Driving times between Cork and Limerick set to get shorter – as route of new N20 project is revealed
These will be located in Rathduff, Mourneabbey, Mallow, Buttevant, Charleville, Bruree, and Croom. Mallow is also set to receive a new 'Freight Hub', which will provide 30 HGV parking spaces as well as rest and welfare facilities for drivers.
The route largely follows its original N20 footprint, apart from significant bypasses in both Mallow and Charleville. At Mallow, the route will deviate at Mourneabbey, sweeping eastwards of the town, and splitting the towns of New Twopothouse and Doneraile, and continuing to bypass Buttevant on its eastern outskirts.
The Mallow Junction transport and freight hub will be situated due east of the town, between Parkadallane and Lackanamona.
The road will then sweep across the current site of the road, near Ballyhoura and onwards to bypass Charleville to its west. A major junction is due to be constructed at the site of the Ardnageehy Cross Roads, before the road continues through the townlands of Ballypierce and Kiltwohig on its way around the town.
From there it will continue on its own path, running almost parallel to the current road on its way to Bruree, where a new transport hub will be built even further west of the town than the current road, at Ballyteige.
Continuing into south County Limerick, the new road will skirt Banoge to the west, before joining up with the current N20 just south of Croom, at Anhid East. It will then continue on the current N20 before diverting to a brand new three leg directional junction at Gorteen, just a few hundred metres west of the current junction.
The project, which could cost up to €3 billion and get underway by 2028, will see over 80km of motorway built, while almost 200 farms and some 20 homes along the route set to be subject to a Compulsory Purchase Order by the Department of Transport.
The announcement marks another important step along the road for what many view as a vital piece of road infrastructure.
However, for some along the route, today marks the beginning of what may be a long battle in trying to preserve houses, farms, and the local environment.
Members of the public can see all the information relating to the project, including the developing deign, by visit the website www.corklimerick.ie
Public Display events are also being organised in Charleville (Charleville Park Hotel, Tuesday June 17), Adare (Woodlands House Hotel, Wednesday June 18), and Mallow (Mallow GAA Complex, Thursday June 19), all taking place from noon until 8 pm.
Maps will be also made available to view at the N/M20 Project Office in Lissanalta House, Dooradoyle, Limerick, V94 H5RR and local authority offices in Cork City, Mallow, and Limerick City.
A spokesperson for the project said: "Limerick City and County Council is progressing the development of the N/M20 Cork to Limerick project in partnership with Cork County Council, Cork City Council, Transport Infrastructure Ireland and the Department of Transport. The project is a priority investment in the Government's National Development Plan 2021-2030.
"The project team have progressed the design and environmental evaluation over the last year and now seek, with the publication of the June 2025 project update, to inform and consult with the public and stakeholders on the developing design, including the 80km of motorway, 100km of active travel, seven transport hubs and one freight hub."
"The project team continues to welcome feedback from property owners, communities, businesses and other stakeholders, through the public display events, in person meetings and a public webinar at 7pm on 24th June 2025,' added the spokesperson for the project.
'Property owners and other stakeholders within the study area will be notified by post of this update and are invited to consult with the project team, either in person, or by online or telephone meetings.'
Earlier this year, €4.5 million was allocated to the project by Transport Infrastructure Ireland for the route, which has been called on for years, set to replace one of the most dangerous stretches of road on the island of Ireland over the past decade.
In 2021, statistics showed that crashes on the N20 were four times more likely to be fatal than other roads, and substantially higher than other national roads across the country. Over 60 people had died on the road in the previous 25 years.
The group say that the new changes will reduce travel times between Blarney and Patrickswell to 40 minutes by car (120 km/h), 45 minutes by bus (100 km/h), and 50 minutes by truck (90 km/h).
