One area that Ireland is not lacking right now is the construction of new motorways for main routes. Ireland currently has Europes largest road building programme ongoing.

The ultimate aim is to have the following motorways by 2012 - most completed by 2010


pic sabre


http://www.skynet.ie/~zoney/roads/graphics/NPR_plannedM_tags_c.png

Note M20 not shown on map.



M1 Dublin - Border
M2 Dublin - Ashbourne
M3 Dublin - Kells
M4 Dublin - Kinnegad
M6 Kinnegad - Galway
M7 Dublin - Limerick
M8 Dublin - Cork
M9 Dublin - Waterford
M11 Dublin - Wexford
M17 Tuam - Galway
M18 Galway - Limerick
M20 Limerick - Cork
M21 Limerick
M25 Waterford
M50 Dublin
Outer Orbital Motorway for Dublin - number unkown (not 2012)
Dublin Eastern Bypass (M50) tunnel (not 2012)

All appart from the M20 Cork to Limerick are U/C. The M1 is complete.

The NRA (National Roads Authority) has also embarked on reclassifying newly built 'High Quality Dual Carriageways' to Motorways

More http://www.transport.ie/viewitem.asp?id=10193&lang=ENG&loc=2270

Note some routes not shown on this map like M20.


The aim is for Ireland to have Europes most comprehensive motorway network and we can say we are well on the way with over 400km's of motorway currently under construction. Many other upgrade schemes are also underway including for the M50.

Cant wait for the M11 to be finished, no more jams at the beehive and Enniscorthy etc...

Cant wait for the M11 to be finished, no more jams at the beehive and Enniscorthy etc...

+1 - get it all the way to Wexford:)

The old saying you know when you've crossed the border (from North to South) because the road gets bumpy has well and truly flipped over. Joke's on us.

One criticism, and its not because I'm a disgruntled Northerner. Is the most "comprehensive motorway network" something to aim for? In this era of climate change etc, should the investment not be more focused on high speed rail links? The enterprise service from Belfast to Dublin was a fantastatic innovation, but with the road improvements, even with Newry still a hassle, has almost left the enterprise an expensive luxury. The Belfast-Dublin rail link needs urgent attention. Our two main cities deserve an uninterrupted journey of less than an hour.

By the way NI is much worse re trains. Have you ever tried getting a train from Belfast to Derry? You'd need to book a day off.

The old saying you know when you've crossed the border (from North to South) because the road gets bumpy has well and truly flipped over. Joke's on us.

One criticism, and its not because I'm a disgruntled Northerner. Is the most "comprehensive motorway network" something to aim for? In this era of climate change etc, should the investment not be more focused on high speed rail links? The enterprise service from Belfast to Dublin was a fantastatic innovation, but with the road improvements, even with Newry still a hassle, has almost left the enterprise an expensive luxury. The Belfast-Dublin rail link needs urgent attention. Our two main cities deserve an uninterrupted journey of less than an hour.

By the way NI is much worse re trains. Have you ever tried getting a train from Belfast to Derry? You'd need to book a day off.

I certainly agree that they should be doing more with the railways.

Last week, I had the misfortune of getting the train from Dublin to Castlebar in County Mayo. Firstly, there's only 3 trains a day so that's pretty poor (early morning, lunchtime, early evening). Ok, so there may not be that much demand for a journey from Dublin to Castlebar, but from what I could tell, on that whole line after Athlone, there's just these 3 trains a day going along it to Westport. So, people can't even jump on the train for a relatively short journey to the next town for shopping etc.

Then the journey, which is 233km (144miles) took over 4 hours on the train. A journey in the UK I made many times was from Bangor, in North Wales to London - a distance of 266miles (428km!) and that is timetabled for 3 and a half hours.

The journey to Castlebar was delayed or anything. It was even semi-express - didn't stop until Athlone. It just took that long.

A lot of it was just single track - with passing places. This may be one of the reasons for there being only 3 trains a day - less passing needed when there's just 6 trains travelling along that route.

I think they need to forget about high speed rail - and just get a service which runs at 'normal' speed. All lines should be double tracked and there should be a 'western Ireland' line linking all the regional cities up so that you can go between Galway and Limerick without having to go via Dublin.

I think they need to forget about high speed rail - and just get a service which runs at 'normal' speed. All lines should be double tracked and there should be a 'western Ireland' line linking all the regional cities up so that you can go between Galway and Limerick without having to go via Dublin.:lol::lol:
So true, normal speed rail would be nice but hey ripping up loads of our rail network back in the day wasn't a good idea, imagine that:lol:
Also the via Dublin thin for going anywhere is ridiculous, it clogs Dublin up when those times could be used to run communter services to Kildare etc.....

We did need the motorways though - although I agree in the longer term we have to also put more into public transport.

I certainly agree that they should be doing more with the railways.

Last week, I had the misfortune of getting the train from Dublin to Castlebar in County Mayo. Firstly, there's only 3 trains a day so that's pretty poor (early morning, lunchtime, early evening). Ok, so there may not be that much demand for a journey from Dublin to Castlebar, but from what I could tell, on that whole line after Athlone, there's just these 3 trains a day going along it to Westport. So, people can't even jump on the train for a relatively short journey to the next town for shopping etc.

Then the journey, which is 233km (144miles) took over 4 hours on the train. A journey in the UK I made many times was from Bangor, in North Wales to London - a distance of 266miles (428km!) and that is timetabled for 3 and a half hours.

The journey to Castlebar was delayed or anything. It was even semi-express - didn't stop until Athlone. It just took that long.

A lot of it was just single track - with passing places. This may be one of the reasons for there being only 3 trains a day - less passing needed when there's just 6 trains travelling along that route.

I think they need to forget about high speed rail - and just get a service which runs at 'normal' speed. All lines should be double tracked and there should be a 'western Ireland' line linking all the regional cities up so that you can go between Galway and Limerick without having to go via Dublin.

they had the chance to double line that athlone-westport route about 8 years back but didn't do it, instead they tore up the old tracks that had been down since the 1920s and laid down a new single line as daft as it sounds.

there was a western line linking sligo to limerick but that was stopped many many moons ago

Short video of the new bowstring at the N7/M50 inerchange being put in place last week as part of the M50 upgrade

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Zj2R1gz2og :)

In the context of the interchange it is at the top.

http://www.m50.ie/redesign/uploads/images/n7_final-large.jpg

Maynooth exit

http://i35.tinypic.com/16jrdqp.jpg

http://i35.tinypic.com/2uejx2q.jpg

http://i38.tinypic.com/166ycd3.jpg

Here is the N4 Palmerstown Interchange with M50

Plan
http://i34.tinypic.com/2eyyzwl.jpg

I passed through the completed interchange today. The traffic was superbly streamlined and smooth, a far cry from the situation a couple of years back.

http://i38.tinypic.com/2corchv.jpg

http://i38.tinypic.com/10799qd.jpg

apologies for the blurred image...we just sped through the whole complex in a flash..:):):)

http://i37.tinypic.com/2583pzc.jpg

Yes the N4 interchange was a huge improvement - thanks for pics - the important thing is now to complete the network which should see Ireland (republic) having Europe's best and most comprehensive motorway/highway system.:)

Ok - quick question about the reclassification of the 'newly built 'High Quality Dual Carriageways' to Motorways' thing. Does this mean that these dual carriageways already only have 'motorway junctions' on them, or if they've got more traditional junctions (traffic lights etc.), will they be ripped out and replaced by proper ones?

All routes being changed to 'M' are 'High Quality Dual Carriageways'. This means they are built to motorway standard and need no alterations. The reason apparently to classify them DC in the first place was that it was easier and quicker then getting a motorway order. Now they just simply change the signs and up the limit to 120km/ph.

Aerial of N4 interchange

http://www.siac.ie/siac/images/Palmerstown_Junction.jpg



------------------------------------------------------------------------


M3 Dublin - Kells motorway update

http://www.eurolink-m3.ie/newsletter/Eurolink%20V3%20Aug%2008.pdf


Really coming along now.....


------------------------------------------------------------------------

The 90km M20 Cork to Limerick scheme has a preferred route option emerging. In March this option will be published. In June the EIS will be published. Construction will begin in 2010 on the huge scheme expected to cost 1 billion euro. It part of the Atlantic motorway corridor.

Hmm, all roads lead to Dublin I guess :)

^^ in a nutshell. Could not be any other way of course.


M50 upgrade - toll plaza removal


The NRA is pleased to advise that traffic is now running on the permanent carriageway configuration at the former toll plaza site. Southbound traffic was switched in the early hours of Thursday 23rd October while northbound traffic was realigned in the early hours of Friday 24th October.
This means that there is now a seamless four lane carriageway link from the completed works south of Jct 6 (N3) across the Liffey Valley Bridge and onto the widened motorway as far as Jct 10 (Ballymount).
In order to complete the plaza removal, other works will be continuing in the immediate vicinity to finish this scheme including a new signage gantry on the southbound carriageway, permanent verge safety fencing and landscaping measures. These are programmed for completion during December 2008. However, motorists should now experience the full benefit of this element of the M50 upgrade.

Red Cow interchange. Works still going on in the six laned M50 carriageway, the picture taken while moving in the luas to Tallaght. The Red Cow will be the largest and one of the busiest interchanges in the Republic.

http://i34.tinypic.com/f36pag.jpg

Nice pics.:)


This is the stretch of N4 up for reclassification to motorway in a few months

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:N4road4416a.jpg


Just to mention the 40km stretch of M8 between Cashel and Culahill will open 7th of December - so an early Christmas present:)

M18 Gort - Crusheen motorway scheme will start construction next month


The project is part of the Atlantic Road Corridor and will see the M18 extended by 22km's between Galway and Limerick (after redesignation):)


Map of scheme on this document

http://www.transport.ie/upload/general/10978-11.pdf



Images of more M50 interchages

N2/M50
http://www.m50.ie/redesign/uploads/images/junction5_large.jpg

M1/M50
http://www.m50.ie/redesign/uploads/images/junction3_large.jpg

M3/M50 (weird hybrid)
http://www.m50.ie/redesign/uploads/images/junction6_large.jpg

The canal and railway (Galway line) go through this junction aswell

is the motorway between belfast and newry complete yet?

No not yet. The A1 wont be a motorway anyway - it will be a standard dual carriageway. Dont know when it is due to be finished - 2 years maybe? It will be a good road but it really should be motorway.

N3 Navan Road.. The new M3 is being built closeby and will join this road.

http://i35.tinypic.com/256zq6v.jpg

Interesting that piece you have photographed will become the motorway aswell:banana:

http://www.transport.ie/upload/general/10978-5.pdf


God bless the NRA:okay:

Interesting that piece you have photographed will become the motorway aswell:banana:

http://www.transport.ie/upload/general/10978-5.pdf


God bless the NRA:okay:

And work is fast progressing on the M3 sections...got a few photographs here but nothing worth uploading..

Thanks for the pdf file...interesting alignment, I must say. Afterall they are going to build the road through the Tara sites...:ohno:

http://i33.tinypic.com/2mhcz81.jpg

http://i36.tinypic.com/21lo6rn.jpg

The M3 is not going through Tara....it is further away then the existing road!^^

Minister Dempsey Turns sod on €200m Gort to Crusheen Road Scheme


“Continued investment in transport infrastructure is the key to ourfuture competitiveness”

Mr Noel Dempsey TD, Minister for Transport today (Friday, 14 November 2008) turned the sod to formally commence work on the new N18 Gort to Crusheen road project. This new road scheme, due for completion in 2011, will be just over 23km of dual carriageway in length and will cost €207.5 million to build.

• It is estimated that a time saving of 20 minutes or more can be attained on journeys between Ennis and Galway during peak hours.
• This road will bypass the town of Gort and the village of Crusheen in County Galway.

Speaking today Minster Dempsey said:

"This new road will eliminate one of the worst bottlenecks along the Atlantic corridor. The Gort to Crusheen project is one of the strategic links along the entire Atlantic corridor. This project emphasises the importance of investing in the road infrastructure so that business and regional economic hubs such as Limerick, Shannon and Galway can compete in this ever demanding national and global environment. The key benefits will be three fold, a safer road, direct regional economic investment and easier access for visitors. For the people of Gort and Crusheen it will give them back their towns by dramatically reducing through traffic”

The Minister added:

“Continued investment in transport infrastructure, even in these difficult times, is key to our future competitiveness. Next year Government will spend over €2 billion on our national, regional and local roads network."

Fred Barry, CEO National Roads Authority (NRA) said:

"The Gort to Crusheen scheme is another major step to linking Limerick, Shannon and Galway. As the Ennis bypass has proven, road infrastructure will continue to improve the quality of life for residents and deliver opportunities for businesses to development throughout the entire region."

The contract to build this road was awarded by the NRA to SIAC Willis JV. Work will commence at the northern-end of the Ennis Bypass and will extend to approximately 1km north of Gort.

..

The NRA is putting timelapse footage of some of it's projects on it's website.


http://www.nra.ie/ProjectVideos/


Also a further 40km of the M8 will open on the 8th of December.

TIM O'BRIEN


ONE OF the longest sections of road in the State's motorway development programme, the 40km Cullahill to Cashel section of the M8, has been completed seven months early, the NRA is to announce today.

The new €435 million road, which is expected to take at least 20 minutes off the journey time between Dublin and Cork, bypasses the towns of Johnstown and Urlingford in Co Kilkenny, and Littleton and Horse and Jockey in Co Tipperary.

It was built by SRB Ltd, a joint venture between Sisk and Roadbridge and the commissioning local authority was Kilkenny County Council.

The new road, which is expected to open to traffic as soon as Monday next, will remove up to 16,000 vehicles a day from towns along the route, separating national from local traffic.

There is to be a temporary tie-in at the northern end, with the existing N8, south of Cullahill.

By 2010 it will tie in to the M7/M8 Portlaoise to Cullahill motorway, providing dual carriageway access all the way to Dublin.

At the southern end, the new road ties in with the Cashel bypass which was opened in 2004. The new motorway will have four level-separated junctions and 46 bridges.

This scheme was a pilot "tendered target cost scheme" under which the contractor is paid their actual costs based on an open book accounting system.

A bonus is paid if the scheme costs less than the target cost and penalties are levied if the cost exceeds the target.

In 2010, when the entire Dublin-Cork route is upgraded to motorway or high grade dual carriageway standard, the route will have two tolls, the existing one on the Fermoy bypass and a second one on the Portlaoise to Cullahill section.

This week Minister for Transport Noel Dempsey told the Oireachtas Committee for Transport that the new major inter-urban routes were still on target for completion by 2010.

The Irish Times

..

Dublin-Cork journey time shortened


Minister for Transport Noel Dempsey yesterday opened the €434 million motorway scheme along the M8 between Cullahill, Co Laois, and Cashel, Co Tipperary.

The motorway, finished seven months ahead of schedule and under budget, will take up to 16,000 vehicles out of a number of towns on the old N8 route.

"This is an historic occasion and a major advancement towards the completion of the Dublin-Cork route," said Mr Dempsey yesterday.

"Towns and villages along the route will experience an enhanced quality of life, while drivers will benefit from shorter journey times and safer roads.

"Road safety will be greatly improved for drivers using the new motorway as they can now bypass minor junctions where many of the most serious high-speed collisions have occurred."

The new road will bypass Johnstown and Urlingford in Co Kilkenny and Littleton and Horse and Jockey in Co Tipperary.

"Ireland's island economy is heavily dependent on the efficient movement of goods and people and in this regard this road will help facilitate economic competitiveness in these challenging times," said Mr Dempsey.

The new road will connect with the Cashel bypass, which opened in 2004, and link to the Cashel-Mitchelstown section of the M8, which opened in July.

"We have seen 80km of top-class roadway open to traffic along the strategic Cork to Dublin route during 2008, providing huge improvements for road-users," said Peter Malone, chairman of the National Roads Authority.

Irish Times


7 months ahead of schedule and under budget:banana: The new section is 40 kms long.

