Cowen to open €605m Limerick tunnel tomorrow

LIMERICK TUNNEL, the State’s third underwater motorway, is to be opened tomorrow by Taoiseach Brian Cowen.

The 9.75km tunnel and associated dual carriageway connects the M7 Dublin to Limerick route with the N18/M18 Galway to Limerick road and completes the southern bypass of Limerick city.

It was developed under a public private partnership between the State and Direct Route (Limerick) Ltd with land and construction costs amounting to €605 million.

About €200 million is to be spent on maintenance over the life of the partnership before the tunnel reverts to the State in 2041. The 35-year-contract has been running since it was signed in August 2006. Officially known as the Limerick Southern Ring Road Phase 2, the new road goes under the longest river in these islands; links give access to the N20 Cork road and N18 Ennis road.

When the tunnel opens officially later this summer, a toll of €1.80 is to be charged for private cars. A spokesman for the National Roads Authority said comparing the costs of the Limerick and Dublin tunnels was like comparing “chalk and cheese”.

When the remaining section of the M7 at Nenagh opens later this year motorway access will be available from Dublin’s M50 to near Ennis, Co Clare.

Time savings of up to 20 minutes a peak times for traffic travelling between the N7 east of Limerick and the N18 north of the city are expected. From Tuesday approximately 27,000 vehicles per day are expected to use the tunnel reducing traffic volumes currently using the three existing bridges in Limerick City by about one third. Some 28,000 vehicles per day are expected to be removed from the city quays.

Tuesday’s opening by the Taoiseach is two months ahead of schedule, an NRA spokesman said. The State already has the Jack Lynch Tunnel in Cork which goes under the Lee, and the Dublin Port Tunnel under the river Tolka and part of Dublin Bay.