N6 road

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In Belgium, the N6 is the road from Brussels over Halle and Soignies to Mons.

Destinations (E to W)
On route / bypassed / bypassed by M6
County Meath Kinnegad County Westmeath Rochfordbridge * Tyrrellspass * (+N52) Kilbeggan * (-N52) Horseleap * Moate * Fardrum * (N62) Athlone (N55, N61)	County Galway Ballinasloe † Aughrim † Kilreekil ‡ Kilmeen ‡ (N65) Loughrea ‡ Craughwell ‡ Oranmore ‡ (N18) Galway † (N17, N59)
* Bypass under construction. † Bypass planned. ‡ To be completely bypassed by new N6 route.

The N6 road is a National Primary Route in the Republic of Ireland, connecting Dublin to Galway (by connecting from the M4 motorway at Kinnegad) across the midlands of Ireland. The route starts at Junction 11 on the M4 at Kinnegad. From there the road passes through Rochfordbridge, Tyrrellspass, Kilbeggan and Moate. The route follows a bypass around the central Irish town of Athlone, crossing the River Shannon, before passing through Ballinasloe and Loughrea. A section of dual carriageway brings the route into Galway, providing a link also for the N18 road from Limerick, which joins it near Oranmore.

[edit] Route

The N6 route commences directly west of Kinnegad. The road runs west into County Westmeath and passes Rochfordbridge, with the N52 joining the N6 at Tyrrellspass. The N6 continues west, with the N52 leaving the route again at Kilbeggan. The route leaves Westmeath after Horseleap, continues west into County Offaly, and re-enters Westmeath just before Moate where the N80 commences, leaving the N6 to the south.

The N6 passes through Fardrum (where the N62 begins, leaving the N6 to the south) heading west towards Athlone. The route follows a dual carriageway bypass of Athlone around the northern side of the town, crossing the River Shannon into County Roscommon. Along the dual-carriageway there are local access junctions, as well as junctions for the N55 and N61.

At Ballinasloe the route crosses the River Suck into County Galway. The N6 passes west through Aughrim and Kilreekil. Further west at Kilmeen, the N65 commences, leaving the N6 to the south. Loughrea is bypassed to the north by a route opened in November 2005. The River Dunkellin is crossed by the N6 at Craughwell as it continues west towards Galway. Outside the city itself, Oranmore is bypassed to the west and north, where the N18 crosses the N6. This dual carriageway bypass brings the route into Galway itself, where it meets the N17 along Bóthar na dTreabh. The Headford Road, Quincentenary Bridge across the River Corrib and Quincentenary Bridge Approach Road bring the N6 through Galway itself to meet the N59 on the western side of the city.

[edit] M6 motorway and upgrades

Only a short distance in one direction on a single carriageway of the road is designated M6.

The 2km (1.25 miles) section of dual carriageway west of Kinnegad has motorway restrictions on it, though only eastbound, and is signposted in that direction as the M6 motorway(see thumbnail). This is to prevent non-motorway traffic from being trapped on a road leading to a motorway, the M4.

A dual carriageway under construction as of 2006 between Kinnegad and Athlone will be only high quality dual carriageway, effectively a motorway without motorway restrictions on it. This is currently under construction as far as Athlone; the first section, as far as Kilbeggan though due to open in 2007, is well ahead of schedule, and a 19km (12 miles) section from Kinnegad to Tyrellspass opened on December 5th, 2006 [1] The next section, a 9km (5.5 miles) stretch from Tyrellspass to Kilbeggan will open in 2007 and the section connecting Kilbeggan to the eastern end of the Athlone by-pass is scheduled for completion in 2008.

It is likely that the entire section from the M4 to the junction with the Athlone bypass will be re-classified as the M6 motorway when it is completed.

A second dual carriageway section between Ballinasloe and Galway will, have motorway restrictions from the start, as it will be a toll road. This section is, however, a matter of some controversy. The environmental agency An Taisce has claimed that the National Roads Authority's planned M6 route would be "particularly destructive" in passing the site of the 17th century Battle of Aughrim ^[1]. As well as this, the tolling of the route is in itself controversial, as the M4 motorway to/from Dublin which connects with the N6/M6 route is also tolled, which will meant two tolls when driving between Dublin and Galway, although the authorities have indicated that there will be two tolls on each of the main interurban routes.

The new section of N6/M6 between Ballinasloe and Galway is unusual in that unlike most national road upgrade projects in the state, the new route will differ significantly from the original. The route will run roughly east-west between the two destinations, rather than dipping south to Loughrea as the current N6 does. This means that the town of Athenry will be located near to a national primary route for the first time.

[edit] References

• Roads Act 1993 (Classification of National Roads) Order 2006 (PDF)- Department of Transport
• Scheme Activity 2006 - National Roads Authority (road projects under construction)
• N6 Galway to Ballinasloe - Galway County Council
• N6 Ballinasloe to Athlone Dual Carriageway - Roscommon County Council
• N6 Kinnegad to Athlone Dual Carriageway Scheme - Westmeath County Council, National Roads Design Office

1. ^ Dispute over M6 route through Aughrim - RTÉ News