About the M50 red-cow...

It's so messy looking at the moment it's unbelievable, and the whole thing is just a jungle of concrete piers, bridges, underpasses etc., it actually is quite intimidating compared to the old roundabout.

It works....and thats the main thing.

Lots of comments on the M8 show people are really impressed with it....so far. Have to go down and have a look myself!

500m from the place in Ireland where Im staying are they building a highway.. It must be the M25 or M9.. Because it's near to Kilkenny/Waterford. I took some pictures of it, I will post them when Im home because I forgot my USB cable..

Hi!:)


That would be great. Cheers!


Here is a vid of a small part of some recently opened M8.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6P0reA2wkQ

Note two things - Ireland is the only country in Europe that uses yellow hard shoulders and Aemerican style yellow diamond 'new world' signage.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3115/3123117339_845daf04cf.jpg
Junction 13 of the M8 under construction, December 2008.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3239/3123950094_d48ba6ba6d.jpg
The M8 between Junctions 13 and 14, looking south ~ December 2008.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3207/3123146053_79a4098527.jpg
M8 looking north, 4km south of Mitchelstown in County Cork, Dec. 2008.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3182/3123151093_b81933158e.jpg
The M8 looking south just south of Junction 12, December 2008.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3231/3124415039_2659052418.jpg
The M8 looking northbound from the Junction 14 overbridge, November 2008.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3112/3140940619_f8a84c9223.jpg
The M8 looking southbound at junction 9 (December 2008).

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3242/3140970195_609c9074ef.jpg
The M8 looking south towards Cahir (December 2008).

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3134/3140935611_332fc5bece.jpg
View north from the same overbridge (at the L3121), December 2008.

Nice pics Furet.

Beautiful stretch of motorway. Completed hopefully in 2010. I think the M8 section to the M7 is 155kms long.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3288/3145811584_fa8a60d3a8.jpg
Carrigane.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3267/3145807960_e5433ee175.jpg
Slievenamon in the distance.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3212/3145745128_2d6cc94893.jpg
The Galtees.

Once again beautiful pics Furet. Thanks very much:)


That must be some improvement on the old road!

Wow our roads really are coming on! The majority of the Dublin to Cork route is now motorway. Pity the public transport plans aren't coming along as quickly.

Yes it is coming together nicely.


Info on the M7 (Dublin to Limerick) can be found here

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M7_motorway_(Ireland)

It will be the longest single number motorway in Ireland. The Motorway will connect to 3 other motorways - the M9, M8 and M20.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/3/3a/IMG_1728s.jpg/800px-IMG_1728s.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d0/M7Motorway.JPG/800px-M7Motorway.JPG

pics wiki

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The M11 joins the M50 south of Dub at this freeflow junction

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/7/78/IMG_5342.jpg/800px-IMG_5342.jpg

Nice pics Furet.

Beautiful stretch of motorway. Completed hopefully in 2010. I think the M8 section to the M7 is 155kms long.

143 km...

155 km was my original mistake thanks to the Cork Roads Website...

Motorists face new tolls to cover cost of €4bn Dublin Bay tunnel
By Paul Melia


Wednesday January 07 2009

MOTORISTS will be tolled to cover the potential €4bn cost of an ambitious motorway under Dublin Bay.

A new report obtained by the Irish Independent reveals details of the proposed 11km Eastern motorway running from the Port Tunnel to the M50.

The bypass would complete a full ring motorway for the capital, closing the gap between the Port Tunnel and the M50, and could be built within 10 years.

The scheme was first mooted in the 1970s, and is an objective in the Dublin Transportation Office's Platform for Change strategy, published in 2000.

According to the new report, costs could be as high as €4.35bn, calculated at 2015 prices.

And the consultant's report prepared for the National Roads Authority says it is technically feasible and economically viable, with the economic benefit running at more than double the construction costs.

It would be tolled, and could take in €38m a year in revenue, while the bypass would cost €14m to maintain.

But the project has serious implications for the future of Dublin Port.

Two studies are under way on the future of Dublin Bay, and a decision will have to be made on whether the port should remain in its current location or move to free-up large tracts of land near the city centre.

Traffic

The bypass would do much more than take traffic out of the city centre and off the M50 on the west side of the city. An objective of providing the road is that the Poolbeg Peninsula and South Port area could be developed to provide homes and businesses in the heart of the city, instead of continuing expansion on the outer fringes of the capital.

The report says it is possible to "largely avoid" impacts for buildings and communities by following existing road reservations, but it notes the protected status of much of Dublin Bay.

Parts are deemed to be natural heritage areas and special protection areas, meaning that wildlife must be protected.

It says that undeveloped lands along the proposed route could be reserved, in particular the grounds of the Radisson St Helen's Hotel at the Stillorgan Road. It rules out the complete project being tunnelled.

This first feasibility study into the scheme splits the proposed route into four sectors.

The first deals with the section from the Dublin Port Tunnel toll plaza through the Port and to Sandymount, and recommends that a tunnel or a high viaduct or bridge just downstream of the East Link bridge should be built, to take between 32,000-56,000 vehicles a day.

The second section, at Sandymount Strand, could see a tunnel built along the coastline or a viaduct constructed 1km off-shore. Traffic will travel through the third section, from Booterstown to the N11 at UCD, via a tunnel with 1.2km running underneath UCD, before continuing underground to the Sandyford interchange of the M50 via Kilmacud, completing the ring-road.

Three options have been finalised, costing between €3.95bn and €4.35bn at 2015 prices. At 2007 costs, the bill would run from €2.6bn and €3.2bn.

- Paul Melia






Route options for motorway

Independent.ie By Paul Melia


Wednesday January 07 2009

Route Option One (€3.95bn at 2015 prices): 2.5km viaduct, nine metres above the ground, across Dublin Port, tunnel under Dublin Bay, viaduct across Sandymount strand with a tunnel under Booterstown and tunnel from the N11 to Sandyford interchange.

Route Option Two (€4.2bn): High viaduct across the Port, with a tunnel under bay, across Sandymount Strand, under Booterstown and from the N11 to Sandyford.

Route Option Three (€4.35bn): Cut and cover tunnel across the Port. Tunnel under bay, across Sandymount Strand and under Booterstown and a part tunnel from the N11 to Sandyford.

THE TIMESCALE:

2008-2011: Statutory procedures, including planning and design stage.

2012: Land purchases.

2013: Contract awarded.

2018: Eastern bypass opens.

Planning and design stage now...

Assumed this project was shelved. Nice to hear its not. an attempt at economic stimulation?

Request of odlum833:

As promised, the pics: :cheers:

http://i299.photobucket.com/albums/mm283/Nielsiej13/DSC01854.jpg

Bridge over the new motorway:

http://i299.photobucket.com/albums/mm283/Nielsiej13/DSC01856.jpg

http://i299.photobucket.com/albums/mm283/Nielsiej13/DSC01857.jpg

http://i299.photobucket.com/albums/mm283/Nielsiej13/DSC01858.jpg

http://i299.photobucket.com/albums/mm283/Nielsiej13/DSC01859.jpg

http://i299.photobucket.com/albums/mm283/Nielsiej13/DSC01863.jpg

http://i299.photobucket.com/albums/mm283/Nielsiej13/DSC01864.jpg

http://i299.photobucket.com/albums/mm283/Nielsiej13/DSC01862.jpg

I also cycled on this new highway with my cousin. Forgot my photocamera that day though. After a while a car was coming up, I thought: huh? --> Highway security, some polish workers told me to go home, but I couldn't understand them actually, they were saying: This is not, This is not, Go home :lol:

Anyway, here are the pics from my short stay near Knocktopher :)

Assumed this project was shelved. Nice to hear its not. an attempt at economic stimulation?
The project needs to be knocked on the head, stat.

I don't see a need for this until at least after 2020. There are five major tunnels required for Dublin for the forseeable future:
- Dublin Port Tunnel (complete)
- Metro North (starting soon)
- DART Interconnector (starting soon)
- Metro South - Stephen's Green to Tallaght (not definite but has appeared in plans for a long time)
- Eastern Bypass.

Of these, the EB is not only the most expensive (4 billion!!), it's also easily the least necessary. Traffic can already access the M50 via the Port Tunnel, and public transit is more important when you're talking about the middle of a city. They want to start the EB in 2013, which means before tunnels 2 and 3 above are finished, and tunnel 4 even starts.

On another topic, I'm looking forward to another M9 section opening in a few months (the one in the photos above). Arguably, it'll be the most startling upgrade of a road anywhere in Ireland - the existing route is little more than a winding cattle track from the 18th century - and the new route is a 21st century motorway!

I see your point, but surely construction of any infrastructure project is welcome(WRC aside :P), especially if its concurrent with others as opposed to instead of. A metro south would plug a large hole in our would-be rail network, was that in the PFC? why has the EB taken precedence over this?

I see your point, but surely construction of any infrastructure project is welcome(WRC aside :P), especially if its concurrent with others as opposed to instead of. A metro south would plug a large hole in our would-be rail network, was that in the PFC? why has the EB taken precedence over this?
Yes, it was in the PFC. EB was too, but should not have taken precedence. I suppose the Gov still always marginally favours building roads to rail.

But four billion though!!!

The private sector would have to contribute much of the cost of the tunnel. To do that it would have to be viable for them like metro. It could be viable in my view but it will probrably be some years before we see real movement on this.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3132/3201027031_f65b33ab03.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3319/3201878182_47bce23f91.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3095/3201865692_d75250c7af.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3435/3201860430_4acb2a31dc.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3260/3201010613_f0b39e411c.jpg
I got handed this leaflet at the toll booth today.

Thanks Furet - great pics!:)




Transport Minister Mr. Noel Dempsey, T.D. and NRA CEO, Mr. Fred Barry today (28/01/09) announced details of the Government’s €1.44 billion investment in National Roads Programme 2009. This investment demonstrates Government’s continued commitment to upgrade the States national road infrastructure. It is being made under the Transport 21 Programme and the National Development Plan (NDP). The overall allocation represents an average investment of €120 million per month in Ireland’s national roads.

• A total of €1.44 billion of funding for the National Roads Programme under Transport 21/NDP will be allocated in 2009. This funding will finance 315 projects throughout the country.

• All remaining connecting sections of the Major Inter Urban (MIUs) motorways are now under construction. The NRA is on track to complete the four remaining MIUs by 2010.

• As of January 1, 2009 approximately 478 km of new roads are under construction.

• N21 Castleisland Bypass will start construction in 2009

• 156 km of new roads will be completed in 2009. The projects are; N4 Leixlip to M50 Junction; N6 Athlone to Ballinasloe; N7 Nenagh to Limerick; N8 Fermoy to Mitchelstown; N9 Waterford to Knocktopher; N9 Kilcullen to Carlow, N51 Navan Inner Relief Road and the N25 Waterford City By Pass

• Seven projects are moving forward into the Compulsory Purchase Order stage in 2009 .These projects are (N11) Gorey to Enniscorthy (incl Enniscorthy Bypass); (N20) Cork to Limerick Northern Section; (N20) Cork to Limerick Southern Section; (N22) Ballyvourney to Macroom; (N22) Cork Northern Ring Road; (N25) Carrigtwohill to Midleton and (N56) Mountcharles to Inver.

• In 2009 work will continue on 17 major road projects at a total cost of almost €5 billion.

Among the road projects delivered in 2008 are:

• Phase 1 and 3 of the M50 (between the Ballymount and Blanchardstown Junctions)

• Barrier-free electronic tolling which saw the removal of the West-link toll plaza (shaving 30 minutes off journey times for southbound motorists at peak hour)



Speaking today about the €1.44 billion investment for national roads, Minister Dempsey, said:

“This Government is committed to progressing projects that will maintain employment and underpin our economic development. The billion euro funding that we have allocated for national roads in 2009 will allow for the continued upgrading of our road network so that road users can enjoy safer, more efficient journeys. By 2010 we will have completed our major inter urban programme delivering over 742 kms of new motorway right across the country.”

The Minister added:

“The projects that will be funded in 2009 will be built to various scales and are located throughout all regions. What is common to all, however, is that they make for safer, better roads. High quality dual carriageways and motorways are proven to be seven times safer than the roads they replace. By opening over 156km of new roads in 2009 we will be making a significant contribution to the safety of our national road network.”


Chief Executive Officer of the NRA, Fred Barry, said:

“In 2008, the National Roads Authority completed all projects on average approximately 4 months ahead of schedule. The programme is being delivered below budget, and an outstanding economic return is being achieved. These road project investments are typically delivering returns of over twice the investment cost.”


Issued by:
Department of Transport Press Office

M3 motorway 'ahead of schedule'
TIM O'BRIEN

WORK ON the M3 motorway in Co Meath is “tracking well ahead of schedule” and is on course to be completed ahead of its July 2010 deadline, the National Roads Authority said yesterday.

Speaking after disturbances by protesters in the Dunshaughlin area of the motorway, roads authority spokesman Seán O’Neill said it was time for protesters to accept that the road was nearly finished and to end their protest.

Pressed on a completion date for the M3, which is routed just a few kilometres away from the Hill of Tara, the authority said it was “hopeful”it would be finished by the end of 2009. Mr O’Neill said the authority “can’t guarantee” early completion as this was a matter for the contractor, the Eurolink consortium, but he said it was running in advance of the timetable. According to Eurolink, more than 1.24 million tonnes of “blacktop” surface was put on the road last summer, and all structures, including bridges, are well advanced. Mr O’Neill said protests of the kind that occurred at Dunshaughlin, when about 50 people invaded the site, should cease. The road was “so far progressed, it is ridiculous”.

Laura Grealish of Tarawatch, which campaigns against the M3 route, said she did not believe the Dunshaughlin protesters were part of her group. However, the protests should continue as there was a complaint about the M3 with the EU and Unesco was considering designating Tara a world heritage site.

Vincent Salafia of Tarawatch accused the authority of “spin” by claiming the M3 was ahead of schedule. The group was taking legal advice and he said the Government may have to reroute the M3 to ensure Unesco recognition.


Irish Times


Can't believe they are still protesting when the road is nearing completion:nuts:

Chasing a jetliner on the Kilbeggan- Athlone stretch of M6. :colgate::colgate:

http://i44.tinypic.com/140xnp3.jpg

http://i40.tinypic.com/33aw1sx.jpg

http://i44.tinypic.com/ipwcap.jpg

More...
http://i41.tinypic.com/szifky.jpg

and here comes another one... :)
http://i41.tinypic.com/2502jdk.jpg

http://i41.tinypic.com/29fw93l.jpg

http://i41.tinypic.com/n1f8r7.jpg

http://i44.tinypic.com/2gsjv9i.jpg

http://i43.tinypic.com/2468l02.jpg

http://i43.tinypic.com/2u9qy5s.jpg

Thanks for the pics!:)


Some pics by Furet over on Boards of the M8 section between Cashel and Mitchelstown I think opening soon

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3595/3354560966_0b7d3daffd_b.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3540/3354557178_603b72f1e0_b.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3432/3353732371_25c0faa5ce_b.jpg

Pylon construction for suspension bridge in Waterford.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tc7A1hBQDtQ

First completed interchange on the M50 with the N4. M50 upgrade scheme.



http://www.transport21.ie/Projects/upload/Image/M50phase1.JPG

N4 aerial


http://www.arup.ie/files/20081219113238m502.jpg


http://www.arup.ie/files/our_services/20090116015813_m501.jpg

http://www.arup.ie/files/our_services/20090116015900_20081208120426_1D2O2960.jpg

From the NRA website:



The NRA has now placed the Dublin Eastern Bypass Feasibility Study Report onto its website for Public Information

Eastern Bypass Feasibility Study Report

The Authority was charged by the Government with the task of carrying out a Feasibility Study in respect of a possible Eastern Bypass of Dublin.

