Port Laoise 5.75

Port Laoise, or Portlaoise, is a town in Ireland. It is located in Co. Laois in the South Midlands in the province of Leinster. With a population of 22,050, it is the most populous and also the most densely populated County Town in the Midlands Region, which has a total population of 292,301 at the 2016 census. The 2016 census shows that the town's population increased by 9.5% to 22,050, which is well above the national average of 3.8%. This also makes it the fastest growing of the top 20 largest towns in Ireland.It was an important town in the medieval period, as the site of the Fort of Maryborough, a Fort built by English settlers in the 16th Century.Portlaoise is fringed by the Slieve Bloom mountains to the west and north-west and the Great Heath of Maryborough to the east. It is notable for its architecture, engineering and transport connections. On the national road network, Portlaoise is located 80 km (49 miles) south-west from Dublin on the N7/M7, 170 km (105 miles) north-east from Cork on the M8/M7 and 113 km (70 miles) east of Limerick on the M7.It was once famous for the manufacture of iron and steel buildings, tennis balls, rubber seals and electrical cabling. Today Portlaoise is a commercial centre, with the economy dominated by the service sector, and an important retail, transport, events and conference hub.