Construction of a new road bridge across the Garavogue River to the East of Sligo Town is hoped to start in 2009, according to Sligo Borough Council.

The new Eastern By-Pass will utilise the present N4 road from Carraroe, passing the Sligo Park Hotel and Pearce Road as far as Markievicz Park, from here traffic will go down Cemetary Road and go straight across the Western side of Cleveragh Racecourse, from here the new bridge will be built from the Doorly Park area, with a new road being built on the Northern side of the Garavogue River to connect with the main N16 Enniskillen road in Ballinode.

The proposed new road bridge, which will be the fourth road bridge to cross the Garavogue River in Sligo Town, will link the Doorly Park area on the south of the river with the Ardaghowen area on the north.

The structure of the proposed suspension bridge, which will be approximately 63 metres in length, will comprise a single span steel arch aligned along the centre of the bridge and rising to a height of 30 metres, supporting a limited number of hangers that connect to the bridge deck beneath.

The bridge deck will consist of a single lane carriageway on each side of the arch for vehicular traffic, pedestrians and cyclists, which according to Senior Engineer, Tom Brennan, will connect communities north and south of the river and provide access to the regional hospital and proposed new private hospital and dramatically reduce traffic congestion in the town centre.

Sligo Borough Council have made strenuous efforts to advance the project as quickly as possible.

Last Modified Thursday, 20-Dec-2007 21:56:39 GMT.