[[File:Motorway Exit 12 Ireland.PNG|30px]] [[File:IRL N85.svg|75px|link= N85 road (Ireland)]]
[[File:Motorway Exit 18 Ireland.PNG|30px]] [[File:M6-IE confirmatory.svg|75px|link=M6 motorway (Ireland)]]
[[File:Motorway Exit 18 Ireland.PNG|30px]] [[File:M17-IE confirmatory.svg|75px|link= M17 motorway (Ireland)]]
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M18 motorway | |
---|---|
Mótarbhealach M18 | |
Route information | |
Part of | |
Length | 70.8 km (44.0 mi) |
Existed | 26 January 2007–present |
History | Completed on 27 September 2017 [1] |
Major junctions | |
From | Shannon |
| |
To | Junction 18 terminus, east of Galway. |
Location | |
Country | Ireland |
Primary destinations | Ennis, Shannon, Gort |
Highway system | |
The M18 motorway (Irish : Mótarbhealach M18) is an inter-urban motorway in Ireland, forming part of the Limerick, Ennis to Galway national primary road, which, in turn, forms part of the Atlantic Corridor called for as part of the Transport 21 project.
The motorway starts at junction 9 on the Shannon bypass and heads in a northerly direction where it bypasses the town of Newmarket-on-Fergus via the townlands of Killulla, Knocksaggart and Ballyconneely. After Newmarket-on-Fergus the motorway runs alongside Dromoland, where significant historical features can be seen from the mainline.
As the route gets further north it develops into a more modern style of road: the Ennis Bypass. The median was constructed with a H2 concrete barrier rather than the wide grassy median seen in the earlier stretch to the south and features a lower noise wearing course. Bypassing the notorious bottlenecks of Ennis town and Clarecastle village, this section was completed in 2007 and significantly reduces travel times between Galway, Ennis, and Limerick. After passing to the east of Ennis the motorway enters the townlands of Killow and Knockanean.
A 22 km stretch, bypassing Crusheen village and the town of Gort, was opened in November 2010. The motorway ends at junction 18 of the M6, following its completion in September 2017. The road continues northbound as the M17 towards Tuam.
The 14-kilometre (8.7 mi) Ennis Bypass opened to traffic as a standard dual carriageway section of the N18 on 26 January 2007, after a construction period of almost three years. It was redesignated as a Motorway on 28 August 2009 [2] [3] In addition to Ennis, the road also bypasses the village of Clarecastle. The scheme was built by Gama Strabeg JV.
The Newmarket-on-Fergus Bypass opened as a 5.7 km (3.5 mi) dual carriageway on 30 September 2002, routing around the town of Newmarket-on-Fergus. The scheme alleviated one of the worst congestion black spots in the country. It includes two grade separated junctions at Carrigoran and Dromoland. It was redesignated as motorway on 28 August 2009. [3]
The construction of this section of the motorway gained international attention in 1999 as a result of the Latoon fairy bush, a tree of supernatural significance which folklorist Eddie Lenihan demanded must be saved as it was in the path of the intended route. [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] The tree was eventually spared, and still grows onsite as of 2024. [4]
Construction of a 22 km (14 mi) section of the M18 between Crusheen and Gort commenced in October 2008 and was opened to traffic on 12 November 2010. This scheme, known as 'Gort to Crusheen', connects to the northern end of the Ennis bypass and provides continuous motorway to just north of Gort in County Galway. [9] The scheme was built by SIAC Wills JV. [10]
The Gort to Tuam (M18/M17) route is 58 km (36 mi.) long. The project involved the construction of motorway from Gort to Athenry, extending in the process the total length of the M18 by 27 km (17 mi). It connects to the M17 Motorway where they cross the Dublin to Galway M6 motorway, which opened in December 2009. This was also included in the second tranche of motorway redesignations and was opened as motorway. In April 2014, it was confirmed that it would proceed. Work on the project began on 15 January 2015 and was managed by Direct Route. It was officially opened on 27 September 2017. [11] [12] [13] [14]
Initially, none of the proposed dual carriageway between Limerick and Galway outlined in the Transport 21 programme was to operate under motorway restrictions. However, the National Roads Authority (NRA) decided late in 2008 to include all sections of grade separated N18 – whether built, under construction, or still at the planning stage – in its second tranche of motorway redesignation proposals. [11] These were approved by the Minister for Transport in July 2009, and the changes came into effect on 28 August 2009. [3]
This article contains a bulleted list or table of intersections which should be presented in a properly formatted junction table.(December 2021) |
