Ireland’s longest bridge will open in November, ease traffic chaos in South Kilkenny

BY COLIN BARTLEY

THE €230 million New Ross bypass that connects South Kilkenny and Wexford is set to open in November.

That’s according to Wexford County Council, who say the complexity of the construction of the Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Bridge delayed the project by six months.

There is light at the end of the bridge, however, and both councils expect the longest bridge in Ireland and the 15km bypass to be open by November.

This will come as a massive relief to the people who have had to endure over two-years of ongoing traffic delays on their daily commute.

The bridge, connecting Pink Point, Glenmore in Kilkenny to Stokestown in Wexford, will be the longest “extrados” type bridge in the world, and the longest bridge in Ireland. This type used a combination of cable-stay and pier supports to hold its The two central spurs, at 230 metres are the longest post-tensioned concrete spans in the world.

Its 887metre span makes it about twice as long as the River Suir Bridge that connects Grannagh in Kilkenny to Gracedieu in Waterford, and just 30 metres longer than the Foyle Bridge in Derry.