If you thought poet Paddy Kavanagh had a poor opinion of Kinnegad, the Westmeath village that is the last stumbling block between travellers to the west and the open road, then you should have been listening to the airwaves this week and reading letters in the newspapers.
Anything the poet had to say would seem mild compared to the abuse motorists are heaping on poor old Kinnegad after a summer trying to pass through it.
The good news for Kinnegad, and for those who were in up 10-mile long queues during July and August, is that the promised relief road is about to begin.
The Westmeath acting county manager, Mr Kieran McGrath, confirmed this week that work on the road will start, weather permitting, next month.
If all goes as planned, the road, which will allow Galway and Athlone-bound motorists to avoid the centre of the village, will be completed by next April. The road, which will cost £2.5 million, will run eastwards from the garage on the outskirts of the village on the Dublin road to the O'Connor estate on the Athlone road.
"The road will be 1.2km long and is a slip road which will give temporary relief until the time a road can be built linking Kilcock to the Mullingar road, west of Kinnegad," Mr McGrath said.
"It is a measure of our concern that we will spend so much on the temporary relief road which we hope will ease the problem somewhat. Of course, long-term solutions are required and that is why Westmeath County Council is working with Kildare and Meath county councils to build the new motorway/dual carriageway to link up with the Mullingar road.
"Work has already started on that and a design team has already been appointed by the council and is drawing up plans for this development. Given the need for consultation and the planning and the other issues involved, these plans should be ready to be put out for tender in the middle of the year 2002. There will be a three-year construction time involved and the road should be finished by 2005," he said.