Speech By Mr. Martin Cullen T.D. Minister for Transport at the Sod-turning of the N8 Cashel-Mitchelstown Road Project

Date: 22 May 2006

Introduction

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen.

I am very pleased to be here today to turn the sod on the N8 Cashel - Mitchelstown Road Project which marks yet another milestone in bringing our national roads infrastructure into the 21st century and in upgrading, in particular, a key route - the N8 serving Dublin to Cork. Journey times between Dublin and Cork and Limerick have been reduced significantly with the elimination of bottlenecks such as Kildare, Monasterevin and Cashel and the construction of this 37km project will further consolidate and extend the benefits of these projects.

Project

The project forms part of the South West Corridor that links Limerick and Cork and Dublin. It will deliver significant benefits in terms of improvements in road safety. The alleviation of traffic congestion through local villages such as Kilbehenny, Skeheenarinky and New Inn will be welcomed by residents and businesses alike. Improvements to our national road infrastructure - with projects such as this one also benefit industry in terms of letting business do business, making it easier for companies to transport their goods and services with greater certainty.

Transport 21

That certainty can be attributed in no small way to Transport 21. Many of you here today may think that Transport 21 is concentrating on Dublin and its environs. Transport 21 is for every region in Ireland. Not just the road users will benefit. Communities will benefit. Regions will benefit. The goal of Transport 21 is to provide Ireland with a first class transport system that, on a national level, connects all regions to each other and to our main seaports and airports, and, in the cities, will provide greatly enhanced public transport alternatives to the private car.

Over the next 10 years the Government will spend through Transport 21 an average of over €9.4 million per day on our transport infrastructure. Building on the good work done in upgrading our transport infrastructure in recent years, Transport 21 represents an intensification and strengthening of the Government's commitment to ensuring that Ireland has a transport network to match and support its buoyant economy. The objective of Transport 21 is nothing less than a transformation of Ireland's transport network.

The rapid changes that have been taking place in Ireland in recent years have been clear for all to see. As we have advanced greatly as a country, but with these advancements have come additional needs. For example, while the population of much of Western Europe is static or declining, our population has increased to over four million. Much of that population growth has taken place in the urban hinterlands around our cities, leading to longer distance commuting and a reliance on car based transport. Employment has grown too.

This is wonderful for our economy but from a transport perspective, it means added needs and pressures. Look at car ownership figures car ownership has increased by approximately 50% between 1991 and 2003. The tonnage of goods transported nationally by road has increased from 85 million tonnes in 1994 to 283 million tones in 2004.

All of these trends translate into more people on our public transport systems, more private cars on our road and more trucks and commercial vehicles on our roads. These trends are to be welcomed. They are signs of our growing prosperity. However, they place significant impact on our transport infrastructure. We must let business do business, to protect and grow what we've achieved over the past ten years.

Transport 21 provides the level of investment necessary to develop a truly integrated National transport network. Crucially, it is about the way in which projects are integrated. It is built around two key strategies, in essence a Greater Dublin Strategy and a National Strategy.

The National Strategy involves the development of a high quality road network and the enhancement and development of public transport. It will mean that people can save up to an hour in journey times by car between cities, trains every two hours or less on the most modern rail fleet in Europe, new commuter rail services in the regions and a new road connecting the entire Atlantic Corridor.

National Roads Programme

The good progress being made in upgrading national roads is being reflected around the country. This year, work is continuing on 22 projects throughout the country, including the N5 Charlestown Bypass, N8 Fermoy Bypass, N11 Arklow/Gorey Bypass, and N18 Ennis Bypass. Another 11 projects are due for completion this year, for example, the N8/73 Mitchelstown Relief Road and N21 Castleisland/Abbeyfeale. Fourteen major projects are due to start this year they include the N6 Kinnegad/Athlone Phase 2, the N7 Nenagh to Limerick and the N8 Cullahill to Cashel.

The project that I turned the sod on today, - the N8 Cashel to Mitchelstown Road Project is one of strategic importance under the Government's Transport 21 plan. It is the first "Early Contactor Involvement" (ECI) type contract which aims to further improve on the delivery of the national roads programme. It takes the now familiar "Design-Build" form of contract which is delivering national road projects on time and within budget, a step further. The benefits of this have been an input to design, more time for planning and programming the construction works, better quality and value for money and better risk management.

Conclusion

In conclusion, I would like to take the opportunity to thank all involved with this project including Tipperary South County Council, the National Roads Authority

the land owners and others who have cooperated in getting the project to this stage, Roadbridge/Sisk J.V. who have been successful in securing the contract and wish them and their workforce well in their efforts to complete the project on time and within budget; indeed, everyone involved in getting the project to this stage.

I wish you and all who will be working on the site success with the project.

Finally, I want to take this opportunity to ask all of you here today to take care on our roads. All I'm asking you is to obey the speed limits, ensure that you and others travelling with you wear your seat belts and never ever drink and drive. You will be making our roads safer and saving lives.

Thank you.