New link means drivers can bypass two towns

Fool 5000

New link means drivers can bypass two towns

A new bypass has opened in Donegal and will take around 9,000 vehicles a day from two towns.

The bypass will serve both Bundoran and Ballyshannon. It forms part of the N15 Sligo-Lifford road upgrade and consists of 11km of single carriageway.

nordydan

This is a great development for the region. Both towns can be a nightmare to get through. Hopefully the Ballybofey/Stranrolar Bypass will progress soon and eliminate the last major bottleck in Co Donegal

Maskhadov

any links?

nordydan

http://nra.ie/PublicationsResources/Links/#d.en.603

you'll get some on this page

muffler

nordydan wrote:

This is a great development for the region. Both towns can be a nightmare to get through. Hopefully the Ballybofey/Stranrolar Bypass will progress soon and eliminate the last major bottleck in Co Donegal

The last we heard locally is that it could be 2010 before its considered again.

Theres been a major problem and an even bigger row about the cost of the project. Apparantly the land cost has doubled in the last year or so from 12 million to 24 million

nordydan

muffler wrote:

The last we heard locally is that it could be 2010 before its considered again.

Theres been a major problem and an even bigger row about the cost of the project. Apparantly the land cost has doubled in the last year or so from 12 million to 24 million

That is a shame as there appears to be 3 major projects in that part of donegal, the b'bofey/stran bypass, n14 to strabane with new bridge and lifford stranorlar in that order so i suppose the rest will also be delayed. Donegal badly needs these upgrades

muffler

nordydan wrote:

That is a shame as there appears to be 3 major projects in that part of donegal, the b'bofey/stran bypass, n14 to strabane with new bridge and lifford stranorlar in that order so i suppose the rest will also be delayed. Donegal badly needs these upgrades

You are spot on. The twins town bypass was the priority project ahead of the other 2 but what happens now nobody knows.

The Manor to Lifford road could possibly go ahead before the bypass as part of that project as you rightly mentioned is a new bridge above Lifford with the route then connecting up with the Strabane bypass. That type of project could receive more funding from EC funds as it will be a cross-border initiative

dowlingm

with McDaid retiring I bet Donegal won't be short of road cash until the election.

nordydan

muffler wrote:

You are spot on. The twins town bypass was the priority project ahead of the other 2 but what happens now nobody knows.

The Manor to Lifford road could possibly go ahead before the bypass as part of that project as you rightly mentioned is a new bridge above Lifford with the route then connecting up with the Strabane bypass. That type of project could receive more funding from EC funds as it will be a cross-border initiative

there was specific mention on the donegal coco website re funding problems for the n15 lifford stranorlar project which aint a good omen as it can be a shocking road. I was under the impression that the bridge would be built south of the existing one so that dublin-letterkenny traffic could completely bypass lifford and strabane, maybe its to the north instead. there is another stage of the strabane bypass to be completed by 2011

http://www.wesleyjohnston.com/roads/strabanebypassstage3.html

muffler

nordydan wrote:

there was specific mention on the donegal coco website re funding problems for the n15 lifford stranorlar project which aint a good omen as it can be a shocking road. I was under the impression that the bridge would be built south of the existing one so that dublin-letterkenny traffic could completely bypass lifford and strabane, maybe its to the north instead. there is another stage of the strabane bypass to be completed by 2011

http://www.wesleyjohnston.com/roads/strabanebypassstage3.html

Good link for the N.I. side of the project.

The Councils website, in relation to major projects, is a bit out of date to put it mildly. EG. The estimated cost of the twin towns by-pass and timeframe is given as 58 million with a completion date of 2008. The latest estimate is 112 million with 2010 apparantly going to be the earlies "start" date. That shows how up to date the Councils site is.

The proposed bridge will be on the Castlefin side, about a km out of Lifford. That is south west of Lifford. I call it above Lifford as the river flows down from Castlefinn direction. A roundabout is planned for somehere along that road which will link up the Stranorlar/Lifford, Manor/Lifford and the new road over the Finn and on to the Strabane by-pass.

Some water will have flowed under the bridge before all that happens

nordydan

Thanks for that muffler, the website did look a little behind the times alright. It would make more sense to have it upstream than supplying a derry-sligo route. I believe the road from the border to manorcunningham will be a 2+1 job, yet another shocking road in donegal.
In contrast I was driving down from b'bofey to donegal town recently and they have done some good work with the n15 further south, a very pleasant drive if i remember correctly. The website also mentions a n56 scheme from the town out to killybegs, i presume that's even further down the list!

corktina

the bundoran bypass has been open for months .....

nordydan

i think maybe the ballyshannon part with the bridge may be open. that would be ahead of schedule also, perhaps completion dates are being stalled deliberately to give the impression of good progress

corktina

i'll be up there Monday...i hope it is open, will save me some little time....