The attached document, issued in 2007, provides an examination of the feasibility of the project from a policy, economic, engineering and environmental perspective. It concludes that the scheme is technical feasible, strategically beneficial and economically viable, with the economic benefits of the project conservatively estimated at twice the cost.

The report does, however, identify that this is an expensive scheme and the significance of this scale of investment in the current economic climate is fully recognised. As a consequence, the NRA recommended to Government that it would be premature at this stage to make a decision to proceed to construction.

The NRA did recommend that development planning in Dublin does need to integrate the potential possibility of this scheme fully into that planning process. Significant proposals are emerging in the North Port area, the Poolbeg/Ringsend area and the Sandyford area, all of which need to have integrated transport and land use planning at the heart of their consideration. Not to integrate transport and land use planning fully in such processes risks repeating many of the planning errors of previous decades.

While the NRA fully supports the view that public transport needs to be the primary transport mode for these development areas with diminished reliance upon car transport, it is nevertheless the case that a significant element of road provision will always be required for both public and private transport, and that the Eastern Bypass proposal appears to offer the appropriate means, and perhaps the only means, to service that need in these developing areas.

The NRA proposed that the scheme should be further developed to the stage that all necessary investigative work (ground investigations, ecological assessments, archaeological assessments) have been completed and a final detailed proposal developed, inclusive of full public consultation on the proposals.

Out of that work, which would take about three years, would emerge a completed design of a fully functioning route addressing all of the substantial engineering and ecological challenges. At that stage a fully informed decision could be made on whether or not to proceed with the scheme.

Irrespective of the decision ultimately made, the key benefit of this approach is that an accurate and exact provision for the scheme could be integrated into the planning work of all agencies along the route. This would ensure that the scheme would remain protected and would be ready and available for implementation at any stage in the future, if required. In addition, it would prevent that new constraints from emerging that would render the project unavailable, or significantly increase its costs, in the future..

Ancillary to the above key benefit is that fact that moving the project forward to the next stage now will ensure that the delivery timeline for the project would be reduced by three years if a decision is made to proceed with the construction of the scheme at a future point.

Finally, it should be noted that the costs quoted in the report are based on price and cost levels in 2007. Since then land and construction costs have reduced and while this does not undermine any of the report’s analysis and conclusions, it does mean that the costs of the scheme are likely to be significantly lower and the benefit to cost ratio is likely to be further enhanced.

(Please click on the document title below to access it in PDF.)

Dublin Eastern Bypass Feasibility Study Report (http://www.nra.ie/Publications/DownloadableDocumentation/PublicPrivatePartnership/file,16122,en.pdf)



My opinion: It'd be nice to see if done properly, but public transport (especially the Metro and Interconnector) must be first priority.

That's gonna put the cats amongst the pigeons! I am in favour of the project though. It would complete the M50 and would take alot of traffic from the Sandymount and East Wall areas:)


Pics here from sabre of the bridge being constructed over the river Suir

http://www.sabre-roads.org.uk/gallery/albums/userpics/13084/DSCF2502.jpg



http://www.sabre-roads.org.uk/gallery/albums/userpics/13084/DSCF2488.jpg

Its cool to see that, cheers. Is it Irelands longest or highest?

It will be easily the largest suspension bridge. Roughly twice the size of the Boyne bridge I think so will be an excellent landmark on the countryside there.

Funny how projects like this can add to the scenery of an area, while small one off houses can absolutely destroy it.

Motorway bridges, when done tastefully, can be spectacular landmarks. The Boyne Bridge on the M1 certainly lets you know the importance of the river you are crossing. The Blackwater viaduct on the M8 is also quite a feature.

Just thought I'd post some pictures of the blinding progress made on this project recently. I estimate the new road will open in mid-May.

***
The following progression were all taken from the R665 (i.e. the Clonmel to Mitchelstown road) overbridge just north of Mitchelstown:

22 November 2008
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3451/3240769499_39e12bfb12.jpg

15 December 2008
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3463/3241602076_7fa744855b.jpg

16 January 2009
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3319/3201878182_47bce23f91.jpg

31 January 2009
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3446/3240806781_60dc9d0334.jpg

And 21 March 2009...
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3575/3372646016_53d97e9a33.jpg


***
Some more photos of how things currently stand on the northern half of the route:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3473/3371827071_d256bc607a.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3567/3371833357_64edfa44df.jpg

At Carrigane (junction 12) you can just see the median approaching the C-M scheme. This should be completely tied in by next Friday:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3552/3371831303_976ec776d0.jpg

A roundabout built as part of the M-F scheme at the R665 overbridge. I add this photo to show that a little bit of landscaping goes a long way. A few bulbs and one tree make a big difference; contrast this with the spartan roundabouts on the C-M scheme overbridges:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3544/3371829041_5541eb3ed1.jpg


http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3573/3371835477_0b61018dd2.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3554/3372661526_131d740a5d.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3417/3371837693_13cf053a23.jpg

The photo below shows the Fermoy Bypass tie-in as it is today on 21 March. It was taken early this morning, hence the haziness. But a power of work was done here during the past week. It's really starting to take shape now, though it's hard to make out from this picture:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3221/3371822099_843f2003d2.jpg

Finally, it seems that a large amount of the southbound carriageway between exits 14 and 13 has received the final surface. As I pointed out over on infrastructure, almost all the sign poles and crash barriers are up along the entire route.

Thank you for the picture updates Furet. Looks nearly ready for painting. How is the M7/8 scheme coming along just after Portlaoise? Heard progress was fairly slow on that scheme.


Pic from flickr of the M9 Dublin to Waterford taken the other day


http://www.flickr.com/photos/patduggan/3360056478/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/patduggan/3360057526/in/photostream/

interesting for me to see ireland expanding a motorway network, having been driven by my parents a few times from dublin to mayo in the 90s across little roads. fond memories of endless scenery. hope the motorways let more people experience this but don't cause too much disturbance.

They are disturbing to an extent on the landscape but they are needed. I like the charms of the old roads but Ireland is a modern country and has to have this infrastructure. Sadly we cannot have both in equal measure.



Another bridge structure on the Waterford Bypass

http://www.waterfordcity.ie/n25bypass/gallery/large/wb12_large.jpg

Second PPP program released

http://www.nra.ie/PublicPrivatePartnership/SecondPPPRoadsProgramme/


The M11 to get alot longer. The M20 between Cork and Limerick to be tolled.The New Ross Bypass to be M25.

Second PPP program released

The M11 to get alot longer. The M20 between Cork and Limerick to be tolled.The New Ross Bypass to be M25.
Amazing picture above.

New Ross won't be M25, it's N25, it will have at-grade roundabouts on it. This is OK because I don't see traffic levels ever being very high in that area.

Yes, you are right, my mistake:)


Furet posted more pics of the M8 on boards

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3299/3410318456_a2db5c86f7_b.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3543/3409520479_ac2308ee8a_b.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3408/3410320438_80ae51396a_b.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3146/3410332638_26c058759d_b.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3563/3407476088_7497f61079_b.jpg


This section looks really ready to go. Nice pics. What's your take on opening time now Furet?

Of course a good road network is essential for the wealth of country, and therefore I sure do understand that Ireland invests a lot. However, it can also be a dangerous thing: Switzerland, for instance, was severely damaged due to the highways back in the 60s.

How? Hundreds or even thousands of small remote villages in the Midlands all of a sudden became too well connected and were now only a short car ride away from the next major city. The result was, of course, that the country/city division in the Swiss Midlands along the highways has blurred and much of the land between the major cities is now built over, making the whole country some kind of highly suburbanised 100-mile-city. Mostly, Switzerland looks something like this now:

http://www.landschafts-initiative.ch/imgs/bellach_377.jpg

RE the M8 between Mitchelstown and Fermoy, I can confirm that practically all of the southbound carriageway (that's 16km) has received its wearing course (or final surface), and is in the process of being lined, signed and studded.

The northbound carriageway is a few weeks behind this. Still some tidying going on there, and no final surfacing has been applied yet. The Fermoy Bypass tie-in is almost complete - I'd say another two weeks should see it sorted.

As for an opening date, I'd say the last week of May, but don't be surprised if it's the first week of June. There's quite a bit of niggly little fixings to do yet.

Thanks! Look forward to your next vid:)

Of course a good road network is essential for the wealth of country, and therefore I sure do understand that Ireland invests a lot. However, it can also be a dangerous thing: Switzerland, for instance, was severely damaged due to the highways back in the 60s.

How? Hundreds or even thousands of small remote villages in the Midlands all of a sudden became too well connected and were now only a short car ride away from the next major city. The result was, of course, that the country/city division in the Swiss Midlands along the highways has blurred and much of the land between the major cities is now built over, making the whole country some kind of highly suburbanised 100-mile-city. Mostly, Switzerland looks something like this now:

http://www.landschafts-initiative.ch/imgs/bellach_377.jpg

i think ireland has so much space and so few people that it would take a hundred years to create that sort of sprawl. the irish countryside is very sparsely populated.

Add to that not only sparsity but how spread out the cities are from each other aswell.

Of course there is less pressure in Ireland... However, a certain sprawl has become visible over the last 15 years, around Dublin and elsewhere, with formerly small villages and towns "bellying" up - so the tendency is there.

Your right about Dublin there has been huge sprawl - this kind of makes fixed line rail as a solution a non runner for me. It's too late for that now so ultimately we need good roads around the city. Economically you would get away with the metro, a few LUAS lines and tieing up loose ends in the city centre but realistically it's such a mess in the suburbs that it's roads, roads and more roads. That's not to saying we are not investing huge amounts in rail - we are. Just ten times more in roads.

I appreciate your concerns suburbansky, but whats the alternative? And you could argue its already happening/happened. Ireland as a whole may be sparsely populated but take the M1 Dublin-Belfast corridor. It must contain about a third to a half the population of the Island already between the urban areas of Dublin, Drogheda, Dundalk, Newry, Lisburn and Belfast

It's a very important corridor and has Dublin airport tacked to it aswell to put the cherry on the cake but it is still going to be the shortest motorway in the Republic. The Port Tunnel is not part of the M1 - that's the M50. Had it have been part of the M1 I would have said the M1 was the most important road. The M7, M4 and M11 are all equally important for us in Dublin. I would rate the M50 as the most important motorway on the Island in terms of the sheer amount of development and industry along it. Probrably the single most important stretch of road back in Celtic Tiger times. The M1 needs extra capacity to Balbriggan I think. It's a traffic nightmare at rush hour.


The M1 has a bit of class about it though and is a nice drive

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3198/2733616126_6c9d79271e_b.jpg

Its shame the sprawl has been allowed to get so big without proper transport considerations. No wonder the M50 is at breaking point and by the time it’s widened another lane will be needed!

I would love to live in Dublin City Centre but living anywhere else in Dublin must be a complete nightmare. Just estate after estate after estate.

I don't have any alternatives, at least none that could be applied now - you're right, it's too late. It just somehow saddens me if I compare Ireland today and fifteen years back and see the same mistakes Switzerland did simply repeated.

Its shame the sprawl has been allowed to get so big without proper transport considerations. No wonder the M50 is at breaking point and by the time it’s widened another lane will be needed!

I would love to live in Dublin City Centre but living anywhere else in Dublin must be a complete nightmare. Just estate after estate after estate.


It's not just the widening, the entire junctions are being rebuilt. Many will be freeflow but some will be hideous massive hybrid junctions

http://www.m50.ie/uploads/images/junction6_large.jpg


Imagine having that behind your back garden. In fairness the LUAS has opened up Tallaght, which is probrably the biggest suburb, somewhat. However it is so spread out that many would not use it because they are too far away. Fixed line is too expensive and just not flexible enough for Dublin's needs. It's a pitty but we have to just face up to that fact and accept that the planning mistakes are irreversible.

That junction looks wild. Would not like to be engineer tasked to widen it sometime in the future.

I don't have any alternatives, at least none that could be applied now - you're right, it's too late. It just somehow saddens me if I compare Ireland today and fifteen years back and see the same mistakes Switzerland did simply repeated.

Your just being nostalgic for a simpler past.

I agree with Plank, living in those suburbs must be hell on Earth. But then they wouldn't have been built if people didn't want them. The Irish mentality (north and south) is to want to live in a 3 bedroom semi with a garden for the dog and room for the 4x4. Well if thats what you want, then don't be surprised by what you get. At least people live in Dublin city centre, unlike in other places...

I would'nt go that far....the bus system is good now especially with the Quality Bus Corridors and many estates do have alternative forms of transport like rail or light rail. I know we complain about the buses but sometimes I think we are a bit over critical of Dublin Bus. There are many that only have the bus as a viable alternative of course but as new rail projects get going at least some of this will be addressed.

The city centre should have a mesh of transport options. Unfortunately this cannot be everywhere - only where all modes of transport meet.

The metro video I posted in the metro thread shows this nicely.


Just back to the motorways - Furet has also been posting plenty of videos of the new M8 sections. Thanks!:)

FcY1l8noVVM

Your just being nostalgic for a simpler past.

No, I'm not - I'm just startled about the short-sightedness of planning/planners, not just in Ireland. You actually can have a big house in a calm and attractive surrounding and still get along with public transportation - there are examples of how it could be done.

No, I'm not - I'm just startled about the short-sightedness of planning/planners, not just in Ireland. You actually can have a big house in a calm and attractive surrounding and still get along with public transportation - there are examples of how it could be done.
You're only partly right. Yes you can have that , but only if most other people aren't having it. If everyone in a city has a huge house , the city is very low density and takes up a huge amount of geographic space - making it difficult to serve with public transport and pushing up journey times.

So, you can only have a big house in a city if very few other people are having a big house in the same city. This doesn't work!

You're only partly right. Yes you can have that , but only if most other people aren't having it. If everyone in a city has a huge house , the city is very low density and takes up a huge amount of geographic space - making it difficult to serve with public transport and pushing up journey times.

So, you can only have a big house in a city if very few other people are having a big house in the same city. This doesn't work!

That's not what I meant... You can live in a big house in a calm suburban surrounding, well outside the city, and still make most (I don't say all) of your trips with public transport. This of course only works if new suburbs are planned accordingly, i.e. along existing railway lines, and are not allowed to simply sprawl - and the public transport is steady and reliable, of course.

I have a few photographic updates. A bit of progress with the pavement and concrete barrier has been made, but we're still a good five months away from an opening.

This photo is taken from an overbridge west of the end of the Nenagh Bypass. You can access it by taking the first right turn up a narrow lane after you clear the bypass heading from Limerick.
http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt51/sclearyodonnell/DSCF1399.jpg

This photo is taken from the same overbridge, this time looking towards the Nenagh Bypass and Dublin:
http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt51/sclearyodonnell/DSCF1401.jpg

This photo, which looks east, was taken from an overbridge close to the turn off for Silvermines:
http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt51/sclearyodonnell/DSCF1403.jpg

Taken from the same position, looking to Limerick:
http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt51/sclearyodonnell/DSCF1404.jpg

Taken from an overbridge on the Limerick side of Daly's Cross, looking east:
http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt51/sclearyodonnell/DSCF1407.jpg

Taken from the same location, this time looking west:
http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt51/sclearyodonnell/DSCF1411.jpg

Surfacing works are underway in earnest now at last, after what was a very uncertain autumn and winter.

Nice pics. Also great progress on that bridge near to Waterford. I've been there and in december there was only that big green crane. It looks huge when you are standing there and looking at it.

Great pics Furet - man you get around!:cheers:

Cheers Odlum. Once the next piece of the M8 opens on 22 May I will be posting far fewer pictures in general.

I'll take a look at the Nenagh to Castletown section of the M7 in late July or early August. I'll use the same outing to examine the M7/M8 and also the Nenagh to Limerick scheme. So I hope to have a big batch of photos to upload around then.

I will drive the Waterford Bypass (and probably film it) when it opens next October. Hopefully sections of the M9 will be open by then too, and I'll have a drive on it if it is.

I don't envisage using the M6 again until the whole thing opens in 2010. I also have no plans at the moment to look at the M18 construction works, as I don't think I'll be heading to Galway again for the forseeable future. Though with summer and holidays and all that, that could change.

