A6 upgrade: Gregory Campbell says questions remain over delays

Lessons must be learned from the delays to the long-awaited A6 road upgrade, DUP MP Gregory Campbell has said.

The 16-mile (25.5km) stretch of road between Londonderry and Dungiven will open on Thursday. Work started in 2018 but has been beset by continual delays.

Mr Campbell also reiterated his calls for a public inquiry into the project.

The Department for Infrastructure's (DfI) Kaine Lynch said the project had to be delivered "in extremely challenging circumstances".

He added there were many factors as to why there had been delays to the road opening, citing the Covid-19 pandemic, the increased costs of building materials and some materials being in short supply.

Starting at the village of Drumahoe, the 16-mile section of dual carriageway will include a bypass around Dungiven.

The road opened with speed limits and lane restrictions for a short period in summer 2022, but then later closed again as work continued.

Speaking to BBC Radio Foyle's Breakfast Show, Mr Campbell said it was "exceptionally good news" that the project will be open before the Easter break.

"It is great news but we should have had more information throughout - this was due to be finished more than a year ago," the East Londonderry MP said.

Mr Campbell said a public inquiry should happen, but added "what is probably more important now is that the lessons of the delay over the past 18 months need to be learned for any future projects".

In Dungiven, local people welcomed the news.

Sheila McCartney from local clothing and giftware shop Nora & Katie said there was "huge potential" for businesses and tourism.

"We're just really looking forward to a nicer, less polluted, quieter Dungiven," she said.

Local butcher Dessie McAleese said he was looking forward to the road's opening on Thursday.

"It's brilliant for the town because it is very congested, especially at the weekends, and the parking facilities are terrible."

Kaine Lynch said the DfI was "delivering the largest road infrastructure project ever in Northern Ireland.

"We experienced the war in Ukraine, Covid-19, material shortages and supply chain issues."

Mr Lynch said that in terms of scale of the project, they had more than 600 people working on the site in peak periods, have excavated enough material to fill Wembley Stadium in London and planted close to 750,000 trees.

He conceded that "people have waited a long time for this road" but said that he is delighted that road users will be able to reap the benefits of it from Thursday.

Mr Lynch said 15,000 vehicles use the route each day and it will reduce journey time from Drumahoe to Dungiven by about 45% and be a "significant benefit" to improving road safety.

The DfI had previously said the initial estimate of £220m was now likely to be in the region of £250m.

"That is in the region of 12% over where we originally estimated," Mr Lynch said.

"I know £30m is a lot of money, but given the scale of the project and the scale of the challenges that we faced I think that is a pretty good outcome."