AN MLA has called for the long awaited Derry-Dublin road upgrade to "proceed immediately" as new figures reveal 15 people have died on the route in the past four years.
Daniel McCrossan of the SDLP said the A5 had become "the most dangerous road in Ireland".
He said he had received correspondence from the Department for Infrastructure detailing the number of serious collisions and fatalities along the route.
The statistics show that from January 2015 to September 2018, there were 12 collisions resulting in 15 deaths between New Buildings and Aughnacloy.
He said the figures "justify the immediate need for the road scheme and has urged officials to move forward with it imminently".
"These figures show that over the last four years alone, 15 people have died on what has become the most dangerous road in Ireland," he said.
"Yet, due to a calamity of issues, the people of the West and North West still haven't seen progress on the A5 WTC scheme that will save countless lives.
"It is reprehensible that this road scheme has faced so many obstacles, so much politics and so many delays.
"The scheme is of vital strategic importance and must proceed immediately."
The Department for Infrastructure said last month that construction of the new dual carriageway could begin later this year.
The project would see a new 85km road running from New Buildings outside Derry via Strabane, Newtownstewart, Omagh and Ballygawley, terminating near the border at Aughnacloy.
Building work on the A5 scheme was due to commence several years ago.
But it has faced several obstacles, including legal action from land owners and a logjam created by the collapse of Stormont power-sharing.