I've been waiting for someone on boards to upload photos of the M3, but so far no-one has. I certainly won't be heading up that way...for a very long time! So if anyone has any pictures of that, please upload them here or on boards.ie

There is a new April newsletter on the M3 motorway website if you're interested

http://www.eurolink-m3.ie/

:)


If I can just ask - whats with all those pylons in the last pic? Is the motorway (M7) to be elevated here?

If I can just ask - whats with all those pylons in the last pic? Is the motorway (M7) to be elevated here?

We think they will add stability to the M7 over a particularly boggy area...and yes, it does look like the M7 will rise slightly here.

Those motorways in the pictures look cheap. Look how real motorways look. A4 in Poland, not opened yet:
http://images46.fotosik.pl/106/31d64cdf75efd0d0.jpg

lol! Does the M50 look cheap? Does that junction at the top look cheap? They only cost about €8 billion...

We have many much fancier motorways then that already - and they certainly are not cheap! Best to judge against what is built and open then something halfway through construction. We have many wide median stretches that are quite impressive aswell.


As for the bridge above - nice - but come on let's get serious

http://www.sabre-roads.org.uk/gallery/albums/userpics/13084/DSCF2502.jpg


Objectively I prefer our yellow hard shoulder compared to the white and note the wide median. We use solar power SOS phones on the verges and yellow diamond signage which I really like. Whilst not perfect we are building some damn fine roads. We will open hundreds of km's of these roads in the next 2 years.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d0/M7Motorway.JPG/800px-M7Motorway.JPG

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/NewM50Dublin.JPG/800px-NewM50Dublin.JPG

The Germans will be looking in awe when our autobahns are finished and we cover Ireland in blue. Im only jokin man - Poland is just starting out and you will have great roads in time....but don't base perception on a couple of pics ;)


Just to add the next section of the M8 between Mitchelstown and Fermoy will open on the 22nd of May:cheers: Furet has his camera at the ready no doubt :P

Those motorways in the pictures look cheap. Look how real motorways look. A4 in Poland, not opened yet:
http://images46.fotosik.pl/106/31d64cdf75efd0d0.jpg

That looks much cheaper than the Irish ones IMO. If the lighter surfacing is anything like the stuff they use in the US.... oh dear :ohno:

Those motorways in the pictures look cheap. Look how real motorways look. A4 in Poland, not opened yet:



Hardly mate, that pic looks a hell of a lot cheaper with its shit road surface and that bridge is FUGLY as hell.

Those motorways in the pictures look cheap. Look how real motorways look. A4 in Poland, not opened yet:
http://images46.fotosik.pl/106/31d64cdf75efd0d0.jpg

Actually, that motorway looks very "cheap". The surface is tacky and lightweight and will deteriorate in no time, that bridge is ugly as hell.

Ireland has a much smaller population than Poland. Don't knock it....

Gosh - I thought I gave him the smackdown......Poland will have great roads but not yet. However I do symphatise with him for the fact that we had crap roads at one time and we built some road with EU help. We felt proud of our new motorway whilst others probrably laughed (they ain't laughing now) - look we have to start somewhere. Poland will have a great network in a few decades and I am impressed with your new road but, ffs, boasting about here is just stupid because of course I am going to come back at you with pics and info. Your going to get alot of motorway but be sensible in how you promote it. Nice road and all but don't preach to countries that have motorways. We know about them.

The surface is tacky and lightweight and will deteriorate in no time, that bridge is ugly as hell.

Are you blind? It's thick concrete. It's life time is 2x longer than asphalt.
http://www.zgorzelec-krzyzowa.pl/gallery/200711_28.JPG

When I wrote about cheap motorways being built in Ireland I had on mind the insulation (?) between traffic directions. Just one concrete barier, it doesn't look good :/

There is no point in having a wide central reservation. In a small country like Ireland, motorways should not be any wider than they need to be. Roads do enough damage to the countryside without making them unnecessarily wide.

Are you blind? It's thick concrete. It's life time is 2x longer than asphalt.
http://www.zgorzelec-krzyzowa.pl/gallery/200711_28.JPG

When I wrote about cheap motorways being built in Ireland I had on mind the insulation (?) between traffic directions. Just one concrete barier, it doesn't look good :/

We have wide median motorways aswell. What the hell is the point in building a wide median on a stretch that will never need expansion? It's out in the middle of nowhere.

Asphalt surfacing lasts about 30 years before pavement improvement is needed. TBH I like the smooth surface better then rough concrete. Concrete lasts longer but that "bump, bump, BUMP!" - eh, no thanks!

We have wide median motorways aswell. What the hell is the point in building a wide median on a stretch that will never need expansion? It's out in the middle of nowhere.

I didn't say that it's bad, I just said that it looks cheap.

Looks great in my opinion. :banana::cheers:



Pics of M6 U/C from Ballinasloe to Galway

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/0/0a/J19_Looking_West_Towards_Galway.jpg/800px-J19_Looking_West_Towards_Galway.jpg






http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/d/dd/R348_Overbridge_%28South_East_of_Athenry%29.JPG/800px-R348_Overbridge_%28South_East_of_Athenry%29.JPG

Are you blind? It's thick concrete. It's life time is 2x longer than asphalt.

Far be it from me to correct "god", but Irish motorways have a thick concrete-type layer (known as CBM) as well. You can't see it because it is buried beneath three layers of asphalt. The pavement sandwich is very thick.

When I wrote about cheap motorways being built in Ireland I had on mind the insulation (?) between traffic directions. Just one concrete barier, it doesn't look good :/

Wide medians look a lot better in my opinion, but they do have disadvantages - safety and cost being the big two. The concrete barrier is a little ugly in my opinion, but it cuts down on cost dramatically, and it is part of the reason why a small country like Ireland is able to build hundreds of kilometres of motorway at the same time.

That said, I do like this (http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/5/5b/M8_marlhill_south.jpg) and this (http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/4a/M8_junction_9_close_up.JPG).

FFS, why is the Polish guy complaining about Ireland's motorways being cheap and ruining the Irish countryside? There's plenty of space in Ireland...in fact, Greater Warsaw probably has just as many people as the entire Republic Of Ireland!

Wide medians allow the road to widened at a later date. If you take a look at the M1, most of the bridges will allow another lane, if not two on each side.

Far be it from me to correct "god", but Irish motorways have a thick concrete-type layer (known as CBM) as well. You can't see it because it is buried beneath three layers of asphalt. The pavement sandwich is very thick.


Correct, the motorway surface has a concrete base with asphalt added on top. Asphalt looks a hell of a lot nicer than grey concrete, which is ugly as f*ck.

As for the median, no need for them to be wide. They look perfectly fine as we built them, as long as they stop car cross-over during an accident I don't care how they look.

You have to bare in mind that it is different here to the UK. Generally they do not build new motorways - they expand existing ones. Here it is the autobahn mindest (most autobahns are D2M) - build motorways everywhere. In fairness to the UK they have a reasonable network though large portions are missing. But they have plenty of A roads up to motorway standard which they will not designate as such. Its political fcukwittery for want of a better term and it sells the network short. I am very very pleased (how could anyone not be!) with the Mway programme here. It's superb, it really is. Not blowing our own trumpet - it has faults but it is not as anal about designation as the UK network.

You have to bare in mind that it is different here to the UK. Generally they do not build new motorways - they expand existing ones. Here it is the autobahn mindest (most autobahns are D2M) - build motorways everywhere. In fairness to the UK they have a reasonable network though large portions are missing. But they have plenty of A roads up to motorway standard which they will not designate as such. Its political fcukwittery for want of a better term and it sells the network short. I am very very pleased (how could anyone not be!) with the Mway programme here. It's superb, it really is. Not blowing our own trumpet - it has faults but it is not as anal about designation as the UK network.


Classification of the UK road network is primarily historic. Hence the mess.

Do agree some HQDC's should be motorways, but I don't loose any sleep over it.

Classification of the UK road network is primarily historic. Hence the mess.

Do agree some HQDC's should be motorways, but I don't loose any sleep over it.

"High Quality Dual Carriageway" - that term started here because we wanted to build them without a motorway order (save time) then we redesignate them motorway....it was a cheeky way of not offending farmers, though they were a bit peeved in the end. But for a small country, population wise, like us we need blue on maps to show investors that we are serious about proper transport because our towns and cities are so spread out. It's one of the reasons I have always argued that there should be motorway between Belfast and Dublin - it should be blue the whole way. The road will be that standard in it's entireity with the Newry Bypass.

'Blue on a map' is over stated as a reason for investment.

Investors tend to have more detailed information when considering where to invest. They have local agents and surveyors than give feedback on transport.

Well Furet posted a new Atlas pic

http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt51/sclearyodonnell/DSCF1378.jpg


Not all motorways under construction are shown but it looks good and thats the key. Perception is everything.

M6 Athlone to Ballinasloe (19.4kms) should open in July


Written by Deirdre O' Shaughnessy
Wednesday, 22 April 2009
The Ballinasloe to Athlone section of the Galway/Dublin motorway could be completed in time for the Galway Races in July, according to local Fianna Fail TD and Chairman of the Oireachtas Transport Committee, Frank Fahey TD. Mr Fahey said the Ballinasloe to Athlone section of the M6 was progressing very well and might be open ahead of schedule in time for the Galway Races in July.

"The opening of this 19.4km section of the motorway will decrease the travel time to Dublin even further.

"When it's completed, motorists will be able to travel on motorway all the way from Ballinasloe to the Leixlip Bypass on the approach road to Dublin," he said.

The remainder of the new road is on track to be finished by early 2010, according to Deputy Fahey. The new Galway to Limerick section of the Western Rail Corridor is also expected to be open by July.

Galway Independent

^^ Here is a section of M6 beside my town Moate, shot today!:):)

http://i44.tinypic.com/2urvy48.jpg

Here is the Clonmacnoise Exit
http://i44.tinypic.com/nywf0g.jpg

Approaching Rochfortbridge Exit. The newer reeches of the M6 still remains somewhat incomplete with lack of crash barriers, poor road markings etc...

http://i43.tinypic.com/2eggwtl.jpg

It's good they put in the exit for Clonmacnoise - it's a major tourist attraction - well worth seeing.

A few photos. Still very much on track for opening on 25 May.

The new overbridge concrete barrier style - no bulge on the carriageway to accomodate the bridge supports:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3565/3492540738_a40bf051c5.jpg

Three kilometres south of junction 13:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3298/3492540756_d715e25f5e.jpg

Same position, looking north:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3632/3492540790_22ba41557b.jpg

About 2.5 km south of junction 13:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3309/3492540818_1610840d42.jpg

Same position, looking south:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3616/3492540848_62bcac515d.jpg

ADS:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3406/3492540718_78f2138c23.jpg

More ADS:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3326/3492571530_8741e12e8b.jpg

The wearing course:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3297/3491759085_94ee9421cb.jpg

Thanks Furet - not long now!:cheers:




Some aerials of the Waterford Bypass U/C - sabre roads website


http://www.sabre-roads.org.uk/gallery/albums/userpics/10640/dsc01103medium.jpg

http://www.sabre-roads.org.uk/gallery/albums/userpics/10640/dsc01073medium.jpg

http://www.sabre-roads.org.uk/gallery/albums/userpics/10640/dsc01065medium.jpg

And one more from Boards.ie

http://i42.tinypic.com/30tt476.jpg


And a couple by Furet - M8

http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt51/sclearyodonnell/confirmatory.jpg

http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt51/sclearyodonnell/DSCF1652.jpg

It's also worth posting pictures of some of the new signage for detrunked former primary roads.

Someone did a very nice job re-signing the old N8 between Cullahill and Cashel:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3575/3495311540_44986b0143.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3582/3494498197_ec852ee1b4.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3596/3494503475_3ec3085f69.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3571/3494505225_ffea07dd4c.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3598/3495323410_875ac94d7c.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3357/3494508239_fb11f7b956.jpg

Photos of the new high quality dual carriageway from Shannon - Gort in midwest Ireland.

tubber-gort overbridge
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/DSC01628.jpg

mainline
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/DSC01624.jpg

north of gort
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/DSC01633.jpg

Gort grade seperated junction
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/DSC01636.jpg

........... and heres the progress of the same scheme on the 5th may

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/gort%20-%20crusheen/DSC01776.jpg

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/gort%20-%20crusheen/DSC01774.jpg

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/gort%20-%20crusheen/DSC01773.jpg

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/gort%20-%20crusheen/DSC01772.jpg

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/gort%20-%20crusheen/DSC01770.jpg

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/gort%20-%20crusheen/DSC01769.jpg

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/gort%20-%20crusheen/DSC01775.jpg

^^Thanks for that. They are not wasting their time - that only started 6 months ago and some of the bridge decks are already up.


Belfast news


Third lane opens to traffic on M2

The new lane starts at Sandyknowes roundabout
The third lane of the M2 has opened to traffic between the Sandyknowes and Greencastle junctions.

The new lane on the Belfast-bound carriageway should make it easier for traffic to join the motorway at Sandyknowes.

Other improvements to the motorway are due to be finished later in May.

Roy Spiers, of Roads Service, said: "Drivers using the road should take extra care until they become familiar with the new road markings."

Mr Spiers also thanked drivers for their patience and co-operation throughout the period of the works which began in March 2007.

One motorist told BBC Radio Ulster that the new lane had cut half an hour from their commute into Belfast but another driver said it was just pushing congestion problems closer to the city centre.

Minister for Regional Development Conor Murphy said: "The opening of the third lane marks a significant milestone in these works, which are now almost complete."

The M2 Improvements Scheme has also involved widening the country-bound carriageway of the M2 over Greencastle junction and replacing the Hightown, Collin and Longlands Bridges.

BBC

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/motorwayireland-1.jpg

(all routes now labelled and assuming all dc's get redesignated to motorway)

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/n7%20limerick%20ring%20road%20progress/DSC01814.jpg

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/n7%20limerick%20ring%20road%20progress/DSC01817-1.jpg

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/n7%20limerick%20ring%20road%20progress/DSC01818.jpg

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/n7%20limerick%20ring%20road%20progress/DSC01813.jpg

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/n7%20limerick%20ring%20road%20progress/DSC01819.jpg

M7 Nenagh to Limerick section under construction, due to open roughly around the end of this year.

Northbound from R504 overbridge
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/n7%20limerick%20-%20nenagh/DSC01863.jpg

Southbound from R504 overbridge
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/n7%20limerick%20-%20nenagh/DSC01865.jpg

Transport21, in the long term you could probably add some more to that map. The M20 is missing as well as M40 Leinster orbital and the M50 Eastern Bypass. The N11 Arklow-Wicklow section which will almost certainly get redesignated since it links two sections of motorway. Also the Enniscorthy bypass is another potential candidate.

Here are pics of the M9 that I took last summer shortly after the Carlow Bypass section opened:
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2284/3527363695_657e23d392_o.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2211/3527363725_18ca8a8a43_o.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2283/3527363757_11a665e003_o.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2027/3528175014_7fbdd2ac3e_o.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2065/3527363891_4b652caf71_o.jpg

And here are pictures of a newly-upgraded section of the M50 taken a few days ago

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3366/3529910942_c9838f2993_o.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3398/3529911006_238dfe3fa0_o.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3322/3529098167_5f750d15b9_o.jpg

This picture shows a short 11-laned section:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3619/3529098365_e755285769_o.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3096/3529911470_285c6af4a1_o.jpg

The N2 junction upgrade started a couple of weeks ago


http://www.m50.ie/uploads/images/junction5_large.jpg

The beams for the first flyover at the M1 have also just been installed.


When are they going to install the VMS signs they have clearly made provision for?

