The N80 goes through the town centres of Portlaoise and Mountmellick. It is causing chaos in both towns and no progress is being made on relief roads. Mountmellick relief road was promised 20 years ago. All traffic from the midlands and the west, including a large number of HGVs, is going through the town centre of Mountmellick trying to negotiate tricky junctions, going through O'Connell Square and past the very busy secondary school. A route has been selected. The surveys have been done. The council has played its part. However, it is being ignored for decades by the Government and that is not good enough. Portlaoise has two national secondary routes going through it, namely, the N78 and the N80. The N80 is the one I live on. There is a huge population around it. The population of Portlaoise is increasing. The towns of Mountmellick and Portlaoise are gridlocked much of the day. People living on the Ballyfin Road, Harpur's Lane and Greenmill Lane have huge difficulties, including the person speaking here, trying to get out onto that road. Trucks have to pass under a very low bridge. They often hit the bridge and everything stops for a number of hours. In the short time I have, I will call for small roundabouts at the junctions of Ballyfin Road, Greenmill Lane and Harpur's Lane. However, we really need the Portlaoise northern orbital route, which will connect the N80 at Fairgreen right across to the Dublin Road. That is a priority project of Laois County Council, as is the Mountmellick bypass, but the Government does not seem to be listening. I want the Government to take this on board here today. It would not just shorten journeys. It would lesson the gridlock in Portlaoise town and in Mountmellick, and it would free up hundreds of acres for housing development. A lot of housing development is being pushed to Portlaoise but we do not have the infrastructure. Both Mountmellick and Portlaoise need relief roads. The Government cannot keep ignoring it.

Sentiment score: 0.07

The last thing I want to say is that the flood relief schemes need to be speeded up as 17 years or 18 years is just too long.

Sentiment score: 0.53