Travel time for drivers on the Dublin/Derry N2 between the capital and the Border will be cut by more than 20 minutes from tomorrow when a nine-kilometre bypass, named after the Monaghan-born poet Patrick Kavanagh, will be opened at Carrickmacross.
The new, separated carriageway has been completed two months ahead of schedule by the main contractors, Jons Moneley.
The Minister for Transport, Mr Cullen, will open the first of three bypasses which are to be built in the county to take heavy traffic away from the towns of Carrickmacross, Castleblayney and Monaghan town.
The completion of the remaining two schemes will further reduce travel time between the Border and Dublin by nearly 50 minutes.
The Carrickmacross project was funded by the Department of Transport, through the National Roads Authority (NRA), and the EU Regional Development Fund.
The new road will bypass the town with access at Cloughvalley, on the northern side, and at Lisanisk, south of the town.
The Lisanisk junction intersects with the Dundalk Road, and is linked to the Ardee Road.
The Dundalk/Ardee road link will enhance the viability and accessibility of the town by opening up a huge housing development and industrial area.
The mayor of Carrickmacross, Cllr Teresa Carolan, said yesterday that the bypass would be of huge benefit, removing congestion from the town centre and providing better access to the national and regional road networks.
The Monaghan county manager, Mr Declan Nelson, said a unique feature of the project was that approval had been given by the NRA for the new stretch to be called the Kavanagh Way to perpetuate the memory of the Monaghan poet Patrick Kavanagh, whose centenary was celebrated last year.