Project Information
DirectRoute (Tuam) Limited signed a contract with the Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) on the 30th April 2014 for the financing, design, construction, operation and maintenance of the N17/18 Gort to Tuam PPP Scheme.
As part of the Government’s Infrastructure Stimulus package the Project has been procured via a Public Private Partnership (PPP) model. The private sector company is paid in full by the State by way of availability payments, i.e. contractual payments for providing the road and making it available for use to a high standard.
The N17 N18 Gort to Tuam PPP Scheme forms part of the Atlantic corridor outlined under Transport 21. The scheme involves the design and construction of a new road to replace the existing N17 and N18 between Gort and Tuam. The existing N17 and N18 will thereafter be reclassified as regional roads. The scheme bypasses several adjacent towns to remove traffic bottlenecks. It is designed to accommodate national through traffic flows and will significantly improve safety and reduce journey times for traffic travelling north-south along the West of Ireland. The new road will also improve connectivity between the Western Region and Dublin and will significantly assist in the economic development of the BMW (Borders, Midlands and Western) regions.
The project road commences at the northern end of the N18 Crusheen to Gort scheme which opened to traffic in November 2010. The route will be of motorway standard from Gort to the junction at Kilmore, just south of Tuam, a distance of 53.2km. The alignment then continues with a dual carriageway Type 2 cross section, following a route to the west of Tuam town centre, to its end point on the N17 north of Tuam at Mountpotter, a distance of 4.2km.
The alignment follows a largely greenfield route with mainly grade-separate junctions at:
- Kiltiernan Interchange – connecting to the existing N18;
- Rathmorrissy – connecting to the M6 Dublin-Galway motorway;
- Annagh Hill – connecting to the N63; and
- Kilmore (at grade junction) – connecting to the N17.
- Ballygaddy Road interchange – connecting to Ballygaddy Road
The M17 M18 Gort to Tuam Motorway opened on the 27th September 2017, two months ahead of schedule. The construction of the project road took approximately three years to complete.
This information on this website complements the extensive background information on the scheme which can be viewed on Galway County Councils web site http://www.galway.ie/en/services/roads/roadsprojects/m17m18/