Newry Southern Relief Road information event concludes

The event opened on Monday with an unstaffed exhibition display - which was then staffed for one day on Thursday.

The DFI said the information week was organised "to provide an opportunity to engage with departmental staff and the engineering consultants who can provide detail on work done to date and the emerging plans for the proposed scheme."

The NSRR is one of the three infrastructure projects being taken forward by the department within the Belfast Region City Deal, which has allocated £93.4m to the project. 

The information week followed an announcement by the department that a non-opening, 50-metre span fixed bridge is its preferred option for crossing the Newry River and Newry Ship Canal.

The Can’t Fathom It environmental group issued a statement to the Newry Reporter within hours of the event ending.

It said: "The SRR project is a relic of the past, initiated in 2006 when environmental and social concerns were not as pressing as they are today...The project needs to be reviewed and updated." 

We have asked the Department for a comment, with further reaction in the next edition of the Reporter.