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N4 - Downs Grade Separation

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    #92
    Stonewolf
    Registered Users Posts: 1,132 ✭✭✭Stonewolf


    I'm gonna be rolling through on Saturday, what's the state of the place at the moment?


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    #93
    stoneill
    Registered Users Posts: 3,609 ✭✭✭stoneill


    I was the second car on the newly opened junction to Flynn fuel!

    There's my claim to fame - second!


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    #94
    spacetweek
    Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 5,061 Mod ✭✭✭✭spacetweek


    This was meant to all be complete by Dec 2012 but when I rolled through last week there was still plenty going on. Surfacing through the junction and coned-off sections before and after, seemingly waiting for resurfacing work to start. Photos.

    Anyone any idea when it'll finish?


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    #95
    moyners
    Registered Users Posts: 315 ✭✭moyners


    They've been resurfacing like crazy all week, which is great because I was half afraid they'd just lay new surface where they'd removed the central median. They had most of one side done Saturday afternoon and starting on the other side. Can't see it taking much longer.


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    #96
    westtip
    Registered Users Posts: 4,282 ✭✭✭westtip


    moyners wrote: »
    They've been resurfacing like crazy all week, which is great because I was half afraid they'd just lay new surface where they'd removed the central median. They had most of one side done Saturday afternoon and starting on the other side. Can't see it taking much longer.

    Well its taken long enough!


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    #97
    cml387
    Registered Users Posts: 8,436 ✭✭✭cml387


    Now completed, and very pretty it is, but why is the 60kph still in place from Coralstown to Mullingar? Admittedly I only was up at the weekend, but there is no sign of any works being carried out.


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    #98
    doolox
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,350 ✭✭✭doolox


    Complete and utter madness since there are no workers there at the weekend and most drivers know this and most do 90-100 kph on both lanes when there is no reason to do less.

    Sometimes there are traffic corps there at the weekend protecting the non-existent road workers from certain death.........

    It could also be a cash-strapped nation looking for easy money.

    In a similar way to the electronic lights on school zones which show up 30kph at school start and lunch and end times, there could be time based limits with higher limits allowed at weekends and keep the lower limits for when actual road works are being done.


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    #99
    veryangryman
    Registered Users Posts: 5,579 ✭✭✭veryangryman


    JupiterKid wrote: »
    No, I would be very against redesignating the Mullingar Bypass as motorway. There's no alternate route and secondly as I've opined before, there is more than enough motorway already now in Ireland (excepting the M20 which has yet to start construction).

    Two daft reasons no offence.

    Go through town is one alternative. That's the only way past naas and portlaoise which have motorways.

    As for having enough already are you having a laugh. M20 and M18 are badly needed in full and that's before I worry about my own interests.


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    #100
    munchkin_utd
    Registered Users Posts: 7,886 ✭✭✭munchkin_utd


    cml387 wrote: »
    Now completed, and very pretty it is, but why is the 60kph still in place from Coralstown to Mullingar? Admittedly I only was up at the weekend, but there is no sign of any works being carried out.
    the lower layers of tarmac can be exceptionally slippery and were a contributing cause to the schoolbus accident that killed 5 schoolgirls in Navan a number of years back.
    In the official inquest its stated that the driver is potering along merilly and then is SUDDENLY out of control like he hit a patch of ice. Lack of ABS was blamed for the cause of death but if the bus wasnt all over the place beacuse of the slippy temporary surface it wouldnt need it in the first place to recover the situation.

    the only report I can find that menions the road surface directly is here, but it stuck in my mind as it was mentioned on the radio a while back when folks were complaining of this problem of works being signed but no obvious works going on.
    http://www.thefreelibrary.com/COUNCIL+SLAMMED+IN+BUS+CRASH+PROBE%3B+Report+blames+'incorrect...-a0141156151


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    #101
    conor2469
    Registered Users Posts: 523 ✭✭✭conor2469


    munchkin_utd wrote: »
    ...the slippy temporary surface....

    but the N4 at Coralstown doesn't have a temporary surface, AFAIK it has the final finished surface laid down.


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    #102
    JupiterKid
    Moderators, Social & Fun Moderators Posts: 12,759 Mod ✭✭✭✭JupiterKid


    veryangryman wrote: »
    Two daft reasons no offence.

    Go through town is one alternative. That's the only way past naas and portlaoise which have motorways.

    As for having enough already are you having a laugh. M20 and M18 are badly needed in full and that's before I worry about my own interests.


    If you read my post you would have noted that I mentioned "excepting the M20" I'm also presuming that the M17/18 project which is in the pipeline is also going ahead.

    After the M20 is built, I see no need for any more motorways. Widening of some existing motorway stretches yes, upgrading some junctions yes, high quality DCs on sections of the network certainly, but not motorway. Some would argue that the M2, M9 and M3 are examples of overbuilding. Ireland now has far more motorway per head of population than the UK and has gone from having one of the lowest to one of the highest in Europe in just the past decade.


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    #103
    spacetweek
    Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 5,061 Mod ✭✭✭✭spacetweek


    I don't see any official announcement that this is completed, anyone got one?


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    #104
    spacetweek
    Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 5,061 Mod ✭✭✭✭spacetweek


    Got this mail from the NRA.


    Dear Mr. <Spacetweek>

    Thank you for your email of 17 July 2013 regarding the above.

    At the outset I should explain that the implementation of individual road improvement schemes is normally undertaken by local authorities in their roles as road authorities for their respective administrative areas. In the case of the N4 Downs Grade Separation scheme, the scheme is being implemented by Westmeath County Council.

