Chaos in Tipperary as 'miles of tailbacks' on the old Thurles road

Traffic around the Cashel area continues to be in absolute chaos this afternoon, as one witness told Tippreary Live how it took her an hour and 15 minutes to make the journey from Clonmel to Thurles.

Reaching her destination at about 3.30pm on Tuesday, she had been diverted through the town and off of the M8 motorway shortly outside of Cashel as protestors have blocked the motorway.

Out of Cashel, she then took the old Thurles road where there were “miles” of a tailback.

The chaos began this morning as sections of the M8 motorway in Tipperary were brought to a standstill during a nationwide protest over rising fuel costs.

Reports are that emergency vehicles are being let through on the hard shoulder.

The disruption centred around Junction 8 at Cashel, where the motorway was blocked in both directions as large numbers of trucks, tractors and other vehicles gathered and moved in convoy.

Traffic was severely affected in the area from early morning, with long tailbacks forming as slow-moving convoys travelled along the route. Vehicles assembled on both the northbound and southbound sides of the motorway before joining wider convoys heading towards Dublin.

The protest formed part of a wider national demonstration that impacted major roads across the country, with groups mobilising from multiple counties and converging on key routes into the capital.

Motorists experienced significant delays around Cashel, with access restricted at times and traffic either slowed to a crawl or brought to a complete halt.

Participants in the protest included members of the haulage and agricultural sectors, who gathered early before joining coordinated convoys travelling across the country.

Gardaí had issued advance warnings about potential disruption, advising road users to allow extra time for journeys. Similar scenes were reported on other major routes nationwide as part of the coordinated day of action.