N9 road

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In Belgium, the N9 is the old route from Brussels to Ostend, passing Aalst, Ghent, Eeklo and Bruges.

Destinations (N to S)
On route / bypassed / bypassed by M9
County Kildare Kilcullen (N78 from Athy) (R747 from Arklow) Timolin ‡ Moone ‡ Castledermot † County Carlow Carlow * Leighlinbridge ‡ Muine Bheag ‡	County Kilkenny (N10 to Kilkenny) Gowran † Thomastown † (N10 from Kilkenny) Ballyhale * Mullinavat * (N24 from Limerick) County Waterford Waterford * (N25)
* Bypass under construction. † Bypassed planned. ‡ Existing single carriageway bypass to be bypassed.

The N9 road is a National Primary Route in the Ireland running from Junction 11 (was 9) on the N7 (M7 at this point), located near Kilcullen, County Kildare, to Waterford city. The route connects Dublin and Waterford.

Route

The initial part of the road, a spur from the M7 motorway, is of motorway standard and designated the M9 motorway (or Kilcullen Bypass). This begins at Junction 11 of the M7, just southwest of Newbridge (see thumbnail), and on the southwest side of Kilcullen. Prior to the 1993 opening of the Newbridge bypass, the N9 had run from Naas (west of the current M9). The previous route is now the R448.

At the southwestern side of Kilcullen, the N78 from Athy joins the N9 (the proposed N9 upgrade includes a new, shorter link round from Athy). The N9 continues south through Kilgowan, past Ballitore, the R747, Timolin, Moone and through Castledermot in County Kildare. North of Carlow, the N9 crosses the N80 before proceeding through the town via Dublin Road, Green Lane, Shamrock Square, Barrack Street, Riverside and Kilkenny Road. Further south, the N9 crosses the River Barrow bypassing Leighlinbridge to the west, and continuing south to pass west of Muine Bheag, then entering County Kilkenny.

At Paulstown the N10 road diverges west/southwest to serve Kilkenny. The N9 passes through Gowran, Dungarvan, Thomastown, and further on, just north of Ballyhale the N10 rejoins the N9, having proceeded south from Kilkenny. Lukeswell, Mullinavat and Dunkitt lie along the route south towards Waterford. At Granny, the N24 from Limerick joins the N9, with the N9 proceeding into Waterford via Newrath Road, Sallypark and Terminus Street, ending at the junction with the N25 (Cork–Rosslare) at Brother Ignatius Rice Bridge on the north bank of the River Suir.

Upgrade plans

The National Development Plan included plans for a motorway from Dublin to Waterford. A ministerial order is imminent as of February 2008 to classify the whole upgraded route to motorway status. An environmental impact assessment was published in October 2003 and a CPO issued in November 2003 for the dual-carriageway forming the northern part of the Kilcullen–Waterford route, from Kilcullen, County Kildare to Powerstown, County Carlow. An EIS was published and a CPO issued in February 2005 for the southern section of the upgraded route, from Powerstown to Waterford.

The southern section of route differs more from the existing N9 alignment than most of the national road upgrade projects in recent years. The N10 at present provides a link to Kilkenny, to the west of the N9. The new alignment of the N9 will pass further west, closer to Kilkenny, with a new shorter N10 link being constructed on the northeast side of Kilkenny. The existing N10 will remain for the link southeast of Kilkenny.

The road from Kilcullen to Waterford is being built in four sections and the situation as of February 2008 is:

• N9/N10 Kilcullen to Carlow; 28 km, at tender stage with construction to start 2008.
• N9/N10 Carlow Bypass; 18 km, under construction expected to open July 2008
• N9/N10 Carlow/Knocktopher ; 40 km, at tender. Construction to start 2008.
• N9/N10 Waterford/Knocktopher; 24 km, under construction due to open 2009.

A bypass of Waterford is under construction as of 2008, as part of the N25 that currently passes southeast/northwest through the city. As part of the project, the new N9 will join the new N25 motorway north of the city.

Standard of the N9

The section of the road between south County Carlow and Waterford is very poor. Whilst the N9 is the primary route, at the start of the N10 in Paulstown the N10 maintains the high standard of finish and width, whilst the N9 is reduced to a windy boreen. The journey between Paulstown and Waterford takes about one hour to travel.

References

• N9 Proposed Motorway Declaration February 2008
• Roads Act 1993 (Classification of National Roads) Order 2006 (PDF)- Department of Transport
• N9 - N10 Kilcullen to Waterford Road Scheme - Kilkenny County Council and Kildare National Roads Design Office.
• National Roads Authority (N9 road projects status December 2007)

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Last updated on Tuesday March 11, 2008 at 11:02:40 PDT (GMT -0700)
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