Dedicated project website
The M11 Gorey to Enniscorthy including the bypassing of Enniscorthy Town has a dedicated website http://www.m11gtoe.ie/ where you will find
Scheme route map
Download the M11 Gorey to Enniscorthy PPP Scheme Route Map
Background to the project
The signing of Contracts for the Design, Construction, Operation and Maintenance of the M11 Gorey to Enniscorthy PPP Scheme took place on Wednesday 14th October, 2015. The contract was awarded to a consortium of companies, BAM-Iridium-PGGM. The Contractor has established a site compound at Scarawalsh, which will be in place for the duration of the Works, and also a dedicated project website www.m11gtoe.ie where information updates can be obtained.
Archaeological Discoveries
Archaeology and the M11 - revealing North Wexford’s history
Bernice Kelly, Project Archaeologist, Transport Infrastructure Ireland
An extensive programme of archaeological investigation was undertaken in advance of the construction of the motorway. The project was designed to avoid all known archaeological monuments identified within its proximity, and minimise impact on the historic environment of this part of Co Wexford. An intensive investigation strategy during the lifetime of the project included desk-based assessment, walkover studies, architectural, geophysical and underwater surveys, archaeological test-trenching, monitoring and excavation. The investigations were carried out in accordance with the directions of the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht and were overseen by archaeologists from TII’s Archaeology and Heritage Section.
Over 190 km of test trenches were excavated by archaeologists from TVAS (Ireland) Ltd within the land acquired for road construction in 2010 and 2014, leading to the discovery of the remains of 129 previously unknown archaeological sites. During the construction phase, archaeologists from IAC Ltd monitored works in parts of the scheme that were not previously accessible for archaeological investigation, leading to the discovery of a further 15 undocumented sites. All of the newly uncovered sites were systematically excavated and preserved by record by teams from TVAS and IAC.
The excavations have given archaeologists an unparalleled insight into the history of human activity in this part of Wexford. The sites excavated range in date from the time of the earliest hunter-gatherer communities, who first colonised Wexford some 9000 years ago, to the remains of 19th century cottages and limekilns. The types of sites uncovered included settlements, burial sites, industrial sites and the remains of past agricultural activity. A monograph on these discoveries will be published by TII in 2021.
Some of the highlights of the newly discovered sites are:
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Over 260 flint tools used by a nomadic hunter-gatherer community in c 7000 BC were recovered on a low hill in Ballydawmore. Interestingly, some of these tools appear to have been shaped by novices who may have been learning to make and mend implements.
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The foundations of a rectangular, two-roomed house - one of the largest Neolithic houses to be discovered in Ireland - was uncovered at Dunsinane. It measured 14 m by 7 m and was radiocarbon dated to between 3800-3600 BC. A team of craftspeople tasked with building a replica Neolithic house at the Irish National Heritage Park in Ferrycarrig visited the excavation in order to glean information that would assist them in the reconstruction.
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Sherds of Beaker pottery - a highly decorated form of prehistoric pottery - were found at two sites in Ballynabarny, close to the River Slaney. This pottery was used by the first metal-working communities in the locality and dates to c 2300 BC.
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At Drumgold, an oval ditched enclosure encircled an area of 4.3 acres (making it 1.5 times larger than a standard GAA pitch). Two circular houses and a large pit were located towards the centre of the enclosure. Hundreds of sherds of pottery, possibly used for feasting, were retrieved. The function of the enclosure is unclear - it may have been the site of a short-lived ceremonial gathering in the Middle Bronze Age (1500-1200 BC).
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Part of a large, sub-rectangular ditched enclosure was revealed at Corbally. It may have been built at some point prior to the 10th Century. A large quantity of iron slag found on the site indicated that smelting and smithing had taken place there. A very rare smith’s hammer was found in the enclosing ditch.
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An excavation at Scurlocksbush revealed the remains of a vernacular cottage and two outbuildings, a cobbled yard and laneway. The buildings correspond with structures depicted on the first-edition Ordnance Survey map of 1840. Pottery, candlesticks and clock parts found on the site marked the former residents as wealthier farmers within the local community.
TII has produced two videos featuring the archaeological investigation of an Early Bronze Age cemetery at Quarry, near Ferns, and the laboratory excavation and conservation of a burial urn from the same cemetery. These videos can be accessed at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smPibmUIAsw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pP2mCQ7kiRk
| Name | Format | Caption | Credit |
| Plate 1 | JPG | Foundations of a Neolithic house discovered at Dunsinane | TVAS (Ireland) Ltd |
| Plate 2 | JPG | Conserved Early Bronze Age funerary urns found at Quarry. The cremated remains of an infant were found in one of these urns while the second urn contained the cremated remains of several individuals | John Sunderland |
| Plate 3 | JPG | Medieval ditched enclosure at Corbally | TVAS (Ireland) Ltd |
Slaney Bridge Timelapse May 2018
Drone Footage March 2018
Drone Footage March 2017
Mainline
N80 & N30 link
Scheme description
The route of the M11 Gorey to Enniscorthy PPP Scheme is to the east of Enniscorthy, extending from the Southern end of the Gorey Bypass at Clogh to a new junction at Scurlocksbush, approximately 1.5km to the north of Oilgate. This section of the scheme will be 27km of new motorway. The scheme also includes 8km of new single carriageway, to the west of Enniscorthy, linking from the existing Scarawalsh Roundabout to Templescoby on the N30. In addition a further 4 km of new dual carriageway will link those two sections. The link will commence at a new grade separated junction at Ballydawmore and extend across the Slaney Valley to the Scarawalsh Junction.