Fool 5000

I have a pics of the new bridge over the Erne
HERE
http://images.google.ie/imgres?imgurl=http://www.castlebar.ie/artman/uploads/new-erne-bridge.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.castlebar.ie/news/article_2358.shtml&h=374&w=550&sz=39&tbnid=-HKqVlWmMzs3uM:&tbnh=88&tbnw=130&hl=en&start=3&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dballyshannon%2Bbypass%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26safe%3Doff%26sa%3DN

muffler

corktina wrote:

i'll be up there Monday...i hope it is open, will save me some little time....

Yeah its all up and running. I think part of it has been opened for a while now but they had the official opening of it during the week and that included a stretch with a new bridge

nordydan

good news then, what is the junction between the n3 and the n15 like then?

MT

I drove over the bridge a few days ago so it's open alright. The Bundoran section of the bypass has been open for a while now whereas the bridge wasn't ready until an open day for pedestrians on the 23rd. It was open to traffic by the end of last week.

It's all very impressive, especially when you consider the relatively small size of the two towns. However, the bottleneck through Bundoran in particular could be an absolute nightmare on a hot Sunday during the height of Summer. Lots of us Northerners pile unto the N15 to access Rosnowlagh, Bundoran, Mullaghmore, Donegal and a load of little sandy coves in between. It's the West coast NI never had!

The engineering involved is superb. The bridge itself is very impressive from the river bank with the clever addition of a pedestrian crossing on a second level beneath. This good piece of safety logic continues for traffic above with the bridge carrying a 2+1(wide carriageway on the single lane) with a concrete barrier in between. A further sound piece of design is the use of slip roads for traffic joining from the N3 in each direction - there are two separate roundabouts for heading either North or South coming from Fermanagh. Depending on which one you use you can only continue to merge in one way as additional concrete barriers prevent motorists crossing the carriageway. See attached diagram.

The 2+1 on the bridge gives a hint of what may be to come IMO. Given the use of a wide single carriageway and hard shoulders elsewhere on the route and a remarkable straight stretch down the back of Bundoran I'd imagine this will all be upgraded to 2+1 if traffic becomes heavy enough in years to come. The bridge has been done like this now to future proof it, clearly.

The good planning continues with a sort of half bypass extending from the northernmost roundabout around the other side of Ballyshannon. This is the newly realigned start of the R231 to Rosnowlagh ensuring traffic destined for the popular beach no longer has to funnel through Ballyshannon.

One blemish, but not on the part of the NRA, is the unfortunate development of houses right next to the reserved route north of the river. This planning blunder by DCC meant a stretch of less robust stone mastic(?) tarmac - like the latest stretch of M50 – laid immediately after the bridge, interrupting the continuous HRA, must have been a condition of planning approval. This and sound proof fencing.

An interesting development is the shear increase in the number of roundabouts in the immediate vicinity and on the new road itself. I count 7 or 8 new ones for two towns that had a combined total of one previously - plus 2 mini car park versions in Bundoran. Now all the locals have to do is learn how to indicate on them - and Northerners who know that once they're over the border they can't get any points!!

There's also an excellent GSJ for the R237 to Kinlough. And plenty of flyovers for local routes/farmers lanes(?)

All in all this is the last word for an undualled bypass and a real boon if you're regularly down this way as I am.

Nb. I’ve only driven over this once so the sketch is just what I remember from a casual glance.

muffler

MT wrote:

Now all the locals have to do is learn how to indicate on them - and Northerners who know that once they're over the border they can't get any points!!

The locals haven't got time to indicate as they have only 2 eyes but have 3 mirrors on the cars. They would need the old oracle to watch out for the northern drivers.:D

By the looks of your sketch and the content of the post in general I would think you have experience in road design so its nice to get a bit of praise here for a change.

nordydan

Thanks MT, you should get a job for Donegal CC!

corktina

thanks m8...will know what to expect later......

as regards Ballbofey....is it not possible to turn right just at the start of the town centre, go past Finn Harps and access stranorlar that way? it seems to be signposted thus from points to the south that way (i dont go that way, as I head for Finntown and have little choice but to go into the town cntre.....

smashey

I was on the new by-pass yesterday and it is excellent. There is one thing that is bothering me though. As you approach the Ballyshannon exit, there is a big sign with all the distances on it. Lifford is 72km and Letterkenny is 121km. WTF. (I thought I saw something similar at the Bundoran exit but thought I was mistaken). However, when you get to the roundabout in Donegal at the Killybegs Road and take the Ballybofey exit, the distance to Letterkenny is 1km less than the distance to Lifford. Does anybody know the NRA's thinking on this?

