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Komatsu fleet on major Irish road development

Ahead of work getting underway on the Irish Government’s proposed €450 million upgrade of the N5 carriageway that links Dublin through the midlands to the popular tourist regions dotted along the north-west coast, lead contractor on the project, Mayo-based Wills Bros of Foxford, has augmented its already extensive equipment portfolio with investment in an additional number of Komatsu-branded machines, all for use on the project.

Supplied by McHale Plant Sales, Komatsu equipment included in this latest multi-million-euro fleet enlargement are three D85PX-18 dozers, a HB365LC Hybrid excavator, two wide-track, low ground pressure PC170 LGP excavators, and a double-digit mix of HM300-5 and HM400-5 ADTs, all of which will integrate alongside other Komatsu units within the Wills Bros fleet.

Scheduled to take up to four years to complete, the project is described by Ireland’s Minister for Transport, Eamonn Ryan TD as replacement for ‘one of the most treacherous sections of primary road in Ireland’. “When completed, it will improve road user safety, enhance regional accessibility, and better the connectivity between Dublin and the northern and western regions of the country,” said Minister Ryan.

Welcomed by politicians and local tourist and commercial interests, the project involves the construction of approximately 34km of new single carriageway road that will extend from the existing N5 Ballaghaderreen Bypass to the townland of Scramoge in Co. Roscommon, bypassing the towns and villages of Frenchpark, Bellanagare, Tulsk and Strokestown. Where the route meets access points to these locations, provision will be made for pedestrian and cyclist facilities.

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