N2 Ardee to Castleblayney Road Scheme – Updated Design

N2 Ardee to Castleblayney Road Scheme – Updated Design

Monaghan County Council, in association with Louth County Council, and in partnership with Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) are currently developing a road scheme to upgrade the existing N2 between Ardee and Castleblayney. In 2018 Monaghan County Council has appointed Jacobs Consulting Engineers (Jacobs) to advance the project through the planning and design process.  The N2 Ardee to Castleblayney Road Scheme is an important project to enhance key North/South and regional connectivity and to improve road safety, and Jacobs have been actively working on the project for over 4 years.

Having considered a number of options, a Preferred Route Corridor for the route of the road upgrade was published in February 2021. The project then entered the next phase of the planning and design process (Phase 3: Design and Environmental Evaluation), which will see Jacobs finalise the design of the road (including junctions and accesses), identify the landtake required, undertake an Environmental Impact Assessment and prepare Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) documentation.

By September 2022 Jacobs had developed an ‘Initial Road Design’ for the proposed road, which was used to consult with landowners and stakeholders. The project team invited approximately 300 directly affected landowners to meet with the project team and discuss the proposed design and it’s impact on landholdings. In November 2022, the same ‘Initial Road Design’ was published on N2 Project Website (www.N2MonaghanLouth.ie) to allow the wider community, stakeholders and public to view the proposed design and provide feedback.

Over the last few months, the feedback received has been considered by the project team. Where feasible, amendments have been made to the ‘Initial Road Design’, and an ‘Updated Road Design’ has been prepared. While all feedback and comments were considered, it was not feasible/practical to incorporate all design change requests into the updated design due to design and environmental constraints.

The ‘Updated Road Design’  is now available to view as an interactive map on the N2 Project Website (www.N2MonaghanLouth.ie). The map-based system shows the route of the proposed N2, the locations of the proposed interchanges and junctions onto the N2, the route of proposed sideroads and access roads along the N2, and an updated indicative Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) boundary. The interactive map allows the user to quickly and easily zoom-into their area of interest.

Feedback on this updated design is welcome, and can be submitted to the project team by email (ardeecastleblayney@n2monaghanlouth.ie) or through the N2 Project Phoneline (087 340 3786).

Over the coming months the project team will continue to consider any feedback in relation to the ‘Updated Road Design’ before the road design and landtake requirements are finalised, and the CPO documentation and Environmental Impact Assessment Report (EIAR) are completed.