This article is from page 16 of the 2012-11-13 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 16 JPG
THE construction of the remaining section of the M18 north of Gort has hit a fresh snag and the National Roads Authority (NRA) are unable to sign contracts for the motorway, despite a preferred contractor being chosen.
It had been hoped that work on the € 530 million project might start early in 2013, but this now seem unlikely unless funding can be found in the coming weeks.
The Government announced in July that works on the motorway were back on track and the Gort to Tuam section was one of the only roads projects signalled to go ahead as part of the national stimulus package.
At the time, the Government announced that the Direct Route consortium had been awarded the contract to build the Public Private Partnership (PPP), but a contract still has not been signed as no Government funding has been put in place.
It had been thought that the Government would source funding from the European Investment Bank for states share of the PPP funding, but this has not happened to date.
It is understood that more than € 150 million has already been spent on the project – with the vast majority of this money spent on the acquisition of lands through compulsory purchase orders.
This is the second time that the Government has been unable to sign contracts with a consortium to complete the M18. In November of 2009, the BAM Balfour Beatty consortium declined to sign the contract for the M18 because they were themselves unable to secure funding for the construction work.
It is understood that the economic situation of Ireland at that time made many European banks unwilling to invest in the project.
The motorway will provide a major boost for the thousands of Clare people who commute to Galway for work and college every day. When built it is also expected to provide a major boost for Shannon Airport, with sections of Galway and Mayo provided with easy access to the airport.