This article is from page 25 of the 2012-01-17 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 25 JPG
A GRANT of € 500,000 has been allocated by the Department of Transport to Clare County Council for the new bridge in Killaloe that will cross the Shannon linking Clare with Tipperary.
The grant has been given by Transport Minister, Leo Varadkar, to the council to enable the Shannon Crossing Project be brought through An Bord Pleanála,
Last August, Minister Varadkar, approved the publication of the Statutory Orders by Clare County Council for the construction of the Killaloe bypass and the Shannon Bridge crossing.
This paved the way for Clare County Council to seek approval from An Bórd Pleanála for the Environmental Impact Statement and the associated compulsory purchase order, which could see this scheme being approved and the land being purchased over the next two years.
The long-awaited project will cost an estimated € 40.6m. Public representatives in both Clare and North Tipperary regard this announcement as a major boost for tourism/employment.
The total length of the new Shannon crossing is 890 metres and entails the construction of a roadway with two roundabout junctions and one T-junction.
The span across the river will be 170 metres. This roadway has been designed for a basic six-metre wide carriageway, with the width increased where necessary to accommodate turning movements.
Provision has also been made for a two-metre wide cycle track on both sides of the road, over its full length.
Three junctions are proposed along the route with a roundabout at each end and a T-junction on the Killaloe side.
The deck of the new bridge will consist of four interior spans and two end spans.
“The quicker the new bridge is built and the roads are improved the better,” said Senator Tony Mulcahy (FG) in welcoming the grant allocation.
“The Killaloe – Ballina area is a big tourist draw and a new bridge will help bring more visitors into the whole Lough Derg catchment area. In this climate of austerity it has to be welcomed that important capital programmes are getting the resources to proceed,” he added.
This project has been broken down into three packages. The Killaloe bypass € 11.93m, the bridge itself at € 12m and works to the R494 at € 16.6m.