Couple of images


M1 SB - M50 SB Flyover construction

http://www.amse.ie/images/C1165_S02_lift1_sm.JPG

http://www.amse.ie/images/c1165_s02_3.JPG

M50/M3 Junction under construction webcam


http://www.dublincity.ie/dublintraffic/Site0Camera84.jpg

Approaching the Toll Plaza on M4 from Kinnegad.

http://i40.tinypic.com/2yzms9l.jpg

Nearing Palmerstown on M4
http://i42.tinypic.com/a27ipd.jpg

http://i44.tinypic.com/2w3o02q.jpg

We will have a great motorway network by the end of next year. Im proud of it.:) The Celtic Tiger delivers...

The M3 well underway..:)

http://i40.tinypic.com/1zbxhxd.jpg

http://i44.tinypic.com/2gw7u5y.jpg

M4 images

http://i39.tinypic.com/263fomu.jpg

http://i43.tinypic.com/14noi0k.jpg

Thanks for the pics. The M4 upgrade is coming along nicely - esspecially happy to see the end of the Newcastle Road junction.

Pictures of the motorway opening on Monday taken by Furet.




The Mountains are the Galtee Mountains in County Tipperary




http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt51/sclearyodonnell/DSCF1860.jpg


http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt51/sclearyodonnell/DSCF1856.jpg

http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt51/sclearyodonnell/DSCF1853.jpg

http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt51/sclearyodonnell/DSCF1834.jpg

http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt51/sclearyodonnell/DSCF1845.jpg


http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt51/sclearyodonnell/DSCF1873.jpg

New motorway to open in Cork
Monday, 25 May 2009 11:17

http://dynimg.rte.ie/0002500210dr.jpg

A new stretch of motorway between Fermoy and Mitchelstown in north Cork will open to traffic for the first time this afternoon.

The motorway cost €174m and is opening nine months ahead of schedule.

The new road means all but a 40km section of the Dublin-Cork road is now at motorway or dual carriageway standard.

The final section will link the Portlaoise bypass with the M8 at Cullahill in Co Laois.

It is expected to be completed late next year.

Story from RTÉ News:
http://www.rte.ie/news/2009/0525/cork.html


Only 40km to go! :cheers:

I have updated the M8's wikipedia page (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M8_motorway_(Ireland)).

Only 40km to go! :cheers:

Technically, only 13 km of that 40 will be M8: the rest will be M7. Excellent news indeed. And, I can report that the pace of construction in County Laois has picked up significantly in recent months.

at the M1-M50 interchange

http://i44.tinypic.com/30kvvxf.jpg

http://i40.tinypic.com/fad06s.jpg

Thanks!:)


Another fantastic shot by Furet of the M8 4km north of Cashel.





http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt51/sclearyodonnell/DSCF1959.jpg

Taken from an overbridge off the ballnahinch road



http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/M7%20nenagh%203rd%20june/DSC02054.jpg



http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/M7%20nenagh%203rd%20june/DSC02056.jpg



These four taken from the overbridge near Dromin



http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/M7%20nenagh%203rd%20june/DSC02057.jpg



http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/M7%20nenagh%203rd%20june/DSC02058.jpg



http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/M7%20nenagh%203rd%20june/DSC02059.jpg



http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/M7%20nenagh%203rd%20june/DSC02060.jpg



Taken from the R504 overbridge near birdhill



http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/M7%20nenagh%203rd%20june/DSC02068.jpg



http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/M7%20nenagh%203rd%20june/DSC02069.jpg



http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/M7%20nenagh%203rd%20june/DSC02070.jpg



South of Daly's cross again



http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/M7%20nenagh%203rd%20june/DSC02071.jpg



http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/M7%20nenagh%203rd%20june/DSC02072.jpg



underbridge south of that overbridge, the piles can be seen



http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/M7%20nenagh%203rd%20june/DSC02073.jpg

Overbridge found just outside Nenagh, first photo is northbound and Nenagh seen in the background



http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/M7%20nenagh%203rd%20june/DSC02083.jpg



http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/M7%20nenagh%203rd%20june/DSC02084.jpg



http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/M7%20nenagh%203rd%20june/DSC02085.jpg



Mainline again north of Nenagh, nicer day this time ;)



http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/M7%20nenagh%203rd%20june/DSC02066.jpg[/QUOTE]

Nice pictures - looks on track for a December opening date.



Some news on the M11

Motorway plan for the N11 unveiled


ENNISCORTHY BYPASS CPOs BEING ISSUED THIS WEEK


By David MEDCALF


Wednesday June 03 2009

LANDHOLDERS along the route of the planned Enniscorthy by-pass are this week opening their compulsory purchase letters. And Wexford roads tsar Don Curtin has confirmed that new road east of the town will be a motorway, not just a dual carriageway.

The CPO's covering a 27-kilometre line from Clogh to Scurlocksbush, just north of Oylegate, were signed yesterday (Tuesday) by county council chairman Peter Byrne. Adding in the new connections to Enniscorthy town and Scarawalsh brings the total length of new roads in the offing to 39 kilometres.

'A motorway is just what you want,' said Cllr. Byrne as the letters were put in the post and he contemplated the N11 becoming the M11. 'There is no go-back at this stage and it is good to have a bit of positive news.'

Oylegate may brace itself to become the first stop on the road as dual carriageway/ motorway is set to be the norm all the way from north of Arklow to south of Enniscorthy. However, traders in the village are hoping that the change in road layout will bring fresh business to Oylegate until it too is bypassed in due course.

No definite offer of money is contained in the letters mailed to property owners in townlands such as Ballygullen, Ballyeden, Medophall, Knockrobin, Rockspring, Cronyhorn, Ballycarrigeen, Tomsallagh, Crane, Toom, Finchogue, Kilcotty, Ballycourcy, Knockrathkyle, Monroe and Riverview.

Landowners will have the opportunity to object to the compulsory purchase and the views of those who lodge objections will be considered at a Bord Pleanála hearing, probably in the autumn. Once the board has confirmed the final route, the way will be cleared to appoint contractors to start construction. The road building is expected to begin early in 2011.

'This is a most important day for Wexford and it's economy and is indicative of our commitment to providing the best possible infrastructure throughout the County to encourage industrial and tourism development,' commented county manager Eddie Breen.

Roads liaison officer Don Curtin explained that the Enniscorthy by-pass is being planned to motorway standard from the start. The Gorey by-pass is actually built to a similar standard but has not yet been designated a motorway.

- David MEDCALF




Map of scheme

http://www.sabre-roads.org.uk/gallery/albums/userpics/11047/M11_Gorey-Enniscorthy.jpg

Hi guys.
Indeed Ireland made a big step forward about motorways. I remember hitching there for the first time something like five years ago. There were very few motorways. Soon all the way to Galway will be motorway! And that new massive M50 junctions... to be honest I'm not sure how I will cope with that now as a hitchhiker. Previous ones were good hitching spots, and I'll be missing Red Cow (Mad Cow;)) but of course roads are not built for hitchhikers:)
BTW I have a few questions:
1. Do you know what's the traffic on N18 (cars/day) around Ennis and N17 around Tuam?
2. Sorry offtopic: Do you know of a real reason of Dublin Trams closure in 1940s? Any links, beside wikipedia?

Cheers!

Hi guys.

1. Do you know what's the traffic on N18 (cars/day) around Ennis and N17 around Tuam?



N17 is around 16k AADT
Ennis bypass would have 25k plus.

In relation to the route a scheme which hasnt started constuction, Gort to Tuam PPP (http://www.nra.ie/Publications/DownloadableDocumentation/PublicPrivatePartnership/file,16119,en.pdf) has recieved six consortium bids. If this scheme goes ahead Limerick-Tuam will be motorway/dual carriageway standard by 2013.

Currently under construction along the route:
Gort to Crusheen - Completion Q4 2010 (http://www.nra.ie/RoadSchemeActivity/GalwayCountyCouncil/N18GorttoCrusheen/SchemeName,15482,en.html)
- Limerick Tunnel - Q4 2010 (http://www.nra.ie/RoadSchemeActivity/LimerickCountyCouncil/N7LimerickTunnelLSRRPhase2/SchemeName,15455,en.html)

Was wondering, is there anything planned for the Cork - Limerick route? I don't think a motorway is needed but there one section in particular that needs an upgrade. Also a bloody bypass for Charleville would be nice, what a pain in the ass that town is for driving. :)

Was wondering, is there anything planned for the Cork - Limerick route? I don't think a motorway is needed but there one section in particular that needs an upgrade. Also a bloody bypass for Charleville would be nice, what a pain in the ass that town is for driving. :)

See here: http://www.corkrdo.ie/n20_cork_limerick_motorway_scheme_publications.php

Was wondering, is there anything planned for the Cork - Limerick route? I don't think a motorway is needed but there one section in particular that needs an upgrade. Also a bloody bypass for Charleville would be nice, what a pain in the ass that town is for driving. :)



The M20 will run from Cork to Limerick. It will be motorway and it will get U/C in 2010.

Its like going back in time to the 1960''s

^^ Yeah it's great!


Second flyover going in at M50/M1 interchange.


http://img7.imageshack.us/img7/4905/07062009012.jpg

Pic Boards.ie

Why is the M17 going to be M17 - surely it replaces the N18 between Oranmore and Claregalway, just a bit further east and hitting the N17 further north? Given that the current N17 is going to be upgraded as well (Claregalway bypass) then at least some of the M17 should be M18, with, say, the N63-N17 route to the N6 as N17 (bypassing what looks like a twisty route between Tuam and Claregalway, which can be an extension of the N83).

Its like going back in time to the 1960''s
Yes, there is a fundamentally different attitude to road building in Ireland than in the UK. The public in the UK seem to perceive that there have been an excessive amount of motorway building over the last few decades and it is now very hard to get a motorway built. In the Republic, however, it's the opposite: the public believes that there has been far too little road activity over the years and nowadays any and all schemes get greenlighted. Notice in the article the politician's comment, "A motorway is just what you want".

Note also that the route the M11 is proposed to run in the map has a traffic count (http://www.nra.ie/NetworkManagement/TrafficCounts/TrafficCounterData/html/N11-10A.htm) of only 8268. This is probably hard to understand for a UK resident unless you take the above into account.

The motorway network in Ireland will be greatly expanded shortly. By 2010 there should be around 980 km, 1160 by 2013, and around 1250 by 2018. This compares very well with other countries.

Why is the M17 going to be M17 - surely it replaces the N18 between Oranmore and Claregalway, just a bit further east and hitting the N17 further north? Given that the current N17 is going to be upgraded as well (Claregalway bypass) then at least some of the M17 should be M18, with, say, the N63-N17 route to the N6 as N17 (bypassing what looks like a twisty route between Tuam and Claregalway, which can be an extension of the N83).
Although the above makes sense, they've instead opted with the approach, which is easier from a numbering perspective, of simply having the three motorways converge at one M6/M17/M18 junction. I believe this also appears to be an attempt to discourage traffic from using the existing N17 from Galway to Claregalway by downgrading the road. It won't work though; the new route will be a lot longer than the old one.

Btw, there is no real plan to have a Claregalway bypass, though there should be.

Curraderra Overbridge
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/Gort-Crusheen%20N18%20June%2021st/DSC02101.jpg




Looking North from Curraderra Overbridge
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/Gort-Crusheen%20N18%20June%2021st/DSC02100.jpg




Ballyline Overbridge
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/Gort-Crusheen%20N18%20June%2021st/DSC02110.jpg




Looking south from Ballyline Overbridge
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/Gort-Crusheen%20N18%20June%2021st/DSC02109.jpg




Ruan Underbridge
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/Gort-Crusheen%20N18%20June%2021st/DSC02111.jpg




Crusheen Interchange
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/Gort-Crusheen%20N18%20June%2021st/Crusheeninterchange.jpg




Lahardan Overbridge
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/Gort-Crusheen%20N18%20June%2021st/LahardanOverbridge.jpg




Gortahover Overbridge
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/Gort-Crusheen%20N18%20June%2021st/DSC02119.jpg




Looking North from Gortahover Overbridge
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/Gort-Crusheen%20N18%20June%2021st/DSC02099.jpg




Shanaglish Overbridge
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/Gort-Crusheen%20N18%20June%2021st/DSC02121.jpg




View of Mainline South from Gort-Tubber overbridge
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/Gort-Crusheen%20N18%20June%2021st/SouthboundfromGort-TubberOverbridge.jpg




South side of Tubber-Gort Overbridge
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/Gort-Crusheen%20N18%20June%2021st/Gort-TubberOverbridge1.jpg




North side of Gort-Tubber overbridge
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/Gort-Crusheen%20N18%20June%2021st/Gort-TubberOverbridge2.jpg




Looking North from Gort-Tubber road crossover
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/Gort-Crusheen%20N18%20June%2021st/LookingNorthboundfromcurrentgort-tu.jpg




Realignment of the Tubber-Gort rd
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/Gort-Crusheen%20N18%20June%2021st/Realignmentofgort-tubberrd.jpg




Ballysheedy Underpass
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/Gort-Crusheen%20N18%20June%2021st/DSC02129.jpg




Looking south on Mainline from Ballysheedy underpass
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/Gort-Crusheen%20N18%20June%2021st/DSC02130.jpg




R460 Crossover looking at mainline heading north toward Gort Interchange
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/Gort-Crusheen%20N18%20June%2021st/R460crossoverlookingnorthboundGortG.jpg




R460 Overbridge
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/Gort-Crusheen%20N18%20June%2021st/R460overbridge.jpg

Thanks for the pics Transport21 - fast progress being made on the N18 - good to see.


Pics of N3/M50 interchange looking southbound at the off ramp from Boards.ie. Taken by Davy.


http://img411.imageshack.us/img411/6889/m50offrampn3junctiono.jpg


http://img141.imageshack.us/img141/4320/m50offrampn3junction.jpg

A little contribution to the galleri. Taken from an incoming plane at Dublin Airport a fortnight ago, it shows the works at the M50 and M1 junction.

http://i42.tinypic.com/2zf61l0.jpg

Great pic Nevergiveup - the lengths some people go to!:lol:

Great pic Nevergiveup - the lengths some people go to!

Or heights perhaps?

The Second programme of PPP has been reformed, N7 Newlands Cross and the N11 havnt been put second in line after the N17/N18 scheme.



http://www.nra.ie/Publications/DownloadableDocumentation/PublicPrivatePartnership/file,16119,en.pdf



.... and here is the consortia shortlisted for thr N17/N18 scheme



http://www.nra.ie/Publications/DownloadableDocumentation/PublicPrivatePartnership/file,16402,en.doc

The best one IMO looks to be DirectRoute which includes the likes of roadbridge and sisk.

Looks like priority is to be given to the M11 corridor in the coming years.

The N4 Leixlip to M50 national road scheme opens today (06/07/09) on time and on budget.


At a cost of €75m this 7km dual carriageway was financed by the National Development Plan 2007-2013.

The scheme:

Upgrades Lucan Bypass
Provides an extra lane - widening from 2 to 3 lanes of traffic
Cuts 30 minutes off inbound traffic at peak times and 10 minutes during off peak times
Provides free flow interchange at Newcastle eliminating a major bottleneck

The scheme was officially opened by the Minister for Transport, Mr. Noel Dempsey, T.D., who, in welcoming the project said:

“Even in these times of significant economic constraint the Government is committed to investing in top class transport infrastructure. This new €75m dual carriageway upgrade is a further example of this commitment. The upgrade will shave almost half an hour off in-bound morning journey times which will be welcome news for all who use this route. The project was delivered on time and within budget and its benefits are manifold. It will reduce journey times, provide safer travel, reduce congestion and improve access to Dublin Airport and Dublin Port. It will make an enormous every day difference to people living and working in this area as well as those just commuting through.”

