It could be completed by 2026.
The creation of the
M20 Limerick - Cork motorway has seen a major leap forward as the main contract for its design has gone formally out to tender.
Speaking to Patricia Messinger on
C103’s Cork Today Show, the news was confirmed by Senator Kieran O'Donnell, who said the planning-design phase will now be going to the An Bord Pleanála stage.
Coming one day after
an American tourist suffered critical injuries in a head-on collision on the N20 Cork-Limerick road near the Waterloo junction, Senator O'Donnell said that the road going out to tender "is a very good news story", which could ensure greater road safety, as well as a means of reducing commuter times.
"The key focus is, I want to see if we can get from Cork to Limerick in under an hour," he said.
When asked how long the whole process would take, the senator said an ideal target was 2026.
"We've an ambition in Limerick that the Ryder Cup will come to Adare Manor. They're looking at 2026."
The next step will be to appoint a consultant for the design and planning stage, which will be taken to An Bord Pleanála.
Speculating that this part of the process make take until 2021 or 2022, the Senator acknowledged that it is an "ambitious target" before going on to note that the subsequent stage of appointing contractors to build the route could take a further three years.
