The R710 road is a
regional road in
Ireland
Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...
. Located in the south of
Ireland
Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...
at
Waterford
Waterford ( ) is a City status in Ireland, city in County Waterford in the South-East Region, Ireland, south-east of Ireland. It is located within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster. The city is situated at the head of Waterford H ...
, it forms the ''Outer Ring Road'' around the south of the city. As of December 2006 it commences on the Old Kilmeaden Road at Knockhouse Lower, west of Waterford City and ends at a junction with the
R683 on the ''Dunmore Road'' in the south-east of the city.
The
R709 forms the ''Inner Ring Road'' around the south of the inner city.
Background
Waterford City Council initiated work on the outer ring road in 1993. Phase one of the outer ring road, between the ''Dunmore Road'' and the ''Williamstown Road'', opened in Autumn 1998, at a cost of about £1M. The council planned a phase 2, which would link the Williamstown and Airport roads, at a cost of £1.2M, however this phase was never carried out. Instead it was announced in 2000 that the department of Finance would fund the remainder of the road, between the Williamstown and Cork roads, though ultimately it was completed under the auspices of the
National Development Plan
National Development Plan (NDP, ) is the title given by the Irish Government to a scheme of organised large-scale expenditure on (mainly) national infrastructure. The first five-year plan ran from 1988 to 1993, the second was a six-year plan f ...
(NDP). This main section of the outer ring road was itself built in 3 stages between March 2004 and September 2005. It was officially opened on 30 September 2005 by the then Minister for Transport
Martin Cullen
Martin Cullen (born 2 November 1954) is an Irish former Fianna Fáil politician who served as Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism from 2008 to 2010, Minister for Social and Family Affairs from 2007 to 2008, Minister for Transport from 2004 ...
, at a final cost of €37m.
Phase one of the outer ring road is a single carriageway road about 1 km in length. The remainder of the road is dual carriageway, in length. This gives a total length of about for the R710 Outer Ring Road between the Ardkeen and Cork road roundabouts. The term ''Outer Ring Road'' has been occasionally used specifically for the more recent project, with the NDP and Waterford City Council referring to the project (for this section) merely as the ''Waterford Outer Ring Road''. The 7-year gap between the completion of 'phase one' and the main section, along with the fact that the main section is dual carriageway while the phase one road is single lane perhaps lends an artificial distinction between the two route sections.
Link to the N25
October 2009 saw the completion of the
N25 ''Waterford City Bypass'' (construction commenced 2006), and now the R710 is joined to the bypass via the ''Western Link''. It is now possible travel in a circle around the city from Ardkeen to
Slieverue in
County Kilkenny
County Kilkenny () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster and is part of the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. It is named after the City status in Ir ...
, via the second river crossing (the N25 cable stay bridge of about 475 m in length) between Gracedieu and Grannagh.
Roundabouts (east to west)
# Ardkeen
# Farranshoneen Road
# Airport Road
# Couse Bridge
# Ballindud
# Six Cross Roads
# Ballycashin Road
# Butlerstown
# Knockhouse Lower
See also
*
Roads in Ireland
The island of Ireland, comprising Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, has an extensive network of tens of thousands of kilometres of public roads, usually surfaced. These roads have been developed and modernised over centuries, from ...
*
National primary road
A national primary road () is a road classification in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. National primary roads form the major routes between the major urban centres. There are 2649 km of national primary roads. This category of road has the pr ...
*
National secondary road
A national secondary road () is a category of road in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. These roads form an important part of the national route network but are secondary to the main arterial routes which are classified as national primary roads. Nat ...
References
Roads Act 1993 (Classification of Regional Roads) Order 2006–
Department of Transport
A ministry of transport or transportation is a ministry responsible for transportation within a country. It usually is administered by the ''minister for transport''. The term is also sometimes applied to the departments or other government a ...
Outer Ring Roadâ€
Waterford City Council details of the second project on the route.
N25 Waterford Bypassâ€
NRA includes details of the planned Western Link.
{{Roads in Ireland
Regional roads in the Republic of Ireland
Roads in County Waterford
Transport in Waterford (city)