Minister Cullen Turns Sod on Cullahill-Cashel 40km Road Project
5 October 2006

The development known as the M8/N8 Cullahill to Cashel Road Project comprises 10.5 km of motorway between Cullahill in County Laois and Urlingford in County Kilkenny and 29 km of dual carriageway between Urlingford and Cashel in South Tipperary. It will also link the proposed Portlaoise to Cullahill motorway to the Cashel bypass. Roadbridge/Sisk Consortium and Malone O'Regan Scott Wilson Engineers will be managing the project. It is expected to be completed in autumn 2009.
At the sod turning ceremony, Minister Cullen said:
"Events like today are clear evidence of the pace and momentum that Ireland's national transport investment plan, Transport 21, has built up since its launch last November. At the core of this Government plan - which sees €9.4 million per day spent on transport for the next 10 years - is the continued development of our national road network. Transport 21 is for every region in the country. It provides for a total investment of over €18 billion specifically in roads over the period 2006-2015."
This new road project includes the construction of overbridges and underbridges and bypasses the villages of Johnstown, Urlingford, Turnpike, Twomileborris, Littleton, Horse and Jockey and Moycarkey. It will remove 13,000 vehicles daily from these villages. It will improve traffic flow for the driver, reduce travel time by at least 15 minutes by bypassing these villages and improve access to the south and the southwest of Ireland.
The Minister went on to say "The Cullahill to Cashel project, I believe, will hand villages back to the local people of this area and allow them to thrive and expand in a better environment. Many other towns that have bypasses such as Nenagh, Naas, Kildare and others, have quickly capitalised on the reduction in traffic and the ease of doing business. I have no doubt that the residents of Johnstown, Urlingford, and Moycarkey (to name but a few), will be equally as quick to grasp the opportunity this road development will undoubtedly present to them",

This road project involves local authorities from Kilkenny, South Tipperary, North Tipperary, Laois and the National Roads Authority.