The Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has confirmed the M20 Cork/Limerick motorway will be part of the 10-year capital spending plan to be announced in December.
The 96-kilometer stretch of motorway has long been demanded from business and communities in both cities.
Mr Varadkar was speaking at Cork Chamber of Commerce breakfast in Parc Ui Chaoimh earlier today.
The Taoiseach said: "The M20 is a huge project with a massive price tag, but it is however, worth it.
"So I think it will please everyone in the room to know that Minister Ross has confirmed that funding has been secured to bring the M20, through route selection and into An Bord Pleanala.
"That process of planning and design can begin immediately as money is no longer a barrier."
He went on to say that the cost of land construction and land purchase will not be included in the Government's current spending programme.
He said: "These costs are unlikely to arise in the current capital programme which runs to 2021, however they will arise very soon thereafter.
"So I want to confirm that the M20 will be included in the 10-year capital plan.
"It's a project that is central to our national development, and one that I am personally committed to achieving."