08 December 2003: The Kildare By-Pass was finally opened today by the minister for transport, Seamus Brennan TD.
The new 13 kilometre motorway will relieve one of the worst traffic bottlenecks in the country and will significantly improve safety and travel times between Dublin/Cork and Dublin/Limerick.
The by-pass extends from the western end of the Curragh dual-carriageway, (which now becomes a motorway) to the eastern side of Monasterevin.
Up to 20,000 vehicles a day will be taken off the main street of Kildare by the facility.
The National Development Plan, 2000-2006, provides for the development of the N7 Dublin/Limerick and N8 Dublin/Cork routes to motorway/high quality dual carriageway standard. Completion of the Kildare By-Pass brings these objectives a step nearer to reality.
When the Monasterevin by-pass, currently under construction, is completed in 2005, road users will be able to travel in safety and comfort on continuous motorway and dual-carriageway from Dublin to south of Portlaoise – a distance of 84 kilometres.
The motorway incorporates special engineering measures to minimise impacts on groundwater levels and protect Pollardstown Fen, a nature reserve of international significance. This has been achieved by the use of an impermeable liner or “tanking” solution in the construction of a 3.5 km. section of the motorway close to Kildare Town. An extensive environmental monitoring programme is in place in accordance with the conditions of the motorway scheme approval.
Kildare Town By-pass was funded by the Irish Government under the National Development Plan, and the design and preliminary works were funded by the Cohesion Fund of the European Union.
