One of the country's worst traffic bottlenecks will be cleared today with the opening of the new €140 million Monasterevin bypass by the Minister for Transport Mr Cullen.
The official opening takes place at 11 a.m. near the Montague Hotel on the Portlaoise road, with the bypass expected to be open to traffic after lunchtime.
The new 17.5km M7 Heath-Mayfield motorway has been completed almost a year ahead of schedule.
From today, as a result, drivers on the Dublin/Cork road will not have to face the familiar tailbacks at Monasterevin.
It is the latest in a series of by-passes built on the Dublin-Cork road in recent years.
The National Roads Authority (NRA) has said it is delighted the road has been finished 50 weeks ahead of schedule.
"The contractors just got on with it. They had good weather all last summer and they got the job done," said NRA spokesperson Mr Ray Foley.
When the Kildare bypass was opened in December last year, traffic delays in Monasterevin got worse, especially at the weekends.
The Kildare project was initially delayed due to concerns about the safety of a rare snail. However, an innovative protective membrane was installed under the motorway and the road was completed at a cost of €160 million.
It was completed four months ahead of schedule.
With the opening of the Monasterevin bypass, up to 16,000 vehicles a day will be removed from the town.
Spokesmen for businesses and residents have welcomed the relief from the traffic jams.
The contracts for the construction of the M7 Heath-Mayfield motorway scheme were signed by Kildare and Laois County Councils in February 2003 with Roadbridge Sisk taking on the project.