Mr. Peter Malone, Chairman of the National Roads Authority (NRA), said:

The Leixlip to M50 scheme will provide an immediate benefit to many road users by providing an extra lane, moving from two to three lanes of traffic, coupled with the removal of a major bottleneck due to the upgrading of the Newcastle Junction to a free flow interchange. This will impact positively on the strategic Dublin to Galway route and open up west county Dublin, Kildare and the Midlands to economic opportunity. It is more critical than ever that Ireland, as an island economy, has a high quality national road infrastructure in order to remain competitive. This has been delivered at an accelerated pace through the increase in the scale of the national road building programme under the Government’s Transport 21 Plan. National road schemes are routinely coming in on time and within budget and the NRA will continue to work in partnership with local authorities and the construction sector to deliver value for money for the Irish tax payer.”


www.nra.ie

Looks like priority is to be given to the M11 corridor in the coming years.

Yeah a dissapointment really. The M20 should be prioritised as well. It will strike and imbalance to our motorway network. Its good that Dublin will be linked with all the major cities but we need Cork-Limerick-Galway-Tuam linked by motorway soon as well.

I'm happy to see the N17/N18 still given top priority in the PPP process as its badly needed.

But Newlands Cross is really important though. I cant imagine how bad traffic will be there when the upgrade is taking place. It will be mayhem.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/munurty/3704607511/in/set-72157621062068401/


Some great aerial shots of the M9 under construction at the Southern End cutting through the landscape to Waterford by Murnurty on boards.ie


http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2421/3704609227_57b12fe985_b.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3529/3705420344_17514733d4_b.jpg


http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2593/3705419496_dd5c7125b2_b.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2646/3705424500_38b6099718_b.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3507/3704618431_f20587deb9_b.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3420/3704675597_ebeb4c50c4_b.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2571/3704677625_acf45e7ee5_b.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3458/3705487594_fd56322cf4_b.jpg

M6 motorway between Athlone and Ballinasloe on the Dublin - Galway route nearly ready to go.

July 23rd is the expected opening date.

Pics by Kaizersoze

http://gallery.m6.kaizersoze.net/index.php?album=athlone-to-ballinasloe&page=5



http://gallery.m6.kaizersoze.net/zp-core/i.php?a=athlone-to-ballinasloe&i=DSC00310.JPG&s=800

http://gallery.m6.kaizersoze.net/zp-core/i.php?a=athlone-to-ballinasloe&i=DSC00312.JPG&s=800


Scheme length is 19.4km's with three grade seperated junctions.

Map of scheme

http://www.nra.ie/RoadSchemeActivity/GalwayCountyCouncil/N6AthlonetoBallinasloe/Map,16453,en.pdf

Wow, not far to go now until they're all finished. I'll be really pleased to see the motorway completed to Waterford. That road is treacherous in places, like a country lane. Will be glad to see the back of it.:)

Just for a bit of scenery - recently opened M8 motorway from Dublin to Cork in Co Tipperary

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/5/51/The_M8_skirting_the_Galtee_Mountains.JPG/800px-The_M8_skirting_the_Galtee_Mountains.JPG

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/97/M8_at_junction_15_tolled.JPG/800px-M8_at_junction_15_tolled.JPG

100's of km's of existing Dual Carriageways to become Motorways on August 28th .



SECTIONS OF NATIONAL ROADS AND PROPOSED ROAD
DEVELOPMENTS DECLARED AS MOTORWAYS UNDER THIS
ORDER

Reference in this Schedule to—
N followed by a number is a reference to a national road
R followed by a number is a reference to a regional road

N2 — Killshane to Ashbourne
The section of the N2 between the grade separated junction known as Cherryhound
in the townland of Killshane in the county of Fingal and its junction with
the R135 in the townland of Rath in the county of Meath, via the townlands of
Cherryhound and Ward Lower in the county of Fingal and Irishtown, Newtown
Commons, Wotton, Fleenstown Little, Baltrasna, Harlockstown and Cookstown
in the county of Meath.


N3 — Littlepace to Loughsallagh
The section of the N3 from its junction with the R156 at Littlepace in the
county of Fingal to Loughsallagh in the county of Meath, via the townland of
Damastown in the county of Fingal and Clonee in the county of Meath.

N3 — Loughsallagh to Pace
The section of the proposed N3 between its junction with the existing N3 at
Loughsallagh in the county of Meath and its junction with the proposed M3 at
Pace, via the townlands of Bracetown and Dunboyne in the county of Meath,
and also the proposed north bound on-ramp at the Clonee interchange.


N4 — Kinnegad to McNead’s Bridge
The section of the N4 between the grade separated junction known as
Kinnegad West in the town land of Kinnegad and the grade separated junction
at McNead’s Bridge in the townland of Heathstown, via the townlands of Griffithstown
and Correllstown, all in the county of Westmeath.


N6 — Athlone to Ballinasloe (also known as the N6 Ballinasloe to Athlone
Dual Carriageway Scheme)The section of the proposed N6 between its junction with the R362 at Monksland
and its junction with the proposed R357 at Ardcarn via the townlands
of Mihanboy, Taduff West, Ardkeenan, Loghlackagh, Rathpeak, Kilbegly, and
Sralea, all in the county of Roscommon.


N6 — Galway to Ballinasloe (also known as the N6 Galway to East Ballinasloe
Dual Carriageway).The section of the proposed N6 between its junction with the proposed R357
at Ardcarn in the county of Roscommon and its junction with the existing N18
at Glennascaul in the county of Galway, via the townland of Tulrush in the
county of Roscommon and Poolboy, Mackney, Coololla, Cloghagalla Eighter,
Ballynaclogh, Turksland, Brackloon, Cross, Killescragh, Carrowkeel, Greyford,
4 [255]
Deerpark, Newford, Rathmorrissey and Lisheenkyle East in the county of
Galway.


N7 — Limerick Southern Ring Road, Phase 1
The section of the N7 between its junction with the R503 at Mountshannon
to a point on the existing N7 at the R511 overbridge in Rathbane South, via the
townlands of Woodstown, Ballysimon and Inchmore, all in the county of
Limerick.


N7 — Proposed N7/N20 Rossbrien Interchange (part of the Limerick Southern
Ring Road Phase 2 road scheme)
The parts of the proposed Rossbrien Interchange comprising of the N7 and
N20 interchange loops in the townlands of Rossbrien and Rathbane South in
the county of Limerick.


N8 — Watergrasshill to Glanmire
The section of the N8 between its junction with the M8 at Mitchelsfort and
its junction with the R639 at Killydonoghue, via the townlands of Transtown
and Killalough, all in the county of Cork.


N8 — Glanmire Bypass
The section of the N8 between its junction with the R639 at Killydonoghue
to a point 400m north of the N25 Junction at Dunkettle, via the townlands of
Riverstown and Ballinglanna, all in the county of Cork.


N9 — Waterford to Powerstown (also known as the N9/N10 Killcullen to
Waterford Scheme)
The section of the proposed N9 between its junction with the existing N9 at
Cloghristick in the county of Carlow and its junction with the N25 at Granny in
the county of Kilkenny via Seskin Lower, Moanduff and Moanmore in the
county of Carlow; Shankill, Jordanstown, Ballyquirk, Rathcash West, Clifden,
Kilree, Danesfort, Stonecarthy West, Knocktopher Commons, Kilkeasy, Garrandarragh,
Ballykeoghan and Dunkitt in the county of Kilkenny.


N11 — Ashford to Rathnew
The section of the N11 between its junction with the R772 at Kilmartin and
its junction with the R772 at Ballynabarney, via the townlands of Rathmore,
Mountusher, Rossanna Lower and Ballybeg, all in the county of Wicklow.


N11 — Arklow Bypass
The section of the N11 between its junction with the R772 at Templerainey
and its junction with the R772 at Cooladangan, via the townlands of Kilbride,
Ballyraine Middle, Ballyraine Upper and Kish, all in the county of Wicklow.


N11 — Arklow to Gorey (also known as the N11 Gorey to Arklow Link)
The section of the N11 between its junction with the R772 at Cooladangan in
the county of Wicklow and its junction with the R772 at Ballinclay in the county
of Wexford, via the townlands of Ashwood Upper, Ballyellin, Inch, Tinnock
Lower, Toberduff, Courteencurragh, Raheenagurren West, Coolnastudd and
Clogh, in the county of Wexford.
[255] 5


N18 — Shannon to Ennis (known as Ballycasey to Dromoland)
The section of the N18 between its junction with the N19 at Ballycasey Beg
and its junction with the R458 at Latoon South, via the townlands of Killulla,
Knocksaggart and Ballyconneely, all in the county of Clare.


N18 — Ennis Bypass (also known as N18 Dromoland to Crusheen)
The section of the N18 between its junction with the R458 at Latoon South
and its junction with the existing N18 as Carrowdotia, via the townlands of
Manusmore, Killow, Knockanean and Drumquin, all in the county of Clare.


N18 — Gort to Crusheen
The section of the proposed N18 between its junction with the existing N18
at Carrowdotia and its junction with the existing N18 at Glenbrack in the county
of Galway via the townlands of Bearnafunshin, Caheraphuca, Derrygarriff and
Monreagh in the county of Clare, and Gortavoher, Curtaun, Ballyboy, Ballybaun
and Drumminacloghaun in the county of Galway.


N18 — Oranmore to Gort
The section of the proposed N18 between its junction with the existing N18
at Glenbrack and its junction with the proposed N6 at Rathmorrissey, via the
townlands of Coole Demesne, Ballymaquiff North, Ballyglass West, Cloghboley,
Kiltiernan East, Roevehagh, Moyveela and Gortroe, all in the county of Galway.


N20 — Limerick to Attyflin (also known as the N20/N21 Junction)
The section of the N20 from a point 660m south of the existing N7/N20 junction
at Rossbrien to its junction with the N21 at Ballybronoge South, via the
townlands of Dooradoyle, Rootiagh, Barnakyle and Attyflin, all in the county
of Limerick.


GIVEN under my Official Seal,
2 July 2009

http://www.transport.ie/viewitem.asp?id=10193&lang=ENG&loc=2270

Nice :cheers: Over 200km's of road to be made motorway with the swipe of a pen on August 28th - R day.

It is actually 300km's that will become Mway


300km of roads to be assigned as motorways
OLIVIA KELLY


MOTORWAY STATUS is to be given to 19 new sections of road across 10 national routes from next month, including the first stretch of the controversial M3 that passes near the Hill of Tara.

The new motorways, which are primarily on the routes from Dublin to other major cities, will have their speed limit increased to 120km/h with a potential reduction in journey times by as much as an hour to cities such as Galway, Cork, Sligo and Limerick.

However, none of the upgraded roads will have service areas or toilets along their length, the National Roads Authority has said.

Almost 300km of national roads will become motorways under the redesignation.

On some roads only a short distance of less than 10km is achieving motorway status. In other areas more than 60km will become motorway.

Four of the 10 national roads will gain the status of full motorways as the sections to be redesignated next month are the only stretches of those roads which are not currently of motorway grade.

These are the N8 from Dublin to Cork, the N9 from Dublin to Waterford, the N7 from the Naas bypass to Limerick and the N18 from Oranmore to Limerick.

The N6 from Dublin to Galway will be almost a full motorway, apart from the 8km stretch of the Athlone bypass which is still under consideration for motorway designation.
Five other national roads will have motorway sections, but remain national roads for a substantial portion of their length.

From next month, the N2 Dublin to Derry road will have a 13km stretch from Kilshane to Ashbourne designated as motorway and the N4 Dublin to Sligo will have the 6.8km from Kinnegad to McNead’s Bridge of motorway.

Three sections of the N11 Dublin to Wexford road will also acquire motorway status – 8km from Ashford to Rathnew, the 7km Arklow bypass and 12km from Arklow to Gorey; while the N20 Cork to Limerick road will have a 5km stretch of motorway from Limerick to Attyflin.

The smallest sections of new motorway will be the first stretches of the M3 from Dublin to Cavan to be opened.

Currently under construction these road sections will be 2.1km from Littlepace to Loughsallagh and 2.3km from Loughsallagh to Pace.

While the routing of the M3 near the Hill of Tara in Co Meath is the source of ongoing protests by heritage and environmental campaigners, these particular sections are more than 20km away from the controversial Skreen Valley.

While the motorway designations come into force on August 28th, some of the sections are still under construction and will be opened from next year. They will not have motorway speed limits of 120km/h until this construction is completed.

Athlone Bypass may still become motorway.

Preliminary designs for the M20 Cork to Limerick scheme have been published and are available to view at

http://www.corkrdo.ie/n20_cork_limerick_motorway_scheme_publications.php

Can someone explain to me how motorway numbering is designated. Up North we have the M1, M2 and M5 out of Belfast with the inner-city M3, but no M4 and then randomly Craigavon has a section designated M12. Why was Dublin's ring road called the M50??

Can someone explain to me how motorway numbering is designated. Up North we have the M1, M2 and M5 out of Belfast with the inner-city M3, but no M4 and then randomly Craigavon has a section designated M12. Why was Dublin's ring road called the M50??


I think, but im not sure, here it depends on the 'N' route they replace. Once the motorway is built the 'N' number is taken away from the original road and it becomes a regional road as opposed to a National route. So the motorway replaces the original route and gains it's number.

This does not happen in the North. New builds are off line and don't gain the number of former 'A' roads. I cannot comment on the descrepancy in numbering because I don't know why that is but I have heard that the two motorways east - west have single numbers and north - south double numbers - but that might not be right!

The M50 was a new build - it just happen that there was no 'N 50' in the country when it was built so they gave it that number.

It's seems to be that when a National Primary Route with the prefix 'N' is upgraded to motorway the new route is simply called the 'M' whatever. As far as i know there was never a 'N50' before this hence the logic for the M50. That was always my understanding of it anyway. Might not be 100 percent correct on this.

The speed at which these things are rolling out is really impressive. I can't wait to try out the new Dublin to Cork route.

You just beat me to it Odlum!

Are any of the planned rest/service areas U/C at the moment? I'll never understand why these were never included in the first place.

Are any of the planned rest/service areas U/C at the moment? I'll never understand why these were never included in the first place.

Yep - the first 3 will be open next year. They are on the M1 and M4. The rest will be rolled out after that. Most motorways will have dedicated service areas.


The M6 between Ballinasloe and Athlone is opening on 23rd of June btw.:cheers:

Thanks Odlum. That's good to hear. While driving in the US last year, the service areas were amazing. They were almost identical to each other and were at defined distances along the Freeways. Each was like a small shopping centre with restaurants, gift shops and newsagents etc. What will the ones here consist of? A jacks and a McDonalds?

No, they will be a bit more sophisticated then that. They will have full services, restraurants, truck and car facilities and childrens play areas - similar to those I have seen in the US and some in the UK.


EIS for some of the planned service stations are here, although some have not yet been put on the site

http://www.nra.ie/Publications/EISPublications/

Thanks again for the link. Looks pretty good alright. The ones I remember in the US were in the central median of the highway with access from both carriageways. The plans indicate separate services on either side which seems a safer way to do it alright.

..

M6 between Athlone and Ballinasloe officially opened today.:banana:



M6 speed limit signs set to be replaced


Thursday, 23 July 2009 15:12
Fine Gael TD Denis Naughten has criticised the Government over plans to change all speed limit signs on a new section of the M6, just 36 days after today's official opening.

The new motorway between Athlone and Ballinasloe was opened by Taoiseach Brian Cowen today.

Deputy Naughten said the road will be re-designated as a motorway in 36 days, on 28 August, when all its speed limit signs will have to be changed from 100km/h to 120km/h.

AdvertisementHe described the situation as yet another screw up that will cost public money and which could have been avoided.

'[The Minister's] screw up means that the dual carriageway will contain one set of speed limit signs for 36 days (100km/h) and then every single one of these signs will have to be replaced with speed limit signs of 120km/h,' Mr Naughten said.

Mr Naughten claims the Minister for Transport published a plan to redesignate the section of road last September, but only signed the required ministerial orders on 2 July.


The road has been finished five weeks ahead of schedule and on budget, with construction costs of €100m.