    I understand that a Road Safety Audit was recently carried out on the scheme, and the contractor (SIAC Construction Ltd.) is still dealing with the outcome of the safety audit and other outstanding issues. This should be complete in the very near future.

    I hope this is of assistance to you.

    Kind regards
    Olivia Morgan


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    #105
    marno21
    Moderators, Entertainment Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 14,410 Mod ✭✭✭✭marno21


    Is it tim to revisit this and bring it up to full motorway standard especially with further dualling planned north of Mullingar?

    https://www.rte.ie/news/leinster/2018/0527/966363-crash-n4/


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    #106
    L1011
    Registered Users Posts: 68,892 ✭✭✭✭L1011


    Based on the solid line, that was a motorway section of the road already

    The Roadhouse would probably have to be closed and some parallel access roads built to allow it anyway - not the cheapest.


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    #107
    Accidentally
    Registered Users Posts: 261 ✭✭Accidentally


    It's in the twilight zone like the N6 Athlone bypass. It's safer than an awful lot of the N4/N5, so is there really any priority compared to the rest?


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    #108
    roadmaster
    Registered Users Posts: 3,759 ✭✭✭roadmaster


    marno21 wrote: »
    Is it tim to revisit this and bring it up to full motorway standard especially with further dualling planned north of Mullingar?

    https://www.rte.ie/news/leinster/2018/0527/966363-crash-n4/

    We have talked about this before. It can be done but it would be costly, but if put in with the longford mullingar contract value for money could be got


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    #109
    roadmaster
    Registered Users Posts: 3,759 ✭✭✭roadmaster


    L1011 wrote: »
    Based on the solid line, that was a motorway section of the road already

    The Roadhouse would probably have to be closed and some parallel access roads built to allow it anyway - not the cheapest.

    I would say you would have to pay the roadhouse enoght money to shut permently as to make access work you would have to drive to the downs and back. At that stage most people would keep driving. The two topaz stations would need proper entrances. On the southside one they could exit via the old n4 .


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    #110
    Zerbini Blewitt
    Closed Accounts Posts: 171 ✭✭Zerbini Blewitt


    It wasn’t a road quality issue anyway (report).
    A 39-year-old man, who died following a three-car collision on the N4 dual carriageway near Mullingar, was driving on the wrong side of the road, gardaí said.
    Gardaí received reports car was travelling in the wrong direction for nearly 50km, and at speed of over 120km/h before the crash.


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    #111
    roadmaster
    Registered Users Posts: 3,759 ✭✭✭roadmaster


    if an upgrade of this section of the N4 was to take place you could build a overbridge at the end of the L1703 (old N4) across to the northern side of the N4. Then run a new road parallel to the N4 and connect it up at the end of the R156 where the old Downs Junction was. The only question is do you go around the Roadhouse or through it?


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    #112
    CrabRevolution
    Registered Users Posts: 2,860 ✭✭✭CrabRevolution


    Zerbini Blewitt wrote: »
    It wasn’t a road quality issue anyway (report).


    I'm curious as to how he could have driven in the wrong direction for 50km.

    Assuming the whole 50km was along the N4/M4 it would involve either driving the wrong way around a roundabout or a hairpin turn off the roundabout onto the off ramp of the (Eastbound) M4 lane. He'd also have had to drive through the Enfield Toll the wrong direction, which you'd imagine is impossible.

    Unless he was driving on the M6 and got onto the M4? Or was driving the wrong way down national roads before turning on to the dual carriage way?


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    #113
    roadmaster
    Registered Users Posts: 3,759 ✭✭✭roadmaster


    CrabRevolution wrote: »
    I'm curious as to how he could have driven in the wrong direction for 50km.

    Assuming the whole 50km was along the N4/M4 it would involve either driving the wrong way around a roundabout or a hairpin turn off the roundabout onto the off ramp of the (Eastbound) M4 lane. He'd also have had to drive through the Enfield Toll the wrong direction, which you'd imagine is impossible.

    Unless he was driving on the M6 and got onto the M4? Or was driving the wrong way down national roads before turning on to the dual carriage way?

    Apperently the car came from the applegreen on the M4. Other media revised the distance down to 30km so that would roughly tie in on distance


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    #114
    veryangryman
    Registered Users Posts: 5,579 ✭✭✭veryangryman


    The hicks love to exxagerate things in the midlands.

    I saw a place in Ballymahon for sale advertised as "5 minutes drive from Athlone".


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    #115
    SeanW
    Registered Users Posts: 8,827 ✭✭✭SeanW


    veryangryman wrote: »
    The hicks love to exxagerate things in the midlands.

    I saw a place in Ballymahon for sale advertised as "5 minutes drive from Athlone".
    Candidate for Moronic Post of the Century right there.

    Because literally no-one outside the Irish Midlands has ever over-hyped something? No-one else on the planet has ever oversold anything in all of human history? Just one real estate advertiser overhyped their property and that means that literally all Midlands people are gob****e hicks who love to exaggerate everything. :confused:

    By the way, if you're going to call people hicks, it might be a good idea to learn how to spell. It's "exaggerate". One x. Two gs.


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    #116
    veryangryman
    Registered Users Posts: 5,579 ✭✭✭veryangryman


    I like to focus on areas i'm familiar with so that i can fact check. Of course it goes on elsewhere, but i have many more examples that I'll share if your interested.

    Spelling mistake aside, clear lies like "i'd be quicker going to ballinasloe or roscommon" when moaners mention the roadworks boil my piss and introduce the need to refer to them as hicks.


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