MORE than 18 months after it was officially opened, the Longford Northern Bypass is still causing confusion and frustration to many west bound motorists.
Drivers expect a bypass to be exactly that. But the abbreviation of the name of this stretch of road - from the correct Longford Northern Bypass to simply the Longford Bypass - explains why some motorists are confused.
The Longford Northern Bypass is only the first half of a long term plan by Longford County Council and the National Roads Authority (NRA) to bypass Longford town centre. Built at a cost of £8 million the 5.5km bypass was officially opened on June 2nd, 1995 by the Taoiseach, Mr Bruton, and the former Taoiseach and Longford Fianna Fail TD, Mr Albert Reynolds.
At the opening, both men expressed the hope that the second half of the project - the Longford Southern Bypass - would be completed as soon as possible. However, a local newspaper that week quoted the NRA as saying the Southern Bypass would not be completed until well after 2000.
The main source of confusion is that the National Primary Route - which carries traffic to north Roscommon and Mayo (the N5) - begins on Longford's Main Street at the junction marked by the Longford Arms Hotel. Motorists therefore have no alternative but to go part of the way through the town, although the Northern Bypass does offer an option for reaching that junction.
However, motorists travelling towards Sligo, Leitrim and Donegal using the N4 can bypass the town completely, using the Northern Bypass.
Longford's County Development Plan incorporates a line for the Southern Bypass, which would begin at the roundabout on the Dublin side and run westward to link with the N63 and the N5.