This article is from page 18 of the 2013-10-22 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 18 JPG
CONSTRUCTION work on the final section of the M18 motorway will get underway early in the new year with the road now expected to be up and running before the end of 2017.
The news was confirmed by Taoiseach, Enda Kenny (FG), last week at the Irish Haulier of the Year Awards and comes as a major boost both for Clare commuters and Shannon Airport.
The final section of the motorway, which will connect Gort to Galway City and on to Tuam, has been on ice since the onset of the recession in 2007. However, following an announcement by Transport Minister Leo Varadkar (FG), earlier this year, work on the public private scheme had been expected to begin in recent months.
The tender process for the project is at an advanced stage with a number of local businesses in North Clare expected to benefit during the threeyear construction phase.
This news is a major boost for Shannon Airport as it will allow the Clare airport to compete against Knock and Dublin airports for the custom of hundreds of thousands of customers in Galway and all along the northern seaboard.
The news could have an unexpected negative effect on the future of the Western Rail Corridor. Campaigners for the corridor, which reintroduced between Ennis and Galway in 2010, expect the rail line to be extended north as far as Sligo before 2021.
However, the extension of the motorway as far north as Tuam is expected to undermine the business plan behind and further extension of rail services.
The 2030 Rail Network Strategy Review has concluded that the reopening of the remainder of the Western Rail Corridor will become much less necessary once M18 motorway is completed.