It is expected to take around 15 minutes off the journey time between the two towns.

www.rte.ie

New Motorway Opens on Dublin to Galway Route



M6 Athlone to Ballinasloe National Road Scheme


The M6 Athlone to Ballinasloe national road project was officially opened today (23/07/2009) by An Taoiseach, Brian Cowen. The 19kms scheme came in on time and under budget. It has been declared a motorway by the Minister for Transport, Noel Dempsey which will be enacted on the 28th of August 2009.

The scheme, which is located between the west end of the N6 Athlone Bypass and the existing N6 east of Ballinasloe, will:

Reduce off peak journey times by 6mins
Remove 12,300 vehicles from existing N6
Increase road safety for drivers
Improve traffic flow and reduce traffic congestion
Act as a stimulus for commercial and tourist activity
Improve internal road infrastructure between and with the regions
Performing the official opening An Taoiseach, Brian Cowen, said:

"The opening of this new stretch of the Dublin to Galway motorway is welcome news for all who live, work or commute along this corridor. This particular road building scheme has been completed on time and below budget at a cost of €210 million. Even in these times of very significant financial constraint the Government is continuing to invest heavily in our national motorway programme because we know that it makes good sense to do so. This new road will shorten journey times, improve competitiveness, provide safer travel and remove 12,300 vehicles per day from the existing single carriageway.”


Peter Malone, Chairman of the National Roads Authority, said:

“The completion of the Athlone to Ballinasloe national road scheme is another step forward in bringing Dublin closer to the West. It will make a huge difference to people travelling between Dublin and Galway. Travel times between the two cities will be greatly reduced, road safety improved and access between the regions considerably enhanced. Drivers can now travel a distance of 138kms on world class roadway from Dublin to Ballinasloe, 123kms being motorway and only 15kms dual carriageway. The final link, the Ballinasloe to East Galway section, is on schedule for completion early next year. Such schemes will provide a much needed boost for national industrial and commercial sectors. Tourism will also benefit as tourists from home and abroad will enjoy a safer and shorter journey with certainty of travel time.”


The scheme, which involved the construction of 12 bridges and 4 roundabouts on link roads, was funded by the Irish Government under the National Development Plan 2007-2013.

The entire 19kms of the scheme runs through county Roscommon. The main contractors were SIAC/Wills JV.





www.nra.ie

Map of scheme http://www.nra.ie/News/DownloadableDocumentation/file,16566,en.jpg

^^ I may check it out toady. will see if I can grab some pix ;)

M6 between Athlone and Ballinasloe officially opened today.:banana:


Here Odlum, your motorway. :)

Went for a drive this evening with my friend just to check out the new babe. Not too bad, they've just a kind of crash barrier as the divider, and works are still ongoing on some reeches. Overall it was a pleasant drive.

Athlone Bypass Dual-Carriageway continues as M6 after the Monksland Exit.

http://i32.tinypic.com/2r2x3y9.jpg

There, 24km to Ballinasloe which is also the first exit after Athlone.

http://i31.tinypic.com/2gw87iu.jpg

Driving on...

http://i32.tinypic.com/23s830z.jpg

http://i30.tinypic.com/v3ivyg.jpg

Ballinasloe, already! Just around 10 min for our Corolla, without breaking the law ;)

http://i26.tinypic.com/219qcu1.jpg

http://i28.tinypic.com/abs3lv.jpg

Yeah, still some job left near the Ballinasloe Exit

http://i25.tinypic.com/34sry9i.jpg

Shaping up towards Galway

http://i32.tinypic.com/11afngo.jpg

looking the opposite direction, towards Dublin.

http://i28.tinypic.com/6i4cua.jpg

Going home now..

http://i25.tinypic.com/etzjmr.jpg

http://i28.tinypic.com/10op3q9.jpg

http://i25.tinypic.com/4q3ghi.jpg

http://i30.tinypic.com/fkw5md.jpg

Entering Athlone Bypass, motorway restrictions end here

http://i31.tinypic.com/66eomc.jpg

http://i27.tinypic.com/207q9h1.jpg

http://i25.tinypic.com/2ufpljt.jpg

Nice one!:okay: Yeah it's not a long stretch and it does not even bypass Ballinasloe....it kind of just dumps the traffic there till the next part is open. The steel median makes a change from the concrete.

Thanks for the pics!:cheers:

They are still considering giving the Athlone bypass Mway status. It has alot of junctions close together though...

They are still considering giving the Athlone bypass Mway status. It has alot of junctions close together though...

Too close together, yeah. I think there'd be some 6 exit/entry points in that 15km stretch of the Bypass.

btw, the Speed Limits were still 100km/hr on the new motorway stretch.

And here is the video of the Ballinasloe- Athlone M6

JXjtnbWbuuA

Cheers for the video:) The 100km/h speed limit will only apply till August 28th. It will change to 120km/h on that date.

Looks great guys, but surprised by the metal barrier rather than the concrete; thought all the new roads were having the concrete?

Yeah, your not the only one who was supprised by that. This is the only new stretch so far to use a metal barrier (thankfully it is only 24km's). Every other motorway is using concrete (except for the wide median sections which don't require concrete). I don't understand when all new motorways here are using concrete why this contractor went for the metal. Im not saying it's a bad thing but concrete is easier to maintain and lasts longer.

The only thing I can think off is no one tapped them on the shoulder and said "btw we use concrete now".....I know in the UK, with new and online builds, they are gradually switching aswell. This stretch was short sighted IMO because ultimately it's just gonna cost more to maintain. And when the local council finds out the true cost I gaurantee you in the next few years the metal barrier here will be replaced by concrete.


On the redesignations - M18 signs going up on the Limerick to Galway route (pic Tech2 @ boards.ie)

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/m18%20new%20new/DSC02330.jpg

Some photos of the N20/M20 which will become motorway on the 28th of August. :banana:

J4 ADS 1km
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/m20/DSC02336.jpg




M20 distance sign
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/m20/DSC02338.jpg

Cheers T21:)


Upgraded N4 section Eastbound toward M50 taken by KevR on boards.ie

http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j36/Kev-Ryan/M4%20and%20N4/P1010770.jpg

http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j36/Kev-Ryan/M4%20and%20N4/P1010771.jpg

http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j36/Kev-Ryan/M4%20and%20N4/P1010772.jpg

http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j36/Kev-Ryan/M4%20and%20N4/P1010774.jpg

http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j36/Kev-Ryan/M4%20and%20N4/P1010775.jpg

http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j36/Kev-Ryan/M4%20and%20N4/P1010776.jpg

http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j36/Kev-Ryan/M4%20and%20N4/P1010777.jpg

Thanks to KevR, Tech2, Furet etc....:)

I love that new stretch of the N4, but I'll never understand why Palmerstown is always referred to as 'Palmerston' on road signs. There's great progress on the motorway network lately. Anyone know what's next to open?

I think the next stretch could be Nenagh to Limerick on the M7 in October but im not 100% on that.

I think the next stretch could be Nenagh to Limerick on the M7 in October but im not 100% on that.

There was a thread on boards dedicated to this as well on the next scheme to open. Taking the N25 out of it as it is not part of the motorway network it will be either one of the M9 sections or M7 Nenagh-Limerick .

I'm hoping its the latter that will be next

Btw Kev takes some massive size photos that never fit the pc screen :nuts::lol:

Heres a photo I took of the Limerick Bypass Phase 2. This part is very close to the Dock rd interchange and its really starting to pick up now. The overbridge in the background is the Crescent overbridge right beside the Crescent shopping centre.

Eastbound
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/DSC02324.jpg

Thanks for that T21

Redesignation progress of signage on the M8 into Cork by Furet.


http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt51/sclearyodonnell/DSCF9877.jpg

http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt51/sclearyodonnell/DSCF9878.jpg

http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt51/sclearyodonnell/DSCF9879.jpg

http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt51/sclearyodonnell/DSCF9880.jpg



And M18 resigning taken by Chris.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v458/THE_Chris533976/CIMG1103.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v458/THE_Chris533976/CIMG1104.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v458/THE_Chris533976/CIMG1105.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v458/THE_Chris533976/CIMG1106.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v458/THE_Chris533976/CIMG1107.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v458/THE_Chris533976/CIMG1108.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v458/THE_Chris533976/CIMG1109.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v458/THE_Chris533976/CIMG1110.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v458/THE_Chris533976/CIMG1111.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v458/THE_Chris533976/CIMG1112.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v458/THE_Chris533976/CIMG1113.jpg


He also got snaps of M20 resigning

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v458/THE_Chris533976/CIMG1115.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v458/THE_Chris533976/CIMG1116.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v458/THE_Chris533976/CIMG1117.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v458/THE_Chris533976/CIMG1118.jpg

M20 new sign taken by Tech2/T21 on Boards.ie before solid yellow line painted...

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/m20/DSC02339.jpg

M7 Nenagh-Limerick motorway. Its looking good to be finished this year.


Looking south of the R504 overbridge
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/M7%20nenagh%20August/DSC02341.jpg



Looking north of the R504 overbridge
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/M7%20nenagh%20August/DSC02342.jpg[/QUOTE]

Will definately open this year on that evidence. Thankfully no armco in the middle.

http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt51/sclearyodonnell/viaduct.jpg


Blackwater Viaduct near Fermoy on the M8 taken by Furet.

^^ beautiful shot taken by Furet there

M7/M8 PPP Motorway Scheme

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/m7m8.jpg

Looking east J21

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/DSC02522.jpg

Looking west from J21 (Nenagh - Castletown scheme)

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/DSC02523.jpg

J21 link road

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/DSC02525.jpg

Looking south from L road to Clough (M8)

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/DSC02528.jpg

Looking north toward R434 overbridge from Clough link road (M8)

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/DSC02529.jpg

These two from the L1595 road (M7)

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/DSC02531.jpg

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/DSC02532.jpg

More southbound M18 signage

J12 1km ADS

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/m18%20new%20new/DSC02542.jpg

J12 Gantry

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/m18%20new%20new/DSC02543.jpg

M18 Distance Signage

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/m18%20new%20new/DSC02544-1.jpg

J9 1km ADS

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/m18%20new%20new/DSC02545.jpg

Edit: Yes I should have cleaned my windscreen before I took them :D

Appart from the wind screen - great snaps - thanks! :)


2 pics taken by Tech2


M7 J29

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/m20/DSC02559.jpg

(solid yellow line about to be painted)

And another picture.....somewhere

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/m20/DSC02557.jpg

And this picture by Wild Bill of J17 on the M11 on Boards.ie

http://i959.photobucket.com/albums/ae73/WildBillHiccup/IMG_0600.jpg

National roads reclassified as motorways
Friday, 28 August 2009 16:14

http://dynimg.rte.ie/00028d1e10dr.jpg

Sections of ten national roads will today be designated as new motorways.

The Department of Transport made the changes following a recommendation from the National Roads Authority.

Minister for Transport Noel Dempsey said: 'The purpose of this move is to enhance and protect the national motorway network.'

The speed limits on these roads will be increased from 100 to 120km/h, which will mean that learner drivers, certain types of agricultural vehicles and motorbikes will be banned.

Motorway status will be applied to 294km of national roads.

The sections reclassified include the N2 between Kilshane and Ashbourne, the N4 between Kinnegad and McNead's Bridge and the N6 between Athlone and Galway.

However, the section from Ballinasloe to Galway is one of a number of roads under construction.

Parts of the N3, N8, N9, N11, N18 and N20 are also covered, along with the Limerick Southern Ring Road.

Click here (http://www.transport.ie/pressRelease.aspx?Id=124) for more on the reclassified routes.

Conor Faughnan of AA Roadwatch says the change is a good thing and that it will make the roads safer as certain classes of vehicle cannot go on them.

Story from RTÉ News:
http://www.rte.ie/news/2009/0828/roads.html

:cheers:

Hey, I assume when they say "The speed limits on these roads will be increased from 100 to 120km/h, which will mean that learner drivers, certain types of agricultural vehicles and motorbikes will be banned." what they actually mean is certain types of agricultural vehicles and certain types of motorbikes (presumably scooters and other low capacity engine bikes)? And not that all motorbikes are banned on Irish Motorways?

Hey, I assume when they say "The speed limits on these roads will be increased from 100 to 120km/h, which will mean that learner drivers, certain types of agricultural vehicles and motorbikes will be banned." what they actually mean is certain types of agricultural vehicles and certain types of motorbikes (presumably scooters and other low capacity engine bikes)? And not that all motorbikes are banned on Irish Motorways?

Yes motorbikes are allowed, as long as they go over 50km/h!

M50 traffic management have suddenly discovered message boards and are posting updates


Tonight we will implement a new layout on the M1 NB from the Port Tunnel to the M1/M50 Interchange. This involves reducing the running lanes from 3 to 2 for a period of 2 weeks. Traffic in the tunnel will be encouraged to use lane 2 as once out of the tunnel, the traffic from Whitehall will have to merge with lane 1 of the tunnel and also the Coolock NB On Ramp. Once the new lanes are constructed, traffic will then be diverted into the median and the procedure will be repeated along the verge.

On Thursday night we will erect gantry's on the M1 SB from the Airport to the M1/M50 Interchange. There are currently parked on trailers in the verge. This will involve rolling blocks (20km/h) to give a gap in traffic to lift the gantry's. Delays will be kept to a minimun, 5-10 minutes.

Also on Thursday night at 2am we will be taking down 2 sets of 3 cables that cross both the M50 and N2. This will envolve a full closure on both roads for the ESB to cut the cables. Once they are pulled clear, traffic will be allowed run again. The ESB will take a maximum of 10 minutes for each cable.

The N3 SB Off Ramp has also been extended further towards Finglas for stacking room, but as there are unfinished works in the verge it cannot be extended any further until later this week

M50 D&C Traffic Management

M50 at Ballymun (M50 traffic management) looking eastbound.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2610/3910126438_3caf14ec5b_b.jpg

Looking westbound near J5

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3260/3910124424_8c9288633d_b.jpg

Construction is moving fast at this stage.

Some pictures of the M8 posted by Furet

Some curious advertising on the Cashel to Cullahill scheme:
http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt51/sclearyodonnell/DSCF9931.jpg

New County signage on the Cashel-Mitchelstown scheme:
http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt51/sclearyodonnell/DSCF9910.jpg
http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt51/sclearyodonnell/DSCF9908.jpg

Former 'Garda Only' bay is now a parking area, close to junction 12:
http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt51/sclearyodonnell/DSCF9909.jpg

New delineation on the Glanmire Bypass:
http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt51/sclearyodonnell/DSCF9900.jpg
http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt51/sclearyodonnell/DSCF9901.jpg

The Knockmealdowns west of New Inn, between junctions 10 and 9, southbound:
http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt51/sclearyodonnell/DSCF9949.jpg

http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt51/sclearyodonnell/DSCF9948.jpg

http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt51/sclearyodonnell/DSCF9946.jpg"

Pics by Ramiere (boards.ie) - shows the tie in today U/C of the new M9 and the existing M9 on the Dublin Waterford route.


taken from the n78 bridge over the m9 looking south over the kilcullen tie in.

laying down the mr t mac.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3516/3953262232_6dd100e4d7_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/rameire/3953262232/)

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3420/3952487879_472f9e69ce_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/rameire/3952487879/)

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2554/3952489357_2b9a7470de_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/rameire/3952489357/)

Some pics of the M7 U/C. Scheduled to be finished later this year

Alright some updates:

Overbridge south of daly's cross

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/M7%2028th%20sept/DSC02583.jpg

The boggy section is still in trouble

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/M7%2028th%20sept/DSC02580.jpg

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/M7%2028th%20sept/DSC02581.jpg

A bit further up from it:
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/M7%2028th%20sept/DSC02582.jpg

View from the overbridge looking south:
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/M7%2028th%20sept/DSC02585.jpg

Looking north:
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/M7%2028th%20sept/DSC02584.jpg

Another pic of the overbridge which a few posters wanted to know how it was designed
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/M7%2028th%20sept/DSC02579.jpg

Approaching the newport interchange which has not been posted up before:
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/M7%2028th%20sept/DSC02587.jpg

The northbound ramp:
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/M7%2028th%20sept/DSC02586.jpg

Last but not least there is some wearing course laid on one carriageway below the R504 overbridge:

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/M7%2028th%20sept/DSC02578.jpg

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt319/transport21/M7%2028th%20sept/DSC02577.jpg

Certainly making progress on the m50, red cow from dubdade YT

ZUIjbp9k_8Y

The N7 junction is finished I think and it is an enourmous improvement. The traffic flows seemlessly through the junction though it's layout can sometimes be confusing.