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Daily Mirror
3 days ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Irish drivers face €1,000 fine if they ignore one rule this week
Ireland is currently enjoying heatwave conditions, with temperatures reaching a sizzling 28C on Tuesday. Met Eireann says the heat will linger and intensify heading in the weekend, with highs of 30C possible in some parts of the country. As the mercury rises, many drivers will be tempted to cool down their cars before setting off. But experts have warned that a common habit could land motorists with a hefty fine - or even jail time - if caught by gardai. Leaving a car unattended with the engine running, even to use the air conditioning, is illegal under Irish law. Offenders can face fines of up to €1,000 for a first offence, €2,000 for a second, and in repeated cases, courts can impose up to three months in prison alongside a fine. The law, outlined in Regulation 87 of the Road Traffic (Construction, Equipment and Use of Vehicles) Regulations 1963, makes it an offence for drivers to leave their vehicles unattended on a public road unless specific conditions are met. The regulations state that a driver shall not leave a vehicle unattended "unless the engine of the vehicle is not running". A spokesperson for the Department of Transport previously confirmed the penalties to the Irish Mirror, noting that enforcement is at the discretion of gardai. The penalties for this offence, provided by Section 102 of the Road Traffic Act, 1961, are: (a) in the case of a first offence, to a fine of up to € 1,000, (b) in the case of a second offence (or of a third or subsequent such offence other than an offence referred to in the next paragraph) to a fine of up to € 2,000, and (c) in the case of a third or subsequent offence in any period of twelve consecutive months - to a fine of up to € 2,000 or, at the discretion of the court, to up to three months imprisonment or to both a fine and imprisonment. READ MORE: Irish drivers have until Wednesday night to remove 3 items from their cars Beyond the legal risks, AA Ireland also warns that leaving your car unattended with the engine running - even for a short time - makes it an easy target for opportunistic thieves. A notice on its website, referring to cold weather, is just as relevant during hot spells when drivers might leave cars running to cool them down. It reads: "Once you put the key in the ignition, stay by your car at all times. Car thieves love an icy morning and every winter cars are stolen while their owners go inside for warmth waiting for their car to defrost. It's actually an offence to leave your car unattended with the engine running. You've been warned." Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest news from the Irish Mirror direct to your inbox: Sign up here.
Irish Independent
6 days ago
- Irish Independent
Movement expected soon on south Wicklow greenway project
The greenway, which would pass through scenic areas of the former railway line along the Wicklow–Wexford border, including Shillelagh, Tinahely, Aughrim, Annacurra, Woodenbridge, and Arklow has been stuck in phase two since 2023. Phase 2 involved extensive work on assessing the impact of identified project constraints; the Phase 2: Options Selection report has been submitted by Wicklow County Council to TII and are currently being reviewed by officials. Subject t-Wexford TD Fionntán Ó Súilleabháin has said it is now important that the project doesn't face any further delays. 'This project is of huge importance to County Wicklow, in terms of health and wellbeing, local recreation and tourism. I am pleased that it should progress to Stage 3 for the autumn and hopefully through the remaining construction phases soon after. 'I also raised this delay directly with Minister Paschal Donohoe in the chamber of Leinster House last month and is a flagship project that I intend to pursue until we see it in place.' 'In such a scenic area, it will no doubt attract large numbers of people from throughout Ireland and indeed from further afield.' he added. Funding for the Greenways programme is reviewed on an annual basis by the Department of Transport. Investment in greenways and active travel projects is also subject to the requirements of the Infrastructure Guidelines and necessary statutory approvals. Greenway schemes in County Wicklow were allocated €1,650,000 in 2025, with €500,000 going towards the Arklow to Shillelagh project.
