Details of the N2 national primary road.

Terminal Destinations:

Dublin -> Derry ^[1]

Route:

The N2 is 138.1 km long, and runs from Dublin city centre north (parallel to the N1) to Monaghan and on to the border with Northern Ireland (the A5 continues the route to Derry). The N2 is a typical route in the modern Ireland of the mid 2000s; the road standard varies from dual three lane carriageway with hard shoulders to winding narrow two lane country road.

Route description:

The N2 commences at a junction with the N1 along Dorset Street Upper. From here the route goes to Drumcondra, via St. Mary's Place, Western Way and the Phibsborough Road (and also in the opposite direction; North Circular Road, Berkeley Road, Berkeley Street and Blessington Street), as well as Prospect Road. At the start of the Finglas Road southbound traffic passes via Botanic Road. Along the south of Glasnevin Cemetary the Finglas Road becomes dual two lane carriageway (albeit with one lane used for buses along parts of the route). The dual carriageway section was extended in 1996 for 1.8 km along the North Road to reach Junction 5 of the M50.

The dual carriageway section of the N2 begins north of this junction. This section of the route, the Ashbourne Bypass (passing west of said town), was opened in 2006. 3.5 km of dual three lane carriageway with hard shoulder, 13.5 km of dual two lane carriageway with hard shoulder, and 1.5 km of dual two lane carriageway with no hard shoulder bring the N2 north of Ashbourne, County Meath.

Single carriageway country road continues the route north-northeast through to Slane (passing through Balrath along the way). Slane is a historic town through which the route winds its way, crossing the River Boyne on a narrow bridge. This is particularly dangerous due to the road connecting to the bridge at right angles at either end, with downhill approaches. There have unfortunately been many fatal accidents at this location over the years. In recent years more aggressive traffic calming has been installed, with not only traffic signals installed, but separation of heavy goods traffic using a distinct traffic signal sequence. Nevertheless, the bridge remains a blackspot. The N51 road crosses the N2 at Slane, connecting to Drogheda to the east, and Navan to the west.

The low quality road continues to wind north, crossing into County Louth near Collon through which it passes, and reaching Ardee. The N2 itself passes through the town, connecting north of the town to the N33, a link road to the parallel N1 route further east. The N52 also has junctions with the N2 at Ardee, connecting to Kells to the southwest, and Dundalk to the northeast. Northwest of Ardee, the N2 enters County Monaghan along a 5.5 km section of route upgraded between 1997 and 1999, and continues onto a bypass west of Carrickmacross. The single carriageway Carrickmacross Bypass, otherwise dubbed the "Kavanagh Way" was opened on 21 January 2005 after just over a year of construction. Seven bridges along the route separate local roads from the bypass alignment.

The N2 continues a more northwestern direction, passing through Broomfield and along 6.6 km of upgraded route (finished in 1996) to Castleblayney. At Castleblayney the N2 is joined by the N53 from Dundalk. Further northwest the N2 passed through Clontibret and proceeds northwest to reach Monaghan. Both Castleblayney and Clontibret are to be bypassed. A 3 km single carriageway bypass of Monaghan was opened on 25 September 2006 after construction for under two years. The N12 road to Armagh commences from the N2 at the northern end of the Monaghan Bypass. From Monaghan the N2 proceeds directly north to the border, passing through Emyvale.

Upgrades under construction and planned:

A 16 km long bypass of Castleblayney and Clontibret is under construction as of 2006. The route will be wide 2+1 carriageway, and is due to be completed in late 2007. From maps of the planned route, it seems the upgrade will join the current N2 alignment directly north of Clontibret, at least 7 km away from the start of the recently opened single carriageway Monaghan bypass.

A "phase two" of the Monaghan bypass is planned, extending the upgraded route north past Emyvale, bypassing that town to the west (A phase three of the bypass is also planned, but this will be on the northwest side of the town to the N54, and concerns that route).

Further south, a (second) bypass of Ardee is planned, on the southeast side of the town. This would bring the N2 around to meet the N33 east of Ardee, with the N33 (which already bypasses the north of the town) providing the link to the rest of the N2 that continues northwards. The route is planned as single carriageway, and is likely to be roughly 4 km long (a bypass of the northwestern side of Ardee is also planned as part of the project, this concerns the N52, and together the whole project is planned at 9 km of single carriageway). A report to An Bord Pleanala in August 2006 recommended the approval of the CPO for this route. ^[3]

A bypass of Slane has been planned for some time (with very slow progress compared to other projects). This has been outlined as 4 km of single carriageway, and is likely to pass along an alignment east of the town. A crossing of the River Boyne will be required. Meath County Council were directed by An Bord Pleanala in September 2005 to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement. ^[2]

Footnotes:

^[1] Traffic Signs Manual, Chapter 2, Appendix 2, Table A2.2 - Terminal Destinations for National Routes : National Primary Routes, Dept. of Environment, 1994.

^[2] Environmental Impact Statement Direction Case: N2 Slane Bypass [Microsoft Word - 69 kB], An Bord Pleanala website, accessed 26 Oct 2006.

^[3] Report to An Bord Pleanala [Microsoft Word - 182 kB], An Bord Pleanala website, accessed 26 Oct 2006.

References:

S.I. No. 187 of 2006 - Roads Act 1993 (Classification of National Roads) Order 2006 [PDF - 353 kB], Dept. of Transport website, accessed 25 Oct 2006.

National Route Lengths as of 31/12/2005 [PDF - 641 kB], NRA website, accessed 25 Oct 2006.

Major Road Schemes in Planning, NRA website, accessed 26 Oct 2006.

Sod turned on €25m Monaghan By-Pass, Dept. of Transport website, accessed 26 Oct 2006.

Bypasses in Monaghan, Monaghan County Council website, accessed 26 Oct 2006.

Resources:

Map of N2 Castleblayney [PDF - 557 kB], NRA website, accessed 26 Oct 2006.

Castleblayney bypass information, Monaghan County Council website, accessed 26 Oct 2006.

Map of N2 Ashbourne Bypass [PDF - 390 kB], NRA website, accessed 26 Oct 2006.

N2 Ashbourne Bypass website, accessed 26 Oct 2006.

Map of N2 Carrickmacross Bypass [PDF - 413 kB], NRA website, accessed 26 Oct 2006.

N2 Carrickmacross - Aclint Progress Diary, Monaghan County Council website, accessed 26 Oct 2006.

Map of N2 Monaghan Bypass (Phase 1) [PDF - 605 kB], NRA website, accessed 26 Oct 2006.

Map of N2 Monaghan/Emyvale Bypass Phase 2, Monaghan County Council website, accessed 26 Oct 2006.