Shannon: An Introduction

Situated in County Clare on the west coast of Ireland, the town of Shannon is one of only two planned towns in Ireland, the other being Westport. The town was built on a green field site after the end of World War II on reclaimed marshland. During the last census the town had a population of just over 8,500 people.

The town was built along side Shannon Airport and was intended to be a home for the workers of Shannon Airport who employed thousands of people. The town did not flourish as first thought and population growth was slow as some people opted to live in Ennis or Limerick which were within easy distance of Shannon Airport.

Several mistakes were made during the design phase of the town. These mistakes resulted in a rigid parallel gird layout of the town which was not necessarily designed for people. A dual carriageway that connected the town with the Airport effectively divided the town and isolated the people from the nearby countryside. The central business district was also flawed in its design which resulted in estuary winds from the River Shannon funneling up the pedestrian areas.

Despite the mistakes made during the design phase of the town, the future of Shannon now looks to be more rose coloured with improved infrastructure in the area. Building in recent years has given the town a facelift and the coming years will bring more prosperity to the area. For information about car hire at Shannon Airport, look no further than Malone Car Rental Ireland.

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