Situated around halfway between Cork city and Kilarney, the historic town of Macroom is famous for its castle, the iconic Mountain Dew festival and being one of the two biggest supply points in the Danone network.

During the middle ages, the town was invaded by a succession of warring clans.

But in more recent years, Macroom has been under siege from much noisier invaders.

For a town that according to the 2016 census has a population of less than 5,000 people, the amount of heavy duty traffic that passes through Macroom is way out of kilter with the demographics at the area.

As we enter the busy summer season, the tourist friendly town should be choked by curious visitors.

Instead, for the last 40 years, it’s been choked by traffic.

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This is episode one of The Big Story from The Southern Star.

It's written and produced by Jack McCarron and Kieran O'Mahony.

Reporting is by Kieran O'Mahony with editing by Jack McCarron.

Patrick Tangney is on sound.

The series editor is Siobhan Cronin.

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