Assurances have been given that the massive €150 million Adare bypass project will be completed in time for the Ryder Cup due to take place in the Co Limerick village in 2027.
It is the first stage in a major road infrastructure project upgrading the west Limerick network linking it to the port of Foynes on the Shannon estuary.
Construction work has finally begun on the new stretch of roadway which will bypass Adare.
It is a massive project building seven kilometres of roadway, along with sixteen bridges including a major elevated bridge over the local river Maigue.
Minister for Transport Darragh O’Brien has accepted that the pressure is on to deliver a project of this scale in just two years in time for the Ryder Cup, but he was assured by construction firm Sorensen Civil engineering that it can be achieved.
“It’s a tight timeframe but we need to see it completed by 2027 and that’s the time frame the construction company are working towards to have it done by the summer of 2027,” Mr O’Brien said.
“The Ryder Cup is a very important and high-profile international event and it’s important it’s completed for that, but this is also a legacy project, part of the wider road network project linking with Foynes port which will be an investment for this and future generations.
“I have no doubt it will be, and must be achieved, it is a national project and we had a very detailed meeting today about the work that has been done, and the plans for the future.”
John Wallace, Managing Director of Sorensen Civil Engineering, who are building the road along with Sisk, accepted it is a massive project to be completed in a short time frame.
“It’s a two-year project to be completed by summer 2027 and we do believe with a fair wind behind us that we will get it completed,” he said.
Traffic congestion is a daily grind in Adare – one of the most congested locations in the country with over 17,000 vehicles a day passing through.
Local businesses believe the bypass will restore some tranquility to the heritage village.
Eleanor Purcell is owner of Black Abbey Crafts in the Adare Heritage Centre and said the village has been dealing with the congestion and constant traffic for over 30 years.
“I believe it has been very detrimental to businesses in the town and that it’s a deterrent to people stopping off here,” she said.
“Adare is a lovely village and I think the bypass will be welcomed as it will bring a bit of calm and quiet and restore it to what it was some years back.
“People can stop and take time to visit the businesses, the cafes restaurants and the park and that’s what people want,” she said.
The bypass is part of a much larger €850m road and rail project which will eventually link up with the port of Foynes transforming the national transport network in west Limerick and north Kerry that is due to be completed in 2030.
Extensive work has already been undertaken on restoring the Limerick to Foynes rail line so that its ready to carry freight from Foynes from 2026.
This would be a further step towards enabling the port to achieve its ambition of becoming a major international floating offshore wind energy hub, as well as a major European logistics and trade centre.
On the roads side the Adare bypass is the advance project before construction of a link to Rathkeale, and a new link to Foynes – all due to be completed in five years.
RTE Mid West Correspondent
