Infrastructure

Monaghan - A Hub Town

Roads and Location

Monaghan town is strategically located at the intersection of the N2 Dublin - Derry/Letterkenny and N54 National Routes, linking Dublin to the North-West and Belfast to the Midlands, respectively. The town is also located along a key east-west corridor linking Dundalk and Newry to Sligo and south Donegal.

Monaghan is designated as a hub town in the National Spatial Strategy 2002 - 2020 and is located 45 kms from Dundalk, which is designated as the gateway for the North- East Region.

Monaghan is linked by the substantially improved national and regional road network to the hub town of Cavan and the urban development centres of Enniskillen, Omagh, Dungannon and Armagh in Northern Ireland. Improvements to the National Road Infrastructure with completion of works on the M1 Dundalk -Dublin Motorway, Carrickmacross By-pass and ongoing works on the Monaghan and Castleblayney By-passes have strengthened the town's strategic position and its future development potential as an enterprise and regional centre.

Issues of peripherality, which have restricted development in the town over the past forty years, are now addressed as Monaghan turns to its neighbours in adjoining counties to improve business and social linkages.

A number of key industries re located in or around the town, including, Kingspan Century Homes, Irish Joinery Manufacturing, Town of Monaghan Co-operative Society Ltd. and Combi-lift Ltd.

Water Services

Under section 83 of the Local Government Act 2001 from the 1st January 2004 Monaghan County Council became the sole Sanitary Authority for County Monaghan. Monaghan County Council is now responsible for the provision of Water Services (Water and Waste Water) throughout the county.

Water Treatment Services

Construction works on the water treatment plant and storage reservoirs for the Monaghan Water Supply Scheme were completed in 2002.The scheme augments the existing surface water sources at Togan with new ground water sources, located north of Monaghan Town.

Waste Water Services

Monaghan town's wastewater treatment plant was re-constructed in 1994, to provide increased and improved treatment capacity. The capacity is adequate to meet the needs of the town for the next 25 years. Sludge Treatment facilities have been added in 2004. Monaghan town is drained by a combination of gravity sewers and pumping stations.The main pumping station at Old Cross Square and town centre collection system is severely limited in terms of its capacity and has severely restricted the extension and upgrade of the network around the town. In addition, a significant proportion of the town's population is not served by the public sewerage system.

Power and Telecommunications

The Metropolitan Area Network (MAN) is in the form of a series of loops in the centre of town and extends from there along the main urban arterial roads to facilitate connection to major businesses and potential users. The MAN also includes a duct on the new by pass to fully service lands located at C6 and C7 on map MDP1.

Source: Monaghan Town Development Plan 2007-2013