Taoiseach issues warning over driver behaviour on roads as he opens new Listowel bypass

Simon Harris said while the Government would continue to invest in road safety, 'the single biggest action anybody can take is the individual behaviour of a motorist behind the wheel'

Taoiseach Simon Harris and Education Minister Norma Foley at the official opening of the new Listowel bypass, which will divert 7,000 vehicles a day from Listowel town centre. Pictures: Valerie O'Sullivan

The Taoiseach issued a strong road safety plea on Monday as he officially opened the €62m Listowel bypass in Kerry, while insisting pitching "roads versus climate" was "over simplistic".

“There is an awful lot of talk, sometimes in Government, sometimes in politics, sometimes in the media, about roads versus climate," Simon Harris said in Kerry.

What do people think the electric vehicles are going to drive on? Where do they think the buses are going to drive on. I certainly didn’t sign up to a programme for government that was anti-road.

“Yes, we have to change how we live and maybe the types of cars that we drive over time but it is so important that we continue to invest in our road network.” 

He said the investment had already delivered significant benefits for Listowel and the wider North Kerry region since the bypass opened to traffic in June, removing about 7,000 vehicles a day from the town centre, including 250 heavy good vehicles per day — a 40 to 50% reduction in the town’s through traffic — improving road safety and air quality, and cutting journey times at peak hours by more than half.

Taoiseach Simon Harris: 'While the Government can and will continue to invest in road safety, in the quality of our roads, in supporting the local authorities with road repairs, we have to be conscious that the single biggest action anybody can take is the individual behaviour of a motorist behind the wheel.

“I am conscious when we are talking about road safety that we are seeing a very grim year when it comes to road fatalities in our country. There are far too many families with an empty seat around the kitchen table already this year.

“And while the Government can and will continue to invest in road safety, in the quality of our roads, in supporting the local authorities with road repairs, we have to be conscious that the single biggest action anybody can take is the individual behaviour of a motorist behind the wheel," he said.

There is nothing that the Government can do that will trump the individual benefits of the actions that each and every motorist can take in terms of driver behaviour, speed, drink-driving, drug-driving, using your phone while driving and the distractions that can take place.

Education Minister Norma Foley described the heritage town as "a real, real Kerry gem" that deserved to be showcased and enjoyed.

"And truly, the Listowel bypass will facilitate and allow for that," she said.

Listowel, on the N69 Tralee to Limerick national secondary route, the main access route to Limerick, Galway and Dublin for the people of North Kerry, has experienced severe traffic congestion for years, particularly at peak hours, with large volumes of traffic and HGVs funnelling through the existing bridge and narrow road network in the town, making journey times very unreliable.

Following a route selection report process in 2011 and 2012, the new N69 Listowel bypass, an almost 6km western and northern bypass of the town centre, was designed by Jacobs Engineering (Ireland) to alleviate the problems, with Wills Bros Limited appointed as contractor.

Planning was granted and CPOs were confirmed in 2017, construction started in early 2022 and finished in June 2024.

The scheme includes about 7km of single carriageway road between the start and end points on the N69 Tralee to Tarbert road and the existing N69 in Ballygologue.