western Transport Corridor. Stages 1 and 2 of the inquiry took place in February and March 2020. An interim report to DfI was forwarded in September 2020 which recommended that further work be carried out to assess flood risk and alternatives to the proposed scheme. DfI accepted these recommendations and in March 2022 published a new addendum to the Environmental Statement along with updated reports which they consulted on. Meanwhile, the inquiry stood adjourned.
The inquiry will re-open at 10.30am on Monday, 15th May 2023 in the Strule Arts Centre, Townhall Square, Omagh, and will continue there until Friday, 19th May. During that week, the environmental statement, the habitats reports and the proposed supplementary vesting order will be discussed. After a week’s break, the inquiry will convene in Omagh Enterprise Centre, Gortrush Industrial Estate from Tuesday, 30th May to Friday, 2nd June 2023, when strategic issues (including the justification for the scheme, alternatives, funding and phasing) will be discussed. A more detailed agenda will be posted on this website closer to the re-opening date.