User:Aceshade

Junctions

Westbound exit	Junction	Eastbound exit
N6 Ninjago [[(Ireland)|and N8 Couchesport M10 Hotown		N5 Lego City
M1 Lego City :	M1 Lego City :
Leixlip Interchange: Leixlip (East), Celbridge (East) R148
Westbound exit	Junction	Eastbound exit
Leixlip West, Celbridge West R449		Leixlip West, Celbridge West R449
Maynooth, Naas R406		Maynooth, Naas R406
Clane, Kilcock R407		Clane, Kilcock, Trim R407
Enfield, Edenderry R402		Enfield, Edenderry R402
Enfield services		Enfield services
Kinnegad R401		Kinnegad R401
Galway, Athlone (M6 )		No No access
Kinnegad		Kinnegad
McNead's Bridge		McNead's Bridge
(in planning)
Westbound exit	Junction	Eastbound exit
The Downs R156		The Downs R156
Mullingar South, Tullamore N52		Mullingar South, Tullamore N52
Mullingar, Delvin N52		Mullingar, Delvin N52
Mullingar North, Castlepollard N52		Mullingar North, Castlepollard N52
Road continues as N4 for Mullingar, Longford, (N5), Sligo

Motorway reclassification

On 28 August 2009, the Department of Transport implemented the second round of proposed reclassifications of dual carriageways as motorways under the Roads Act 2007. A short section of the N4 between Kinnegad (J12) and McNead's Bridge (J13) was affected by this. This extended the M4 westward by 6.8 km.

Bypasses

Travelling East along the upgraded Lucan Bypass in west Dublin.

• Palmerstown – 1984
• Lucan – 1988
• Leixlip, Maynooth, Kilcock – 1994
• Mullingar – 1994
• Longford – 1995
• Drumsna, Jamestown – 1997
• Collooney, Ballisodare – January 1998
• Boyle, Ballinafad – 1998-1999
• Sligo (Partially) – September 2005
• Enfield, Kinnegad – January 2006
• Edgeworthstown – June 2006
• Dromod, Roosky – December 2007
• Castlebaldwin – October 2021.

Upgrades

J11; M6/M4 junction (prior to redesignation of the N6 → M6).

In July 2009, an upgrade of the section between the M50 junction and the Leixlip interchange was completed. In this section the road is three lanes in each direction, the median crossings were removed and the junction with the R120 is a fully grade-separated junction. Private accesses and some left turns remain preventing the section from being designated a motorway. The speed limit is 80 km/h. There are currently no signal-controlled junctions on the N/M4 between the M50 motorway and the Sligo through-pass.

In 2013, a 5 km stretch of dual carriageway with at-grade crossover junctions between the M4 and the Mullingar bypass was upgraded to HQDC.

Construction of a 2+2 road at the 15 km stretch between Collooney and Castlebaldwin began in 2019 to improve road safety. The road was opened on 18 October 2021.

Planned improvements to the route

N4 between Kinnegad and Mullingar; former N4 (now R148) in left of the picture. (This section was redesignated as a motorway in August 2009)

• Mullingar bypass to Longford; 40 km dual carriageway ; at constraints study stage
• Dromod to Carrick-on-Shannon; 11 km; at feasibility study stage
• Carrick-on-Shannon Bypass; 10 km; preliminary design stage
• Cortober to Castlebaldwin; 28 km retro upgrade of standard single carriageway road to 2+1 road; at constraints study stage
• Sligo Western Relief Road; 8 km; at feasibility study stage
• The motorway-style dual carriageway of the N4, running from Collooney—15 km outside Sligo—to Summerhill in Sligo town is not expected to be re-classified as a motorway in the near future.

See also

• Roads in Ireland
• Motorways in Ireland
• National secondary road
• Regional road

References

Sources

• Roads Act 1993 (Classification of National Roads) Order 2006 – Department of Transport
• Roads Act, 1993 (Classification of National Roads) (Kilkock – Kinnegad Route) Order, 2003
• Eurolink Motorway M4 website