Ashbourne, County Meath - M2

M2

Ashbourne is linked to the M50 and Dublin City by 17 kilometres of motorway/high quality dual carriageway on the N2/M2 national primary route, which commences at junction 5 of the M50 motorway (13.5 km from Ashbourne). The road is a six-lane dual-carriageway from the M50 until exit 2, Cherryhound in Co. Dublin, where it becomes a motorway from there to the Rath roundabout, 1.5 km north of Ashbourne. The M2 incorporates a bypass of Ashbourne.

The N2 dual-carriageway, on its opening in 2006, was unique in Ireland as it was the first non-motorway road in the state to officially be granted national motorway speed limits of 120 km/h without any motorway restrictions. As a de facto motorway, many referred to this route as the M2 but this situation was regularised on 28 August 2009, when the section between exit 2 and the Rath roundabout north of Ashbourne will be redesignated as a motorway. The old N2, now re-designated the R135, had its speed limit reduced to 80 km/h in Co. Meath and 60 km/h in adjoining Fingal, much to the consternation of local motorists.

The N2/M2, which the Government announced in March 2005 would not be tolled, allows thousands of commuters and hauliers to avoid the town, which has become a major bottleneck for traffic heading south from County Donegal, County Londonderry, County Tyrone, County Monaghan, County Louth and the rest of County Meath. The South Ashbourne Interchange, a large junction taking traffic on and off the N2 near the Nine Mile Stone, allows non-stop transferral of traffic to and from Ashbourne and its new by-pass. Phase II of the M50 upgrade, opened in 2010, links the N2 to the M50 at exit 5 with a partial freeflow junction, meaning most traffic transferring from the M50 to the N2 and vice versa does not have to stop (traffic lights remain where traffic from the M50 southbound meets traffic from the N2 southbound).

Bus Éireann has not offered any express services using the new road, as expected when it first opened, and continue to use the old (R135) road for most services until Kilshane, where the R135 has an exit to the Dublin Airport Logistics Park and the N2. There is an informal, non-timetable Bus Éireann 103 service that occasionally runs via the M2 from Dublin to Ashbourne and the 107 Dublin-Navan-Kingscourt service also uses the M2 for an evening coach service at 5.40pm, leaving the M2 at Ashbourne South (exit 3) before continuing via the R135 and N2 north of Ashbourne towards Kentstown and Navan.

Dublin Bus use the N2 as far as Cherryhound (exit 2) for their 88N Nitelink service to Ashbourne