If you are interested in seeing the new bridge on the Waterford Bypass:



Public will get chance to walk across new bridge



Public will get chance to walk across new bridge
By Gillian O’Neill

A ONCE in a lifetime chance to walk across Waterford’s iconic new bridge will be given to the people of the city and surrounding areas in advance of the opening of the €530m bypass in October.

A special Community Day when all residents of Waterford and South Kilkenny will be invited to come and walk the bridge is being planned as the final works on the bridge and adjoining road networks continue on schedule.


Project Liaison Officer, Tom Hartery, said a date for the official opening of the bypass and bridge had yet to be confirmed but said work was progressing well.


“I would say that on the Kilmeaden side, the work is around 98% complete. They are over there at the moment putting up road signage and crash barriers and that sort of thing but the road and the toll plaza are finished,” he confirmed.


“We are mainly concentrating on the Grannagh side at the moment which is where most of the remaining work needs to be done. The span of the bridge is now complete and they are currently waterproofing the deck and putting in services. Everything is on track and I don’t expect any delays in completing the project,” he added.


While October’s official opening will be an NRA function, Mr. Hartery said the Community Day would be a fantastic opportunity for people to come and see the bridge and walk from one side to the other before it opens for business.



“It will be a good chance for members of the public who have been inconvenienced and discommoded for the past three and half years to come along and see the end result first hand. This will be the only opportunity for pedestrians to have access to the bridge before it opens to vehicular traffic and we’ll be hoping everyone will come along and help mark a great event for Waterford,” he stated.


Meanwhile, the tolls for motorists planning on using the bridge were published this week by the National Roads Authority (NRA). The charge for motorbikes will be •1.00 while cars will be subject to a fee of •1.90. The cost for buses will be •3.40 while the tolls for vans and lorries range from •3.40 to •6.10 depending on size.


Mr. Hartery emphasised that road users would benefit from the extensive new road network attached to bridge but would only incur a charge on using the bridge.


“For instance, people will now be able to take the new road from the roundabout out beyond Slieverue and travel straight out on to the Dublin Road and they won’t incur any toll. For those who are crossing the river, there is still an alternative option of the existing bridge into the city centre. This is now also a much improved alternative as a result of the new road networks which are in place,” he stated.

Another M50 upgrade picture. This one by csd over on SABRE. This one is taken at the junction with the M1. You can see, just about, the flyover for M50N to M50/M1S under construction to the left of the picture.

http://www.sabre-roads.org.uk/gallery/albums/userpics/10077/10_M50_M1_junc.jpg


The new slips could open as early as the end of this month.

..

Protests staged on new M6 route
Friday, 16 October 2009 20:46
Farmers and householders in Co Galway have been staging a series of protests close to the route of the new M6 motorway.

Several hundred farmers and householders in Co Galway have been taking part in a series of protests.

The group are protesting about damage they claim is being done during the construction of the final section of the new M6 motorway between Dublin and Galway.

One group of demonstrators at Cappataggle, near Ballinasloe, were prevented from entering the motorway site this morning.

The M6 action group finally confronted officials of the joint Spanish- Irish construction company which is building the news motorway.

The group had 4 hours of talks with the representatives and said it was very pleased with the news.

The motorway construction consortium told protestors tonight that it will begin to tackle the issues they raised.

The consortium said it will begin a programme of repair work on the damage which has been caused.

The Company will appoint a project manager and two engineers to oversee this work and it will get under way in the coming weeks

Bypass to cut 12,000 cars daily from city quays





The new bridge over the river Suir in Waterford. It is part of the Waterford city bypass, which has been developed at a cost of more than €500 million, and is expected to cut 20 minutes off the journey on the N25 between Cork to the port of Rosslare, via Waterford.

IRELAND’S LONGEST cable-stayed bridge, which spans the river Suir, will be open to pedestrians and sightseers three hours before access is allowed to motorised traffic on Monday.

The new bridge, which is similar in design but, at 465m, is 81m longer than the Boyne Bridge on the M1, is part of the Waterford city bypass, which has been developed at a cost of more than €500 million. It is opening 10 months ahead of schedule.

The bridge is a “distinctive and impressive structure”, according to the National Roads Authority, with “a light and elegant design complementing the river and the surrounding landscape”.

Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism Martin Cullen and chairman of the National Roads Authority Peter Malone will officially open the bridge at 12.30pm on Monday. Invitees will be taken there by bus.

Following the ceremony, sightseers and pedestrians will be free to wander the length and breadth of the bridge, taking in views of Waterford city and the surrounding countryside, before motorised traffic is allowed across it from about 4.30pm.

The bridge is part of the 23km Waterford city toll-bypass. Charges for using the route are to be €1 for motorbikes, €1.90 for cars and €3.40 for buses and coaches. Goods vehicles pay a maximum of €6.10.

It is expected that 14,000 vehicles will use the route each day, reducing volumes in Waterford city by about 30 per cent and removing up to 12,000 vehicles a day from the city’s quays.

The new route begins at Kilmeadan to the west of the city and crosses the River Suir to tie in with the existing N25 route to Rosslare, Waterford and Cork to the east, at Slieverue village.

The bypass includes a new connection, known as the Western Link, to industrial areas to the southwest of Waterford city. It also links to the M9/N9 and N24 to the Grannagh Interchange.

The route is expected to cut 20 minutes off the journey on the N25 between Cork to the port of Rosslare, via Waterford city. The current N25 route passes along the congested city quays and crosses the River Suir over Rice Bridge.

During work on the scheme, a significant archaeological site was discovered at Woodstown. It was declared a national monument, which necessitated a revised alignment on a section of the route.

The Woodstown site appears to represent a defended riverside settlement, with associated industrial activity.

The artefacts and radiocarbon dating indicate the site likely dates back to the early medieval period, between the 9th and 12th centuries AD.

This article appears in the print edition of the Irish Times

:banana:

A short stretch of the M3 motorway (a few km's) opened yesterday. The Dunboyne bypass joined the already redesignated M3 at Clonee.

M9 motorway from Carlow to Waterford. Pics from Southern end by Alpha2zero on Boards.ie.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2778/4041824181_95f31759a3.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2761/4042572492_78183aae8c.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2622/4041830537_5cf47aed05.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3533/4042578852_8350319a3e.jpg


Whilst no opening date is confirmed the speculation is that the road will open on the 15th of December. The scheme length is 64km.

Works at M50/M1 Interchange (Junction 3).

M50 NB to, eh, M50 SB - two new freeflow slips.

Pic M50 Traffic Management.

http://www.sabre-roads.org.uk/gallery/albums/userpics/11281/normal_M50_new_freeflows.jpg


http://www.sabre-roads.org.uk/gallery/albums/userpics/11281/normal_M50_west.jpg

Taken from M1 SB - M50 SB freeflow ramp. Pic M50 Traffic Management.

http://www.sabre-roads.org.uk/gallery/albums/userpics/11281/normal_M50_North.jpg

Two flyovers nearly ready for November openings...Pic M50 Traffic Mgt.

Can't wait for these improvements to be finished. Sick of the tail backs at this junction.

I dont think people are realising the importance of our motorway project.

Our motorway network is not testament to what we've achivied(?) during the tiger years

Video of recently opened Mitchelstown - Fermoy motorway on the new M8 Dublin - Cork Route (Southbound)

FM43ETxx0iw

I do like those pre-exit overarching signs being rolled out across the new motorways...very much like those in France too

Is it me, or does the hard shoulder on this (and the other motorways) look very narrow? Could a truck stop on it without being on the inside lane? If not don't you think this is a bit of a design flaw??

Is it me, or does the hard shoulder on this (and the other motorways) look very narrow? Could a truck stop on it without being on the inside lane? If not don't you think this is a bit of a design flaw??

It's just the angle I think. Hard shoulders have to be the same width as a running lane. Certainly I have not heard of hard shoulders being narrow.

The hard shoulder is actually only 3/4 width but only skinny trucks ever break down. There's no known incident of a normal width truck breakdown.

There's no known incident of a normal width truck breakdown.

Ever?

Find that rather hard to believe.

The hard shoulder is actually only 3/4 width but only skinny trucks ever break down. There's no known incident of a normal width truck breakdown.

There is video on Youtube by Polish trucker of his truck having blown up tire somewhere on Irish motorway.

^^ ok now lads, above was a joke ;) They're built to lane width on most motorways I think.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hard_shoulder#Republic_of_Ireland

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e4/IMG_3335.jpg/800px-IMG_3335.jpg

...maybe some sarcasm tags :P

^^ ok now lads, above was a joke ;) They're built to lane width on most motorways I think.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hard_shoulder#Republic_of_Ireland

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e4/IMG_3335.jpg/800px-IMG_3335.jpg

...maybe some sarcasm tags :P

Very American-looking overhead gantries.

There is video on Youtube by Polish trucker of his truck having blown up tire somewhere on Irish motorway.

true. but it was a skinny truck. screen resolution was askew.

the finish looks shit tbh. anybody noticed how bad the surface is on the M1 now...

the finish looks shit tbh. anybody noticed how bad the surface is on the M1 now...



Which part? I was on it the other day and I did'nt notice any problem with the surface. The section at Dunleer is the the oldest so I persume thats the part you mean?

Early completion for M4/M6

TIM O'BRIEN


THE FIRST of the State's new inter-urban motorways, the 194km M4/M6 route from Dublin to Galway, has been completed six months ahead of deadline and is on schedule to open before the end of the year.

The final stretch of the €427m motorway, which runs 56km from Ballinasloe to Galway, was finished in the last 10 days and notices placed in national newspapers this week announced the toll scheme on the route would go live from December 13.
The road is the first of the inter-urban motorways between Dublin and regional cities, announced by former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern in 1999, to be completed. Motorways between Dublin and Limerick, Cork and Waterford are scheduled to open next year.

The development of the M4/M6 brings Dublin's M50 within two hours of the outskirts of Galway city, when travelling at 100km/h.

A toll plaza close to Cappataggle village will charge €1.90 for cars to use the Galway to Ballinasloe road. This is the second toll on the Dublin to Galway route after the M4 toll at Enfield. The total cost for a car on the Dublin to Galway stretch will be €4.80.

A spokesman for the National Roads Authority confirmed construction was completed but refused to confirm a formal date for the opening, saying safety certification and a formal hand-over would take a few weeks.

Irish Times

Map of scheme on this document

http://www.transport.ie/upload/general/10978-0908_2ND_TRANCHE_N6_LEAFLET-6.PDF

The M1 gets worse the closer you get to NI. Been damaged by loyalist bangers.

The completion of the M4/M6 is brilliant news for Galway; all they need now is the Galway orbital route and the M17 to just north of Tuam finished.

I look forward to the inter-urban network being complete next year. :D

The M1 gets worse the closer you get to NI. Been damaged by loyalist bangers.

Nice to see the educated minds coming on to comment.

Ah, another catch to be stuffed for exhibition purposes. Though only a tiddler this time.

The section at Dunleer is the the oldest so I persume thats the part you mean?

Nearer to the airport its a bit rough although it does get better as you travel north. the bit around Drogheda is a excellent

Nearer to the airport its a bit rough although it does get better as you travel north. the bit around Drogheda is a excellent

M50 upgrade works? They will be resurfacing the sections effected on the M1 and adding an extra auxillary lane.


The flyover for M50N - M50S(old M1)is due to open Thursday so this should be a massive improvement




http://m50.ie/uploads/progress/PU11091.pdf


http://m50.ie/uploads/progress/PU11092.pdf

Pics of M9 tie in with existing Motorway at Kilcullen (J2) by Rameire on boards.ie






http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4004/4160468496_f010a4d7a4.jpg


http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2651/4159711335_09c8014523.jpg


http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2801/4160463404_e0d8775fde_b.jpg


http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2697/4159697373_e23328077d_b.jpg


The scheme, which is 28km long, should open in the next 2 weeks.

Great pics & the new signage is looking good.

Have more recent stretches of the new routes in say the last 2 years or so been treated with a different type of surfacing? Older motorways in the country had a coarser and louder treatment which seemed a bit worn. The new ones, like above & the M50 seem to be using a denser/smoother type of treatment similar to found in neighbouring countries.

Ah, another catch to be stuffed for exhibition purposes. Though only a tiddler this time.
Stop baiting people.

..

Port Tunnel charges to drop


TIM O'BRIEN

TOLL PRICES in Dublin Port Tunnel are to drop in the first major review of policy and charges since the tunnel opened three years ago this month.

The NRA announced yesterday that it is to scrap the current three-tier pricing system which costs as much as €12 per single journey, and replace it with a two-tier charging system with a maximum charge of €10, and a minimum of €3.

The €10 charge will apply at morning peak times into the city and at evening peak times out of the city. At all other times the charge is to be €3.

The changes are to come into operation on January 2nd, 2010. The decision to reduce charges was taken by the board of the NRA yesterday. The board said the changes were brought about by a number of significant traffic improvements between the city and the M50.

These include the opening within weeks of the new “freeflow” M1/M50 junction, the completion of a third lane on much of the M50 and this week’s opening of the Samuel Beckett bridge in Dublin city centre.

The move is a major change in policy in relation to Dublin Port Tunnel, as it was initially intended to penalise car usage, in favour of restricting access to lorries travelling between the Port and the M50. While the tariffs have been altered before, the current reduction is a clear signal to private motorists that they are now wanted in the tunnel.

Irish Times

Stop baiting people.

Angling for an argument?

Great pics & the new signage is looking good.

Have more recent stretches of the new routes in say the last 2 years or so been treated with a different type of surfacing? Older motorways in the country had a coarser and louder treatment which seemed a bit worn. The new ones, like above & the M50 seem to be using a denser/smoother type of treatment similar to found in neighbouring countries.



I have noticed new builds have a discernably smoother surface to older new builds. I don't know if regulations have changed. Perhaps they have. Anyway good news for Galway



Ballinasloe to Galway M6 to open on Friday
ATHLONE ADVERTISER, DECEMBER 11, 2009.
By Triona Doherty
The final 56 kilometres of the M6 motorway, linking Ballinasloe and Galway, is to open next Friday, six months ahead of schedule.

The stretch of road is expected to be open to motorists by the afternoon of next Friday December 18, following the official opening ceremony by Minister for Transport Noel Dempsey that morning.

Once the route is open, motorists will be able to travel from Athlone to Galway in approximately one hour, while it is estimated that journey times between Dublin and Galway will be slashed to two hours.

Originally planned to come on stream in mid-2010, the completion of the country’s newest stretch of motorway has come in approximately six months ahead of schedule.

However members of the public were treated to a sneak preview of the route in recent weeks, when one carriageway was opened to facilitate motorists during the flooding.

“The contractor, Icon, has done a great job. It is a tribute to the contractor and the NRA that the road is to open ahead of schedule, and that it was able to open to motorists in recent weeks,” said a spokesperson for the NRA.

The M6 Galway to Ballinasloe scheme consists of 56 kilometres of dual carriageway between Galway and Ballinasloe, a 7km link to the Loughrea bypass, 32km of side roads, and five grade separated junctions at Glennascaul, Athenry, Carrowkeel, West Ballinasloe, and Tulrush.

Two toll charges will now apply to motorists travelling to and from Dublin, with a charge of €1.90 at a toll plaza at Cappataggle near Ballinasloe, on top of the existing charge of €2.90 at Kinnegad.

Stop baiting people.

He's failed miserably and in a rather tragic fashion.