Clare County Council has announced its decision not to grant a Temporary Road Closure Licence application from Challenge Ireland, the organisers of the Challenge Galway 2016 Triathlon for road closures in the North Clare area on 26th June 2016.
The Road Closure Licence Application, which was lodged with Clare County Council on 14th May 2016, received a total of 19 submissions up to 3rd June 2016.
The Council says the application has not been approved as it did not contain sufficient evidence to demonstrate that the organisers of the event had conducted an adequate level of public consultation as required by the Road Authority.
Businesses in North Clare were opposed to the event which would roads across the Burren close on one of the busiest days of the summer.
Former TD, Madeline Taylor-Quinn previously stated in a submission to Clare County Council “The proposed triathlon is of no benefit to Clare. It will begin and end in Galway so perhaps it should be suggested to the promoters to reroute their plans around Galway/Connemara”.
Organisers of the event estimated that the triathlon would be a boost to the region with participants coming from places such as North America to compete.
Speaking previously, event director, Liam Behan was hopeful locals would be welcoming to the triathlon in its first year. “If truly there is a sense that local people do not want the event in Clare once they have seen what it is all about and how we manage it, then clearly we have to look at moving it away” he told The Clare People.
Routes such as the R-460 from the Galway border to Boston, R-480, R-477, N7 and L-104 would have been affected had the triathlon went ahead.