RTÉ News
07-08-2025
- RTÉ News
'There are roads were I don't feel safe' - call for 30km/h limit in urban areas
Earlier this year, speed limits on rural roads were reduced from 80km/h to 60km/h as part of the Government's campaign to reduce road deaths to zero by 2050. The next phase of that plan was to reduce speed limits in urban areas from 50km/h to 30km/h - a move favoured by members of the Love 30 Campaign group who are lobbying for the lower speed on city roads. Eithne Dodd reports from Crumlin Road in Dolphin's Barn, Dublin, on what this change could mean for road users. Mairéad Forsythe is a cyclist living near Crumlin in Dublin but she doesn't cycle on the Crumlin Road. "I normally use back roads," she explained. "I do not like this road." As well as being a local, Ms Forsythe is also a member of the Love 30 campaign, a national movement to promote a reduction in speed limits in urban and built-up areas to 30km/h. On 1 August, Crumlin Road in Dolphin's Barn became the first area in Dublin to have a static speed camera introduced. Ms Forsythe said she thinks this will make people slow down but only to the speed limit of 50km/h. "50 km/h is too fast for the community who live in this area. "I manage my journeys around the city, I use whatever cycling infrastructure is there and then try and find quiet roads and there are particular roads that I avoid where I find the traffic too fast." Dublin City Council has already made much of the city centre a 30km/h zone, in the areas between the Royal and Grand Canals. The Crumlin Road becomes a 30km/h zone once a vehicle crosses the canal bridge but not before. "Through Dolphin's Barn we have wide roads and high speeds," Ms Forsythe said. "While I cycle happily through the city centre, there are roads where I just don't feel safe and this is one of them." Reducing speeds on Irish roads is part of the Vision Zero initiative by the Government. Vision Zero aims to reduce the number of deaths and serious injuries on Irish roads by half by the end of the decade and having no serious injuries or fatalities by 2050. Around speed limit reductions, three recommendations were made: A reduction in the default speed limit on rural local roads from 80km/h to 60km/h. The introduction of a 30km/h default speed limit in built-up and urban areas. A reduction in the default speed limit on national secondary roads from 100km/h to 80km/h. The first phase, a speed reduction on rural roads was introduced in February. These roads are named with 'L' on maps and account for approximately 80% of all roads. There is no data yet on the impact of this reduction. For the second phase, reducing speed limits in urban areas, the Department of Transport told Morning Ireland, that this would be implemented by way of "special speed limit by-laws" rather than a default speed limit. This is because it is harder to define a road in an urban or built-up area. The Department said: "In respect of those roads in built-up and urban areas where local authorities propose to change existing speed limits, it will involve each local authority undertaking a statutory public consultation process and considering all representations, in accordance with the requirements of the Road Traffic Act 2004. "As the making of 'special speed limit by-laws' is a reserved function, the speed limits on roads in built-up and urban areas will only be changed where a majority of the elected members vote to do so." The Love 30 campaign is unhappy with this change. Ms Forsythe said she believes it will lead to "enormous delays and a lot of hard work on the part of local authority officials". "At the end of the day, the number of roads that will get special speed limits will be much reduced on what was intended by the legislation," Ms Forsythe said. Professor Brian Caulfield, at the School of Engineering in Trinity College Dublin, peer-reviewed the Government's speed limit review in 2023. Prof Caulfield said he would classify an urban road as "anywhere within our cities that are classified at 50km/h. "It's where there's an awful lot of mixed lanes, bus lanes, densely-populated areas." Modelling data for Ireland shows that while reducing speed limits had a very moderate increase in journey times, it would result in fewer incidents happening. Other countries that have adopted this approach including Finland, Belgium and Wales have all seen a reduction in road traffic incidents and fatalities after reducing speeds in urban areas. Prof Caulfield said this has been observed in Dublin in the areas of the city centre that have already reduced speed limits to 30km/h. "We do see that there are better safety outcomes, at lower speed limits," Prof Caulfied said, "and that's just common sense." "Even if we do reduce the speed limits, [we need to] look at enforcement to see how often people are staying under the 30km/h. "It's all well and good changing the speed limit signs right across the urban areas, but unless it's enforced, you kind of have to argue what's the point?" Like Dublin, much of Galway city centre is already at 30km/h via local authority by-laws. Lochlann Gallagher, chair of the Galway Commuters Coalition, also said that the city needs 30km/h to be the default speed in urban areas in order to be safe for road uses. "Local authorities should have to have a good reason to be designating roads at higher speed limits within urban areas as opposed to having a higher default speed," Mr Gallagher said. Mr Gallagher said that both speed limits and enforcement of those limits are a problem for Galway. "There are very large stretches of roads in Galway that are that are unsafe to be on if you're a pedestrian, cyclist or if you're wheeling," he said.
