TAOISEACH BRIAN Cowen says the new €660 million traffic tunnel under the River Shannon in Limerick will make it easier to attract investment to Limerick and the midwest region when the economy starts to recover.
“It delivers another key link in the Atlantic Road Corridor, a major focus of the Government’s Transport 21 initiative.
“It will make life a lot easier for the people of Limerick and beyond and for all those who live and work in the city itself,” he said.
Mr Cowen made his remarks yesterday as he officially opened the latest piece of the country’s roads infrastructure. The tolled crossing is designed to take close on 40,000 vehicles per day out of the city centre.
Mr Cowen described it as a key part of Ireland’s national road network, which would improve access and support economic growth.
The new scheme comprises 10km of dual carriageway, 11 bridges, five underpasses, two toll plazas and its own traffic management system.
The 675-metre tunnel under the Shannon has been described as being one of the most challenging engineering projects in recent decades.
The new scheme, which opened to traffic at 3.30pm yesterday, is tolled at €1.80 per car and €5.70 for heavy trucks.
“This is an important occasion for a number of reasons,” the Taoiseach said.
“It is also important from a road safety point of view for motorists, pedestrians and cyclists alike, in that it separates the more vulnerable road users from heavy through-traffic.”
The Taoiseach added that the new tunnel was proof that we as a nation had developed the skills necessary to build a technically complex piece of infrastructure like this safely, ahead of time and within budget.
“This tunnel is just one example of the legacy of the investments of recent years.
“There have been dramatic improvements in infrastructure right across the country, benefiting people in their daily lives, as well as making Ireland more competitive as a place to do business.
“We have now identified a revised set of priorities, given the progress in recent years and the need to drive sustainable economic growth and job creation.”
Mr Cowen went on to say that the Atlantic Road Corridor, stretching from the top of Donegal to Waterford via Sligo, Galway, Limerick and Cork, will be the primary focus of the roads element of the Governments Transport 21 initiative once the major inter-urban routes are completed at the end of this year.
The Taoiseach told the many local dignitaries in attendance that the final section of the M9 Dublin to Waterford road is due for completion in the early autumn, and that the final sections of the N7 to Limerick will follow shortly afterwards.
TUNNEL VISION ANATOMY OF A BUILDING PROJECT
MORE THAN four million man- hours were spent designing and building the new Limerick tunnel.
The €660 million project is the second phase of the Limerick South Ring Road project, connecting the N7 at Rosbrien to the N18 Ennis Road at Cratloe Castle.
It consists of five precast concrete tubes, which were made by specialists from Austria. They were floated out on to the river and lowered on to foundations, which were set on the river bed.
To lay the tunnel foundations, 800,000 tonnes of silt had to be dredged from the river and six million tonnes of rock placed along the line of the tunnel to stabilise the soft river bed.
Each tunnel element weighs 20,000 tonnes, is approximately the length of a football pitch (100m), as high as a two-storey house (8.5m) and wide enough for two lanes of traffic in each direction (25m).
The tunnel is expected to take up to 27,000 vehicles a day off the streets of Limerick at start-up, increasing eventually to 40,000.
A motorist travelling at the legal speed limit of 80km/h will pass through the tunnel in 30 seconds, saving 20 minutes on journey times through Limerick city at peak traffic times.
KATHRYN HAYES