Gardaí could be delayed by up to two hours in arriving at serious crime scenes due to plans to amalgamate Garda divisions.
Middle-ranking officers are also warning of the impact the new model will have on community policing.
The operating model is currently being introduced on a phased basis and will take place over a number of years in what will be the biggest ever restructuring of the force.
In terms of the South East, Tipperary and Clare will become one Garda division as will Wicklow and Wexford.
Liam Corcoran, honourary secretary of the AGSI and a sergeant based in Tipperary told the Irish Examiner the amalgamation of those two counties will mean that the new division will be 7,800sq km in size:
"You are talking about from Bell Harbour in north Clare right down to Carrick-on-Suir [in Co Tipperary] on the Waterford border.
"Tipperary will no longer have the divisional headquarters in Thurles as it will then be based in Ennis, Co Clare — a two-hour drive for gardaí based in Cahir or Cashel."
