The opening of the Newry bypass, which completes the high-speed road link between Belfast and Dublin, was today hailed as a boost to the whole island of Ireland.
The final 12km phase of the route was completed five months ahead of schedule and cost £150 million. It replaces the final single carriageway section of the A1 Belfast to Dublin road with a dual carriageway and will link with the M1 motorway from Dublin to Dundalk.
The completion of the link cuts the travel time between the two capitals to under two hours.
Taoiseach Brian Cowen and Northern Ireland Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness led ministers at the ceremony at Newry, Co Down, to open the route.
Both leaders hailed the development as proof that cross-Border co-operation can help replace the era of the Troubles with a more prosperous future. "It brings all of us closer," said Mr Cowen, who said the development would bring economic and social benefits. "It is a potent symbol of the new Ireland."
Mr McGuinness praised the continued financial support of the Government in Dublin for other road projects north of the Border, including improvements to the route to the port of Larne, plus a major road linking Derry and Dublin.
But Mr McGuinness said the work has political as well as economic and social significance, and he hit out at dissident republicans involved in continuing violence.
“Some people need to get real and they need to recognise that we are living in a new century, against a backdrop of new political institutions that have the overwhelming support of the people of Ireland,” he said.
“They need to come and look at this road today and see what the future looks like.”