Fool 5000

The road itself is a wide 2 lane aint it?
Does the road have all local road bridged or what?

muffler

corktina wrote:

thanks m8...will know what to expect later......

as regards Ballbofey....is it not possible to turn right just at the start of the town centre, go past Finn Harps and access stranorlar that way? it seems to be signposted thus from points to the south that way (i dont go that way, as I head for Finntown and have little choice but to go into the town cntre.....

Yes indeed you can semi-bypass Ballybofey by going down past Finn Park and then back over the new bridge at Dreenan which will take you out at McClays corner where you can either go to Letterkenny or Lifford.

But the new Dreean bridge and road are due to close in the next week or so and will remain closed for a 3 month period to either carry out further works or complete the outstanding works. Anybody who has been over this bridge will know that its a bit like one of those roller coasters at the fun fair. The works to be carried out over the next 3 months will be raising the heights of the approach roads at either side of the bridge.

With that being closed it will add significantly to the traffic problems in the twin towns

muffler

corktina wrote:

(i dont go that way, as I head for Finntown and have little choice but to go into the town cntre.....

If you are coming from Donegal town direction and going to Finntown why not veer off left at the Roadhouse Bar at Cappry (about 1.5 miles from Ballybofey) and that takes you directly on to the main Ballybofey - Finntown road

MT

muffler wrote:

By the looks of your sketch and the content of the post in general I would think you have experience in road design so its nice to get a bit of praise here for a change.

I’m afraid I’ll have to disappoint. I’m just an average Joe with an interest in road transport so my praise is as unqualified as the next layman.

They would need the old oracle to watch out for the northern drivers.

Boy racers heading for the beach, no doubt. I think one of the things that contributes to the ‘Northern’ attitude towards driving on the South’s roads is the view that policing isn’t as stringent. There was a view held for a long time that Donegal and the Republic in general were more laid back and so Gards were less likely to be seen and more likely to turn a blind eye to a bit of rallying. A lot of people in Fermanagh when the get their licences go for a ‘rip’ over the border as people seem to believe that ‘no one down there’s too bothered’.

nordydan wrote:

Thanks MT, you should get a job for Donegal CC!

Thanks, but as I say it’s just a rough description so don’t quote me.

smashey wrote:

Lifford is 72km and Letterkenny is 121km. WTF. (I thought I saw something similar at the Bundoran exit but thought I was mistaken). However, when you get to the roundabout in Donegal at the Killybegs Road and take the Ballybofey exit, the distance to Letterkenny is 1km less than the distance to Lifford. Does anybody know the NRA's thinking on this?

I’ll have to look out for that next time. While the engineering of the twin bypass is top notch they have made a few blunders with the signage. I’ve posted my comments on those in the poor road signage thread. You should send an email off to Donegal CC highlighting that mistake.

Fool5000 wrote:

The road itself is a wide 2 lane aint it?
Does the road have all local road bridged or what?

All wide 2 except for the bridge which has been future proofed with 2+1.

Most minor roads and farmers lanes have been given flyovers but no access to the mainline.

There are three at grade roundabout junctions – at the southern end of the bypass (N15/R237), the northern side of Bundoran (N15/minor road connecting to R237) and at the northern end of the bypass (N15/R237/R231).

Then there are two grade separated junctions – (N15/R280 to Kinlough and the N16) and (N15/N3 to A46 and Fermanagh)

Victor

No map, but I have one at home.

http://www.nra.ie/News/PressReleases/htmltext,2145,en.html

Opening of Bundoran/ Ballyshannon Bypass - Gateway to Donegal
27th April, 2006

Road users welcomed the opening of the Bundoran/ Ballyshannon by-pass by the Minister for State at the Department of Transport, Pat the Cope Gallagher TD, at a ceremony today, Thursday 27th April. This scheme forms part of the National Roads Authority's programme for upgrading the N15 Sligo to Lifford Road. The project involved the design and construction of approximately 10.5 km of new National Primary Route to form a bypass to the east of the towns of Bundoran and Ballyshannon in South Donegal.

This is just one within a number of construction projects being unveiled by the National Roads Authority this year. The NRA is well positioned to implement the Government’s visionary Transport 21 plan, which focuses on the development of the Atlantic Road Corridor. This route will provide a major artery for the movement of tourists in the north, west and south of the country. As the Authority unveils the fruits of this major transport investment across the country, development will flow in a balanced form on a regional basis appealing to local, national and overseas investors thus positioning Ireland on the international tourist and business tourist map.

The Mayor of County Donegal said,

“I’m proud to be associated with the official opening of this bypass, which is a significant infrastructure development for County Donegal. It is a credit to the personnel who worked on the project and it will serve the people of Donegal well for many years into the future”.

