Scarffe's Entry to Dublin Road Link, Omagh - Northern Ireland Roads Site

This road scheme emerged most prominently as a suggestion of the Omagh Town Centre Masterplan, which was published in 2009, although it also appeared without much comment in the 2007 Sub-Regional Transportation Plan. It would see a new link road built parallel to Market Street connecting Scarffe's Entry/Kevlin Avenue to Dublin Road. The route is shown below. Although very short and minor looking at first glance, the scheme appears to have two important purposes. Firstly, it would open up land for redevelopment, including the north end of the Omagh Academy site which will be vacated once the school moves to the new shared campus at Lisanelly. Secondly, it will "provide relief in terms of removing rat-running traffic and, therefore, improve the environment for pedestrians in the core of the town". This is because the Masterplan aspires to pedestrianise both Market Street and Scarffe's Entry, and this road link would be needed to accommodate the displaced traffic that currently uses these links.

View Scarffe's Entry to Dublin Road Link, Omagh in a larger map

The image below is from the Masterplan and illustrates the road in the context of possible future developments:

Scarffe's Entry to Dublin Road Link shown as a line of trees just below and right of centre in the 2009 Omagh Town Centre Masterplan.

It is worth noting that the Masterplan is non-statutory, which means that nobody is under any obligation to actually do anything that is in it. The purpose of the plan is to provide an agreed way forward so that individual planning decisions can be informed and made in the context of a wider plan. As such, provision of this road would not be funded by Roads Service but either as part of a private development, or as part of a public realm scheme to pedestrianise Market Street.

The road would traverse land formerly occupied by the Omagh Academy Preparatory Department School, and by the former Eakin's Garage. As the latter is still in use, the road would likely require the cooperation of the owner of the site in question, perhaps as part of a wider redevelopment of the expansive car parks nearby.

Although the Masterplan dates from 2009 and identifies the Scarffe's Entry to Dublin Road link as something that should be constructed "within 0-3 years", nothing has happened, probably due to the economic depression. There is no guarantee that it will ever happen, but for now we can "watch this space".