(Junctions numbered south to north) | |||
Northbound exit | Junction | Southbound exit | |
Dual carriageway continues from M7 ( ) | |||
(M7 ) Rossbrien, Cork ( M20 , Tralee ( N21 ) | Rossbrien, Limerick (city centre) ( R509 ), Cork ( M20 ) | ||
Dock Road ( N69 ) | Dock Road ( N69 ) | ||
Shannon Tunnel | |||
Coonagh West | |||
- Limerick Bypass (Direct Route) starts. | |||
Ennis Road (former N18) | Ennis Road (former N18) | ||
Cratloe, Sixmilebridge ( R462 ) | Cratloe, (Sixmilebridge) ( R462 ) | ||
Bunratty | Bunratty | ||
Hurler's Cross, Shannon Town, (Sixmilebridge) ( R471 ) | Hurler's Cross, Sixmilebridge, Shannon Town ( R471 ) | ||
Shannon Town Centre ( R471 ) | no access | ||
Northbound exit | Junction | Southbound exit | |
Shannon ( N19 ) | Shannon ( N19 ) | ||
Newmarket-on-Fergus ( R472 ) | Newmarket-on-Fergus ( R472 ) | ||
Clarecastle ( R458 ) | Clarecastle ( R458 ) | ||
Ennis ( N85 ), Ennis Services (in planning) | Ennis ( N85 ), Ennis Services (in planning) | ||
Ennis, Scarriff, Tulla ( R352 ) | Ennis, Scarriff, Tulla ( R352 ) | ||
Ennis ( R458 ) | Ennis ( R458 ) | ||
Crusheen ( R458 ) | Crusheen ( R458 ) | ||
Gort, Loughrea ( R458 ) | Gort, Loughrea ( R458 ) | ||
Ardrahan, Oranmore Kinvara Kilcolgan ( R458 ) | Ardrahan, Oranmore, Kinvara Kilcolgan ( R458 ) | ||
Galway, Athlone, Dublin ( M6 ) | Galway, Athlone, Dublin ( M6 ) | ||
Motorway continues as M17 |
Ennis is the county town of County Clare, in the mid-west of Ireland. The town lies on the River Fergus, north of where the river widens and enters the Shannon Estuary. Ennis is the largest town in County Clare, with a population of 27,923, making it the 6th largest town, and 11th largest urban settlement, as of the 2022 census. Dating from the 12th century the town's Irish name is short for Irish: Inis Cluana Rámhfhada, meaning 'Island of the long rowing meadow', deriving from its location between two courses of the River Fergus.
The island of Ireland, comprising Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, has an extensive network of tens of thousands of kilometres of public roads, usually surfaced. These roads have been developed and modernised over centuries, from trackways suitable only for walkers and horses, to surfaced roads including modern motorways. Driving is on the left-hand side of the road. The major routes were established before Irish independence and consequently take little cognisance of the border other than a change of identification number and street furniture. Northern Ireland has had motorways since 1962, and has a well-developed network of primary, secondary and local routes. The Republic started work on its motorway network in the early 1980s; and historically, the road network there was once somewhat less well developed. However, the Celtic Tiger economic boom and an influx of European Union structural funding, saw national roads and regional roads in the Republic come up to international standard quite quickly. In the mid-1990s, for example, the Republic went from having only a few short sections of motorway to a network of motorways, dual carriageways and other improvements on most major routes as part of a National Development Plan. Road construction in Northern Ireland now tends to proceed at a slower pace than in the Republic, although a number of important bypasses and upgrades to dual carriageway have recently been completed or are about to begin.
The N7 road is a national primary road in Ireland, connecting Limerick and Dublin. The majority of the route is motorway standard and is designated as the M7 motorway. At the Rosbrien interchange in Limerick the route continues as the N18 dual carriageway to Galway, Shannon and Ennis. The road passes through the midlands of Ireland, and acts as a trunk route out of Dublin for the N8 and N9 national primary routes to Cork and Waterford respectively. It forms part of European route E20.
Gort is a town of around 2,800 inhabitants in County Galway in the west of Ireland. Located near the border with County Clare, the town lies between the Burren and the Slieve Aughty and is served by the R458 and R460 regional roads, which connect to the M18 motorway.
National Development Plan is the title given by the Irish Government to a scheme of organised large-scale expenditure on (mainly) national infrastructure. The first five-year plan ran from 1988 to 1993, the second was a six-year plan from 1994 to 1999 and the third ran as a seven-year plan from 2000 to 2006. A fourth National Development Plan ran from 2007 to 2011. The main elements of the third plan were the development of a national motorway network between the major cities in Ireland. The upgrading of the rail network was a secondary scheme.
