M8 motorway (Republic of Ireland)

The M8 motorway is an inter-urban motorway 93 miles long in the Republic of Ireland, which forms part of the motorway from the capital Dublin to Cork city.

The motorway commences in the townland of Aghaboe in County Laois and runs through the counties of Kilkenny, Tipperary and Limerick, and finally County Cork, terminating at the Dunkettle interchange in Cork.

The motorway was first called for in the Road Needs Study in 1998 and later formed part of the Irish Government's 'Transport 21' plan for infrastructural development. The majority of the M8 (71½ miles) was built between 2006 and 2010. On 28 May 2010, the motorway was completed and had replaced almost all of the single-carriageway N8, except for a short section of urban road in Cork.

Route

The route starts in the townland of Aghaboe, County Laois, at a motorway-to-motorway interchange with the M7. From here it proceeds southwards, passing under the R434 and R433 roads until it runs parallel to the single-carriageway R639 road, bypassing Abbeyleix, Durrow, Cullahill, Johnstown, Urlingford, Littleton, Horse and Jockey, Cashel, New Inn, Cahir, Skeheenarinky, Kilbeheny, Mitchelstown, Kilworth Mountain, Fermoy, Rathcormac, Watergrasshill and Glanmire.

Between its junction with the M7 and Dunkettle, the M8 passes through pasture in County Laois, and over bogland and coniferous forest through County Kilkenny and County Tipperary. South of Cashel, it enters the Golden Vale and crosses the River Suir west of Cahir. The motorway then travels south-west along the Galtee Mountains, passing Glengarra Wood and Mitchelstown Cave. East of the route, the Knockmealdown Mountains and the Comeraghs are starkly visible. The M8 crosses into County Cork south of Kilbeheny and proceeds south to the east of Mitchelstown, before skirting around the base of Kilworth Mountain through pastoral farmland and demesne parkland. At Moorepark, some 5 km north of Fermoy, the M8 is tolled for the next 17.5 kilometres. This tolled section incorporates an impressive 450m viaduct crossing of the River Blackwater. Toll plazas are located between junctions 16 and 17 and at the southbound exit of junction 15. The current toll for cars is €2.00.^[1] Many motorists, particularly lorry drivers, drive through Fermoy, Rathcormac and Watergrasshill to avoid the toll. In 2006 the Irish Road Haulage Association advised its members not to use the toll road, because they considered it to be too expensive. Consequently, traffic volumes through Watergrasshill increased by about 6,000 vehicles (of which approximately 1,100 were lorries) per day at the end of that year.

The M8 continues south, bypassing Watergrasshill, Sallybrook, Riverstown and Glanmire, before ending 450m north of the Jack Lynch Tunnel at the approach to the Dunkettle Interchange (which has recently been converted to a freeflow interchange since Feb 2024), which connects it with the N25 to Waterford, the N40 Cork South Ring Road (a ring road of Cork) and the N8 to Cork city centre.

Despite having a nominal nineteen junctions, the motorway in fact only has eighteen, because the proposed junction 2 was never constructed.

History

The M8 was constructed in eight stages between 1985 and 2010. Some of the sections which now form part of the M8 were initially opened as dual-carriageway and previously formed part of the N8, while other sections were opened as motorway.

Junctions

County	Junction	Destinations	Notes
County Laois	3	– Rathdowney, Abbeyleix, Durrow	Manor Stone Service Station Continues to join M7.
County Kilkenny	4	– Kilkenny – Urlingford, Johnstown
County Tipperary	5	‒ Thurles, Twomileborris	Northbound entrance and southbound exit only.
	6	– Thurles, Horse and Jockey, Littleton, Holycross
	7	– Cashel, Dundrum
	8	– Cashel, Fethard, Clonmel
	9	– Tipperary, Cashel, Holycross, Dundrum (northbound) Tipperary, Cashel, New Inn (southbound)
	10	– Limerick, Waterford, New Inn (northbound) Limerick, Tipperary, Waterford, Clonmel (southbound)
	11	– Cahir
County Cork	12	– Mitchelstown, Kilbeheny, Mallow
	13	– Mitchelstown, Limerick, Tipperary (northbound) Mitchelstown (southbound)
	14	– Fermoy, Kilworth, Dungarvan	Fermoy Service Area
	15	– Fermoy, Rathcormac
	16	‒ Rathcormac	Northbound exit and southbound entrance only.
	M8 Fermoy Bypass Toll
	17	– Watergrasshill
	18	– Glanmire
	19 Dunkettle Interchange	– Waterford – Little Island, Cork Cork South Ring Road	Continues as the N8 to Cork city centre.