page_title: Enfield, County Meath
section_title: Canal
hierarchical_section_title: Enfield, County Meath / Transport / Canal
caption_attribution_description: English: Royal Canal near Enfield, County Meath. 17 September 2019.
context_page_description: Enfield or Innfield is a town in south County Meath, Ireland, situated between Kilcock and Kinnegad and very close to the border with County Kildare. The town is on the Dublin-Sligo railway line. It is located on the R148 regional road, formerly the N4 national primary road connecting Dublin to Connacht.
  In the 20 years between the 1996 and 2016 census, the population of Enfield grew considerably from just 566 inhabitants to 3,239 people. This increase is due to its location on the commuter belt to Dublin. Similarly to many other dormitory towns in this vicinity, numerous housing estates have been constructed, with 2016 census numbers indicating that 80% of the town's housing stock was built between 1991 and 2010.
context_section_description: The Royal Canal construction began in Dublin in 1790 and signaled the end of the stagecoach era, as the canals were a cheaper and more efficient means of transport. The stretch from Dublin to Mullingar opened as a trade route around 1807 and the canal eventually reached the Shannon in 1817, though the company was heavily in debt. The decision by the Duke of Leinster to build a spur from the canal to his country residence at Carton House was one of the contributing factors which finally broke the company.
  Even though rail travel was much quicker, the canal continued to carry traffic until the 1950s. It is only now, at the turn of the millennium, that the potential of the canal for tourism and as a natural amenity is being realised. The Office of Public Works took charge of it in 1986, and subsequent investment and significant restoration mean it has great prospects of becoming popular again as a means of leisurely transport.
caption: Royal Canal near Enfield, County Meath
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