 | |
|---|---|
| Bóthar N15 | |
| Route information | |
| Length | 110.99 km (68.97 mi) |
| Location | |
| Country | Ireland |
| Primary destinations | (bypassed routes in italics) *bypass planned |
| Highway system | |
The N15 road is a national primary road in the north-west of Ireland. It runs from Sligo to Lifford, County Donegal. It forms part of the proposed Atlantic Corridor route. [1] It also goes to the border with Northern Ireland.
The N15 commences halfway across Lifford Bridge (which crosses the River Foyle between County Donegal and County Tyrone), continuing the route of the A38 (from Strabane on the east side of the river). In Lifford, west of the River Foyle, the N14 meets the N15, ending at a junction in the town centre. The N15 leaves to the southwest, changing to run west at the point just west of Clady. It continues west through Castlefin, Liscooley and Killygordon to reach Stranorlar.
In Stranorlar, the N13 commences, leaving the N15 to head north, with the N15 itself turning southwest to cross the River Finn to enter Ballybofey. From here, it continues southwest through the mountains and Barnesmore Gap (passing southeast of Bluestack Mountain) towards Donegal Town. East of the town itself, the N56 road starts at a junction on the N15 and runs around the north of the town, with the N15 turning to the south, to bypass the eastern side of Donegal Town. The N15 crosses the Drumenny Burn on the eastern outskirts of Donegal Town.
South of Donegal Town, the N15 passes by Ballintra to the west. Further south, the route follows a road opened in 2006, bypassing Ballyshannon to the east and crossing the River Erne on a viaduct.
The road enters County Leitrim in the west of Ireland, directly west of Bundoran (the bypass passes south of the town). Tullaghan is the only village along the N15 in the county, also bypassed.
The N15 runs closer to the coastline in County Sligo, passing through Cliffoney and Grange as it proceeds southwest. The road then passes through the villages of Drumcliff and Rathcormack before entering Sligo. The route ends at the start of the N4, which continues through the town as the Sligo Inner Relief Road dual carriageway.
The 20 km (12 mi) route between Lifford and Stranorlar is a single carriageway road of very poor quality. A replacement of the current alignment with a new single carriageway road is planned, bypassing Castlefin, Liscooley, and Killygordon. This will connect with a 16 km (9.9 mi) 2+1 bypass of Stranorlar and Ballybofey which is also planned. This will bypass the towns to the south, with a new crossing of the River Finn.
The N15 runs for over 26 km (16 mi) in County Sligo, passing north of the mountains and around Benbulbin before turning around Drumcliffe Bay to enter Sligo Town. A bypass of the entire route was planned, with dual carriageway for at least part of the route. A route had been selected for the project, with the new road to run closer to the mountains and the bay than the existing N15. However, the NRA didn't give funding for the road and the project was suspended [2] The local radio station in the North-West, Ocean FM had a special report in 2017 on how the road in Sligo needs to be upgraded in the wake of 3 crashes on this stretch of road in less than a fortnight. [3]
Instead of a completely new route, the NRA and TII decided to go ahead with a project called the N4-N15 Urban Improvements scheme starting with the widening of Hughes Bridge to a six-lane bridge and progressed as a Minor Improvement Scheme from 2015 through to mid-2016 costing €2.5 Million before VAT. [4] The project was completed on 17 July 2016 [5]
Continuing with the N4-N15 Urban Improvements, in August 2019, it was announced that €14 Million had been allocated for a 730-meter upgrade form Hughes bridge to just past the N4-N15-N16 junction. It would include a six-lane carriageway, improved cycle paths and footpaths, LED streetlights, upgrades on Copper bridge on the N15, and a major redesign of the R291 Rosses Point Junction. Work was originally supposed to take 12 months and start in August 2019 and finish in the autumn of 2020. [6] The finish date was then extended to spring 2021, [7] but the project continued as of June 2021 [update] .
A major repaving of the road from Creevykeel Crossroads to Castelgal was started in mid-October 2019 [8] and were very nearly complete before the Covid-19 lockdown happened in Ireland. They returned in late May to put the finishing touches on the road. [9] The road improvements included Lowering the speed limit at Creevykeel Crossroads to 60 km/h either side of the crossroads. Despite the road improvements, The road from Castelgal to The Sligo county boundary was still in bad condition with locals calling for the whole road to be repaved. [10]
In September 2020, Ocean FM Reported that TII allocated between 3 and 4 million Euros to upgrade a stretch of road that is 3.5 Kilometres long between Grange and the townland of Cashelgarran at Henrys Restaurant. It would include rebuilding, strengthening and repaving the stretch of road. [11]
Lifford is the county town of County Donegal, Ireland, the administrative centre of the county and the seat of Donegal County Council, although the town of Letterkenny is often mistaken as holding this role.
Donegal is a town in County Donegal, Ireland. The name was also historically spelt 'Dunnagall'. Although Donegal gave its name to the county, now Lifford is the county town. From the 15th until the early 17th century, Donegal was the 'capital' of Tyrconnell, a Gaelic kingdom controlled by the O'Donnell dynasty of the Northern Uí Néill.