Newmarket-on-Fergus, historically known as Corracatlin, is a town in County Clare, Ireland. It is 13 kilometres from Ennis, 8 kilometres from Shannon Airport, and 24 kilometres from Limerick.
The N6 road is a national primary road in Ireland from junction 11 on the M4 motorway at Kinnegad to Galway city. The N6 and N4 form a continuous motorway or dual carriageway from Dublin city centre to Galway City passing in an east–west direction through the midlands of Ireland. Most of the road is motorway standard with the exception of the Athlone bypass and stretches of urban road in Galway City, which are the only sections of the road that remain designated as N6 dual carriageway. There is one toll on the road outside Galway city. Major upgrades to the road were completed in December 2009 completing the first intercity motorway/dual carriageway in Ireland and the New Junctions of M6 are built and will be 164 km.
The N17 road is a national primary road in Ireland, and is part of the Atlantic Corridor route. It begins in County Galway and ends in County Sligo. On 27 September 2017 the southern, Tuam–Galway, section was upgraded to motorway status and designated M17.
The N18 road is a national primary road in Ireland, connecting the cities of Limerick and Galway. Ennis and Gort are two major towns on the route, and Shannon Airport is reached via the connecting N19. The west coast route continues on to Sligo as the N17. The section from Limerick to the N19 junction forms part of European route E20, and the entire route is part of the proposed Atlantic Corridor. The section of motorway from Shannon to Claregalway is designated the M18 motorway. The tolled Limerick Tunnel forms part of the route.
A regional road in the Republic of Ireland is a class of road not forming a major route, but nevertheless forming a link in the national route network. There are over 11,600 kilometres of regional roads. Regional roads are numbered with three-digit route numbers, prefixed by "R". The equivalent road category in Northern Ireland are B roads.
The N19 road is a national primary road in Ireland, connecting from the N18 Limerick–Ennis–Galway road to Shannon Airport. It forms part of European route E20.
The N20 road is a national primary road in Ireland, connecting the cities of Cork and Limerick. Buttevant, Croom, Charleville, Mallow and Blarney are major towns along the route. A short section of the route is motorway standard and is designated as the M20 Motorway.
A national secondary road is a category of road in Ireland. These roads form an important part of the national route network but are secondary to the main arterial routes which are classified as national primary roads. National secondary roads are designated with route numbers higher than those used for primary roads, but with the same "N" prefix. Routes N51 and higher are all national secondary roads.
Hurlers Cross is a small village in County Clare, Ireland. It is situated close to Shannon Town and 6 km (3.7 mi) from both Sixmilebridge and Newmarket-on-Fergus. It forms a part of Newmarket-on-Fergus parish.
The N66 road was a national secondary road in Ireland.
The Atlantic corridor or Atlantic motorway is a proposed road project in Ireland. The scheme, announced in 2005, was intended to link Waterford in the South-East to Letterkenny in the North-West via motorway or dual carriageway by 2015. However, in part due to the post-2008 Irish economic downturn, major sections of the roadway were delayed or cancelled.
The M6 motorway is a motorway in Ireland, which runs from Dublin to Galway. The M6 extends from its junction with the M4 at Kinnegad all the way west to the outskirts of Galway City, but the Athlone bypass and the approach to Galway city - while of dual carriageway standard - have not been designated motorway and are still signed as N6. The motorway was officially completed and opened to traffic on 18 December 2009, and was the first city-to-city direct major inter-urban route to be completed in Ireland. The M6 and M4, which form the Galway–Dublin route, consist of a grade-separated 2+2 dual carriageway road with a top speed limit of 120 km/h. At approximately 144 km (90 mi), the M6 is the third longest motorway in the state and will be 159 km.
In Ireland, the highest category of road is a motorway, indicated by the prefix M followed by a one- or two-digit number. The motorway network consists entirely of motorway-grade dual carriageways and is largely focused upon Dublin. There are also several three-lane motorways, while Ireland's busiest road, the M50, incorporates four-lane, five-lane, and six-lane stretches.
The M17 motorway is an inter-urban motorway in Ireland, forming part of the Sligo to Galway national primary road.
The Latoon fairy bush, or Latoon fairy tree, is a whitethorn tree situated beside the M18 motorway in Latoon, County Clare, Ireland that was the subject of a preservation campaign led by Irish folklorist Eddie Lenihan in 1999 to save it from being cut down when the motorway was being built. According to Lenihan, the tree is an "important meeting place for supernatural forces of the region".