Shannon Town
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Shannon Town or Shannon (Irish: An tSionna) is located in County Clare and is the only new town in the Republic of Ireland. A new town is a town that was built after World War II on a green field site. It was given town status on January 1st, 1982.
The town was built on reclaimed marshland alongside the newly established Shannon Airport, along with the Shannon Free Zone industrial estate. The town itself was intended as a home for the thousands of workers at the airport, surrounding industries and support services. Population growth was never as fast as planned throughout the first few decades of the town's existence. This was partly due to the proximity of 'friendly' places to live, such as Ennis and Limerick City, or even the nearby village of Newmarket-on-Fergus.
The 'planned' nature of this town did not necessarily result in a successful town. Until 2003 the main dual-carriageway to the airport divided the town, as well as cutting it off from the surrounding countryside. Much of the town layout was car orientated, with straight roads and rigidly laid out housing, rather than people-friendly design. As well as generally lacking in facilities, the town's shopping centre was also of dubious design. Shops fronted onto pedestrian malls that were originally uncovered, allowing estuary winds and rain to strike at shoppers. There is a marked difference too between the early low-cost housing (tower block flats and terraced housing) and high-cost housing (large detached housing).
The future for the town is brighter than it has been for many years. The recently completed bypass of Newmarket-on-fergus also includes a spur to Shannon airport, resulting in a bypass of the town for most traffic to and from Ennis and Limerick. The population grew significantly in the 1990s, and new modern housing developments continue to be built. As a result, facilities in the town are slowly improving; for example, a second major supermarket opened, with the shopping centre being expanded by the addition of the modern "Skycourt" complex. The main road through Shannon was remodelled following the opening of the bypass. New units continue to open in the industrial estates (despite some others closing or changing hands). There is also a lobby for railway services connecting to Shannon, from the existing Ennis-Limerick route. In theory this would benefit the local community as well as the airport.
- See also: List of towns in the Republic of Ireland
- External link: Official site (http://www.shannon.ie)ga:Sionainn (baile)