History of Roads in Ireland - Early History

Early History

The first routes in Ireland were prehistoric trackways, some of which were later developed into roads suited for wheeled vehicles. Many of Ireland's minor roads “may well have had their origin in pre-existing paths and trackways aligned in direct response to the physical environment.” Traces of these evolved roads which developed over very long periods, frequently from tracks of the prehistoric period, are still evident. The routes of such roads usually followed the natural landscape, following the tops of ridges and crossing rivers and streams at fording points.

There is almost no evidence that large roads were constructed in Ireland during the Stone Age. However, a very large oval henge enclosure, thought to date from c. 2500 BC (the Neolithic period) may possibly have had an ancient roadway associated with it. The henge was discovered at the Hill of Tara archaeological complex in geophysical surveys carried out between 1999 and 2001. It is unlikely that any roadway from this period would have been used as a transport route. Excavations carried out at Edercloon, Co. Longford in advance of road construction discovered a dense "network of wooden trackways and platforms, which were constructed from the Neolithic (c. 4000-c. 2200BC) to the early medieval period (c. AD 400-790)."

Wheeled vehicles with solid wooden disc-wheels were introduced into northern Europe around 2000 BC. An example of a disc-wheel, from the Netherlands, was found next to a wooden trackway: "it appears from this evidence that the introduction of disc-wheeled carts into…northern Europe required the invention of roadbuilding about 2000 B.C." An Early Bronze Age trackway, from shortly after 2000 BC, was found at Ballykillen Bog, near Edenderry, Co. Offaly in the 19th century. It may have been designed to carry disc-wheeled vehicles. A one kilometre (0.6 mile) section of a wooden trackway, three feet (approx. 1 metre) wide, was surveyed at Corlona Bog in Co. Leitrim in the 1950s. The trackway was dated to approximately 1500 BC but its narrow width makes it unlikely that it was used by wheeled vehicles. Similar wooden trackways and roads are known from all over Ireland from the Late Bronze Age. One example from Ballyalbanagh, Co. Antrim was seven feet (2 metres) wide and made from oak beams and planks: "its width suggests provision for cart or wagon transport."

Archaeological excavations have found some roads built with stone in the Irish Iron Age. Ireland was never part of the Roman Empire and, therefore, Roman roads were not built in Ireland. However, a 22-kilometre long Iron Age road with a stone surface, part of a defensive complex, has been excavated in Munster: this, along with similar excavations, demonstrates that "Roman methods of road construction were known in Ireland." Generally, most surfaced tracks from this period were made with wood and were designed to facilitate travel through (or to) bogs. Togher (Irish: tóchar) roads, a type of causeway built through bogs, were found in many areas of the country.

Although law-tracts in Early Medieval Ireland described several different types of road, and Irish annals referred to a network of major highways, there is no evidence to suggest that Ireland ever had a network of roads as well developed as those found in the Roman Empire or other ancient societies. The road network remained underdeveloped throughout the Late Medieval and much of the Early Modern periods: it was not until the 18th century that an extensive system of roads suitable for long-distance travel was developed. Newly built roads were relatively wide and straight, many still form the backbone of the current major roads network. The development of roads continued throughout the early 19th century until the arrival of the railways which became the dominant form of land transport from the 1840s-1850s onwards. The development of the internal combustion engine and of motorised vehicles led to increases in traffic on roads which were developed and improved as a result. Ireland's roads have continued to develop and improve up to the present day. Various development programmes have successively increased the number of motorways and dual carriageways within the national roads network while other roads have had their surfaces and signposting improved.