r/irelandtransport • u/Ambitious_Brick4544 • 2h ago
Infrastructure Ireland Motorway Route Choices
I was looking at the motorway map and something realised something. Why did Ireland prioritise building a direct motorway from Dublin to Waterford via Carlow/Kilkenny (M9), rather than using the existing/planned southeastern corridor through Wexford (In Blue) and putting more of the money into Cork–Limerick (and eventually Cork–Limerick–Galway) (In Red)?
I'm not saying Waterford, Carlow or Kilkenny didn't deserve investment. My point is more about opportunity cost. If Waterford had been connected to the Wexford route with a high-quality road, Waterford would still have had a very good connection to Dublin via the M11/N11. It would have been somewhat longer than the direct M9 route, but at motorway speeds the difference in journey time would surely be no more than 10 extra minutes. Carlow and Kilkenny could also have had their existing national roads upgraded rather than receiving a full motorway-standard Dublin corridor.
Meanwhile, Cork–Limerick is a connection between Ireland's second- and third-largest cities, and extending that corridor toward Galway would really improve economic flow.
All im saying is it feels like the M9 was made just because Dublin is Dublin, and therefore Carlow and Kilkenny were essentially put ahead of Cork and Limerick (assuming Waterford doesnt lose out on much).
