M17/M18 - Gort to Tuam [open to traffic]

Brennans Row wrote: »

All that I’m saying, is that it gives Leo Varadkar an opportunity to persuade Direct Route to negotiate a new deal on those traffic guarantee clauses before he signs off the Gort-Tuam contract with them.

monument wrote: »

Lol at a new twist -- it's now put back to 2pm.

It can't go a day without a delay...

sonnyblack wrote: »

Wey Hey


Minister for Transport, Tourism & Sport Leo Varadkar and Minister for Public Expenditure & Reform Brendan Howlin have signed a contract with a consortium to construct the M17/M18 Gort to Tuam PPP Scheme which will create up to 450 jobs, boost local economies in the west and ease congestion.

Can't seem to post the link but it's on the Roads section of the Department of Transport

Wednesday 30th April 2014

• Second transport Public Private Partnership finalised under this Govt
• 57km scheme major boost to Western region
• Project is 1 of 4 major road schemes

Minister for Transport, Tourism & Sport Leo Varadkar and Minister for Public Expenditure & Reform Brendan Howlin have signed a contract with a consortium to construct the M17/M18 Gort to Tuam PPP Scheme which will create up to 450 jobs, boost local economies in the west and ease congestion.

The overall cost of the scheme is estimated at €550 million and the road will be toll-free.

“This is further evidence of the Government's commitment to improving transport infrastructure outside of the Greater Dublin Area,” Minister Varadkar said.

Minister Howlin said: “I am very pleased that we have achieved sign-off on the latest roads project to be delivered using the Public Private Partnership model and indeed the first, and largest, project of our new PPP Stimulus Programme.”

This is the second transport Public Private Partnership to be signed under this Government, following the M11/Newlands Cross project, and will create up to 450 jobs during the construction and post-construction phases. The entire PPP programme had been frozen since the economic crisis of 2008 but is now fully operational again.

“This 57km scheme will be a major boost to the Western region and I’m delighted that we have now secured financing under the PPP programme. The new road will be safer, and will bypass Clarinbridge, Claregalway and Tuam which all suffer from congestion. Anyone who has travelled the existing route appreciates the difference this new road will make. I want to congratulate the NRA for getting the contract to this stage. I’m especially pleased that three members of the contract consortium are Irish civil engineering firms, and I hope this bodes well for our economic recovery,” Minister Varadkar said.

“This Government is investing significantly in transport projects outside of Dublin. The Gort to Tuam motorway is the only major road project to commence construction this year. The Belturbet bypass has already opened and the Ballaghaderreen bypass will be opened later this year. When completed, this new motorway will reduce journey times between Limerick and Galway, allowing the two cities to work together economically, and supporting further investment and jobs. It will also reduce journey times from Galway to Shannon Airport, boosting the airport's growth prospects. The focus now turns to tendering for the Enniscorthy and New Ross PPPs,” he added.

The new four lane motorway will replace the existing N17/N18 roads, and reduce end-to-end journey times by around 20 minutes. The 57km scheme will provide four lanes from Gort in the south to Tuam in the north, and a major junction with the M6 Galway-Dublin route to the east of Galway City. It will bypass Tuam, Ardrahan, Claregalway, Kilcolgan, Clarinbridge and Gort.

The European Investment Bank will provide €144 million over 26 years for the scheme, representing a saving to the State. Another c.€150 million will be provided by commercial funders, with a mix of international and domestic project finance banks represented alongside new international institutional investors. This diverse funding group is a strong signal of the international project finance market’s confidence in Ireland.

Fred Barry CEO of the National Roads Authority stated: “Today’s signing signifies a monumental step towards the construction of the Atlantic Corridor Motorway.”

Jonathan Taylor, European Investment Bank Vice President said: “The European Investment Bank is pleased to support this new investment in Ireland’s road network. This will not only improve transport links in the west of Ireland, but also directly benefit the construction sector with hundreds of new jobs. The M17 project represents the European Investment Bank’s third engagement to support PPP projects since 2010. We welcome leading European commercial investors' participation in the project. This shows that the Irish PPP market, with transitional assistance from the EIB, has once again become attractive to international investors. The European Investment Bank looks forward to supporting Ireland through similar engagement in the future.”

The new road will take thousands of vehicles away from the centres of Clarinbridge, Claregalway and Tuam every day and form part of the Atlantic Corridor along Ireland’s west coast. Construction is expected to take less than four years and the first traffic along the route is expected in late 2018.

All archaeological sites along the route have been investigated under licence from the National Museum and any compulsory purchase orders required to develop the road have already been completed.

Ends



Further information

The scheme is a non-tolled PPP

Contracting authority: National Roads Authority

Contract consortium: Direct Route, including Roadbridge, John Sisk, Lagan, three large Irish civil engineering firms and Strabag of Austria.

Alongside the European Investment Bank additional funding will be provided by the Bank of Ireland, Natixis partnering with the Ageas Group and Sociéte Générale.

· 57 km long (53km motorway and 4km Tuam Bypass)

· Starts from the N18 Gort to Crusheen scheme opened November 2010

· Connects to the M6 motorway west of Oranmore (edit - got that one wrong guys)

· Bypasses Tuam and Claregalway at the northern end as well as Ardrahan, Kilcolgan and Clarinbridge in the south

· A significant part of the Atlantic Corridor

In July 2012 the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Brendan Howlin announced the Government’s €2.25 billion Infrastructure Stimulus Package which involved raising €1.4 billion for investment in public infrastructure projects from the EIB, NPRF, domestic banks and other potential sources of funding.

In the transport sector an investment €850 million was identified for projects to upgrade to national motorway and primary route network in line with the priorities identified in the Infrastructure and Capital Investment Framework. The projects included the package were;

• The M17/M18 Gort to Tuam scheme,

• The M11 Gorey to Enniscorthy project and

• The N25 New Ross Bypass.



The European Investment Bank has recently increased engagement to support transport investment, as well as projects in other sectors across Ireland. Last year the European Investment Bank increased lending in Ireland by 35% and provided a total of €680 million for seven new projects including support for new roads, schools, university investment, energy and telecommunications.

The European Investment Bank (EIB) is the long-term lending institution of the European Union owned by its Member States. It makes long-term finance available for sound investment in order to contribute towards EU policy goals.

Deleted User wrote: »

Will it really take 4 years to complete ? Expected opening late 2018!!

Reuben1210 wrote: »

Second question: The part of the M6/N6 that is not motorway around Athlone...it that due to be upgraded to motorway following the recent upgrade of this section?

newbie13 wrote: »

2018 is four years away....