The bypass extends from the Drowes Bridge on the existing N15 south of Bundoran to the northern side of Ballyshannon. Its benefits will be felt not only by hard-pressed motorists, but also in both Bundoran and Ballyshannon towns where up to 9,000 vehicles a day will be taken off the main streets. Other benefits of the bypass will include safer, more efficient access to markets along the northern element of the Atlantic road corridor, increased attractiveness of the north and west for business and tourism.

The National Development Plan, 2000-2006 provides for the development of the N15 Sligo/Lifford route to high quality wide single carriageway standard. Completion of the Bundoran/Ballyshannon Bypass brings these objectives an important step nearer to reality.

Minister of State for Transport, Pat the Cope Gallagher welcomed the completion of the N15 Bundoran/Ballyshannon Bypass 3 months ahead of schedule and within budget. He commented,

“It will allow traffic to travel freely along the route bypassing what has become in recent years, a major bottleneck. With the reduction of traffic through these towns, residents and visitors alike will be able to enjoy the amenities afforded by both towns in a safer and more relaxed atmosphere”.

Mr. Peter Malone, Chairman of the National Roads Authority said,

“Today is hugely significant for the people of Ballyshannon and Bundoran because the popular tourist towns will no longer be crippled by heavy traffic and it’s all thanks to a new bypass delivered on budget and ahead of schedule. 9,000 vehicles will be instantly removed from both towns allowing locals to go about their daily business efficiently and safely. The bypass is also good news for the Northwest region as a major bottleneck on the N15, which runs from Sligo to Lifford, will be history. It is NRA policy to upgrade this route because efficient access is the key to a strong and expanding commercial and tourism sector especially given today’s intense foreign competition”.

Mr Michael McLoone, County Manager, stated,

"I wish to acknowledge the role played by the Department of Transport, the National Roads Authority, the EU, the elected Members of the County Council, Bundoran and Ballyshannon Town Councils and the role of the Roads Directors in bringing this important road project to the County. Apart from the strategic importance of this 10.5 km bypass to the National Development Plan it will, I believe, create tremendous opportunities in years to come for the development of Ballyshannon, Bundoran and Rossnowlagh in complementary and compatible ways and bring great benefits to the local community".

Bundoran/Ballyshannon Bypass was funded by the Irish Government under the National Development Plan, and part-funded by the European Union.

Fool 5000

Map Here
http://www.nra.ie/News/DownloadableDocumentation/file,925,en.PDF

Victor

Fool 5000 wrote:

Map Here
http://www.nra.ie/News/DownloadableDocumentation/file,925,en.PDF

Thanks! I had found it but didn't have net access.

nordydan

http://www.fiannafail.ie/page.php4?topic=110&id=5759&nav=Local%20News

Minister Gallagher announces go ahead for Ballybofey/Stranolar bypass

Minister of State for Transport, Pat the Cope Gallagher T.D. has today, 15 May 2006, announced that the National Roads Authority have given the approval for the N15 Ballybofey/ Stranorlar bypass project to proceed to the next stage.
09:15 15/05/2006

Whilst opening the N15 Ballyshannon/ Bundoran Bypass, on 27 April last, the Minister said that he was confident that substantial progress would be made shortly on the Ballybofey/Stranorlar bypass.

He is delighted to announce today, that the National Roads Authority hasgiven the approval for the Preliminary Design Report, the CompulsoryPurchase Order (CPO) Documentation, and the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), to be published.

Pat the Cope said, "This is a major step for this important Donegal project.It allows Donegal County Council to move to the next phase of the project,which is to complete the documentation for the CPO and ultimately make the Orders to purchase the required land. Of course the Council have to go to An Bord Pleanala during this phase, but nonetheless, today's approval is a substantial step forward in the planning process".

Pat the Cope went on to say "This project is estimated to cost in the regionof 90 million euro and involves the design and construction of approximately15.5km of new National Primary Road to form a southern bypass of Ballybofey and Stranorlar, as well as providing for a new 1.2km long link road to beconstructed to connect the new Bypass to Ballybofey and the existing N15."

The N15 forms part of the Atlantic Road Corridor from Letterkenny toWaterford, which has been a long-standing concept in the national roadsupgrade programme and has now been re-enforced by Transport 21.The Minister concluded by saying "The people of the Twin Towns have seen a major increase in traffic in recent years and this development is a furtherstep towards the long-awaited bypass, which will when constructed, give theTwin Towns back to the people, and I am confident that by all thestakeholders working together, the NRA, the Council, National Roads Design Office, the Land Owners, my Department, and all those involved, we can expedite this project which is so vitally required for the County".

muffler

I think thats what they call white smoke.

"The NRA has given the approval for the Preliminary Design Report, CPO Documentation and the EIS to be published." - Thats something that was to have been done in 2001

Not a mention of the amount of funding allocated for this stage of the project