The N3 road is a national primary road in the Republic of Ireland, running between Dublin, Cavan and the border with County Fermanagh. The A509 and A46 roads in Northern Ireland form part of an overall route connecting to Enniskillen, and northwest to the border again where the N3 reappears to serve Ballyshannon in County Donegal.
Stranorlar is a town, townland and civil parish in the Finn Valley of County Donegal, in Ireland. Stranorlar and Ballybofey form the Twin Towns.
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.
The N13 road is a national primary road in Ireland, running in County Donegal in Ulster from Stranorlar to just outside Derry. This road connects Letterkenny to Sligo, Derry and onwards to other destinations.
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 N14 road is a national primary road in the Republic of Ireland. The entirety of the route is located in the northwest of Ireland, in County Donegal, connecting Manorcunningham to Lifford in the east. Here it connects to the N15 near the border with Northern Ireland and along the A38 to Strabane in County Tyrone.
Ballybofey is a town located on the south bank of the River Finn, County Donegal, Ireland. Together with the smaller town of Stranorlar on the north side of the River Finn, the towns form the Twin Towns of Ballybofey-Stranorlar. Ballybofey-Stranorlar, a census town, had a population of 4,852 in 2016.
The N25 road is a national primary road in Ireland, forming the route from Cork to Rosslare Europort via Waterford City. The road is part of the E30 European route and a short section is also part of the E01 European route. It forms part of the proposed Atlantic Corridor route.
The River Finn is a river in the Republic of Ireland that passes through County Donegal and County Tyrone in Northern Ireland. From Lough Finn, the river goes to Ballybofey and Stranorlar before joining the River Mourne.
Castlefin, sometimes spelt Castlefinn, is a market town and townland in the Finn Valley of County Donegal in Ulster, the northern province in Ireland. It is located between Ballybofey and Lifford in East Donegal and, as of 2016, the population was 705. The River Finn flows by the town. The town is located in along the main N15 national primary road, which runs from Bundoran to Lifford. The town lies 6 miles from Lifford and 8 miles from the twin towns of Ballybofey and Stranorlar. It has close links to Letterkenny, to the twin towns of Ballybofey and Stranorlar, and to West Tyrone in Northern Ireland, especially with the towns of Strabane and Castlederg.
The A5 is a major primary route in Northern Ireland. It links the city of Derry in County Londonderry with Aughnacloy, County Tyrone via the towns of Strabane and Omagh. Just south of Aughnacloy is the border with the Republic of Ireland, where the A5 meets the N2 to Dublin. Between them the A5 and N2 are the main road link between County Donegal in the Republic and Dublin.
The Finn Valley Post is a local newspaper in County Donegal, Ireland, based in the town of Ballybofey. The paper was first published on 18 July 2007 by the River Media group, which produced other local titles such as the Donegal Post and Letterkenny Post. The paper covers much of east and central County Donegal, including Ballybofey, Stranorlar, Raphoe and Lifford.
The Finn Valley Voice is a local newspaper published in the Finn Valley region of central and eastern Donegal, Ireland. The paper was founded in 1994 and is independently owned. It also claims to be the only newspaper in Ireland owned and managed entirely by women. The paper is one of two to be based in the town of Ballybofey, competing with the Finn Valley Post, and covers several other urban areas such as Stranorlar, Lifford, Castlefin and Fintown as well. The Finn Valley Voice is not accessed by the ABC.
Killygordon is a small village in the Finn Valley in the east of County Donegal in Ulster, the northern province in Ireland. As of 2016, the population was 614. It is located on the N15 between Ballybofey and Castlefin. The separate hamlet and townland of Crossroads, usually known as The Cross, lies half a mile from Killygordon. The River Finn passes by the village on its way towards its confluence with the River Mourne and the River Foyle.
The A38 links Strabane, County Tyrone and the A5 through the meadows of the river Foyle and over Lifford Bridge to Lifford, the County Town of County Donegal, where it links into the N14 and the N15. The N15, which continues into County Donegal to Stranorlar, Donegal Town, Ballyshannon, Bundoran and then leaving County Donegal, before heading to Sligo. The N14, which continues through Rossgeir, Drumbeg to Letterkenny.
McElhinney's is a 3-storey fifteen-department store located in Ballybofey, County Donegal. It is the largest department store in Ireland outside Dublin. It has been named National Retail Store of the Year and Best Superstore at the Retail Excellence Ireland Awards, among other awards for Outstanding Customer Service, Occasionwear, Bridal and more. Alongside Finn Park, MacCumhaill Park and a few hotels, McElhinney's is one of Ballybofey's more recognisable landmarks.
Letterkenny bus station is a Bus Éireann station serving the County of Donegal in Ireland. It is located in the Cathedral Town of Letterkenny. It is a particularly important transport hub in the county, as there are no rail services in the area.
