Ring Road Possible Opening date

road_high

The latest word from KK county council is that the N77 Ring road extension opening will be in late July at the earliest now..I guess one upside is that J McGuinn TD won't be able to benefit before the election and say to the people of KK 'look what I have delivered':rolleyes: ! Meanwhile KK is gridlocked most of the time, and served by the worst 'National' roads anywhere in Ireland.

Stephen

What, this year?

Wasn't it originally supposed to be finished last summer? They couldn't organise a piss up in a brewery.

road_high

Stephen wrote:

What, this year?

Wasn't it originally supposed to be finished last summer? They couldn't organise a piss up in a brewery.

H ha, ye this year apparently! I would say more August/September myself. No point opening it half-finished.
I'm worried myself that the standard of the road won't be up to scratch, like poor junction layout, signage and roundabouts.
This has been a fiasco from start ot finish so I suppose the opening won't be any different:D ...

The simple fact is KK hasn't had a Cabinet minister in 26 years. If we had this simple project would have been done 10 years ago. Fact.

cargo

Has there been any update on an opening date for this or how's it getting on?

Stephen

Haven't heard anything about it opening but word has it that the bridge at Ballyfoyle road is going in "imminently" - looks like it too, they've been tearing up the road over the last week.

road_high

Has anyone else noticed the traffic has got even worse around the Comer road side lately. Total nightmare espec at rush hour.
The contractors are a flipping joke in my opinion. This should be well open by now.It's only 4.5km of road ffs:rolleyes:

road_high

Photo updates of N77, coutesy of Bards;
http://www.sabre-roads.org.uk/gallery/thumbnails.php?album=269

Progress has been slow to say the least.....

cargo

Whats the story with this road now? Those photo's (June '07) show a road thats nowhere near completion! I do recall hearing something a long time ago where this work came to a halt over a dispute with the council and contractor (pre fixed contract days I believe). But I thought those issues were sorted, albeit a good while later and that work was progressing again to a completition sometime this summer.

If the bridge still has to be built on the Ballyfoyle road this is nowhere near finishing!

road_high

cargo wrote:

Whats the story with this road now? Those photo's (June '07) show a road thats nowhere near completion! I do recall hearing something a long time ago where this work came to a halt over a dispute with the council and contractor (pre fixed contract days I believe). But I thought those issues were sorted, albeit a good while later and that work was progressing again to a completition sometime this summer.

If the bridge still has to be built on the Ballyfoyle road this is nowhere near finishing!

The pics tell it all really. Thats pretty much where it stands at present. Well over two years since construction began. Carlow bypass (dual carriageway) is almost as advanced and it began in April 06!!
the road is an absolutely appalling state att hge Hebron Road. I'm disgusted with both parties handling of this prject from start to (not yet) finish....

Stephen

Yep, they still haven't built the bridge here. All they have is a big hole in the road. That said, the road does like fairly close to completion. I regularly walk my dog along it and you can go all the way from the castlecomer road to the back of the Hebron Road industrial park (just before the road connects to the existing ring road). The only parts that are not done are the bridge and the short stretch that connects with the old ring road. They have street lights and sign posts (sans signs) and stuff installed along most of the route already too. I still don't think it'll be finished this year though!

cargo

Yeah looks way off. I don't live down there so don't know the full background to it but I did recall the row making national press.

Is it still actively progressing at the moment or have they walked off again? Is there a projected completion date? The NRA website claims Q2 2007...don't think so!!

This is definitely pre fixed price contracts as it if often used as an example of how the new scheme is a much better option for the NRA / public but who or what is gone wrong in this instance here? Is the dispute fully fixed? I think there was extra cost involved or something after the job started. Cause if it's resolved surely the council / NRA should have something to hold the contractors to.

Stephen

The local paper mentioned recently that they don't think it'll be open until early 2008. They have made some visible progress. There's a section that goes across the back of the golf club that used to be a huge hole in the ground a few weeks ago with what looked like a rectangular concrete tunnel at the bottom of the hole which has since been covered over and surfaced properly. I believe most of the work at the moment is happening at the last section linking to the existing ring road.

road_high

The ring road saga makes me mad everytime I think aboutm it. I bet the standard of the road will be poor even when it does open...

On a more positive note, good to see both the N8 and N9 (http://www.n9-n10kilcullen-waterford.ie/) make good progress through county Kilkenny. At last our road network is joining the 21st century.
Professional contractors with proven track records of delivery on major projects seems to be the difference.

dougal

At least schools are off the next couple of months so traffic is a LOT lighter on the Comer Road!

They are still causing mayhem at the Carlow road roundabout though. They seem to be allowed to stop traffic there whenever they want to drive their dumpers around at top speed!

zootroid

mfitzy wrote:

Photo updates of N77, coutesy of Bards;
http://www.sabre-roads.org.uk/gallery/thumbnails.php?album=269

Progress has been slow to say the least.....

Even their website is slow!!


It is bad though, and certainly makes you wonder how they can be so incompetent

Bards

zootroid wrote:

Even their website is slow!!


It is bad though, and certainly makes you wonder how they can be so incompetent

The website is run by independent people interested in road projects throughout the World focussing mainly on UK & Ireland.
It is not run by Regan & Sons... are you sure it's not your broadband.. on my 10Mb link it flies

Plug

Bards wrote:

The website is run by independent people interested in road projects throughout the World focussing mainly on UK & Ireland.

How painfully sad hobby:rolleyes:

I notice now there starting on the flyover at the ballyfoile road, theres still alot of work to be done.

Stephen

All that's there yet is a big hole and a pile of soil.

Plug

Stephen wrote:

All that's there yet is a big hole and a pile of soil.

And 6 foundation pillers.

Stephen

When did they appear? All I saw there recently was the aforementioned big hole and a couple of trailers with various bits and pieces that I can't recognise on them.

road_high

Plug wrote:

How painfully sad hobby:rolleyes:

I notice now there starting on the flyover at the ballyfoile road, theres still alot of work to be done.

I think it's very interesting actually. It's because people in Kilkenny in particular are so apathetic to things like roads that they are in the sorry state they are currently. Fair play to the guys taking these photos so important to Kilkenny's economic future that keep us updated I say...

Stephen

There's some real visible progress on the bridge now. 8 foundation pillars that have recently acquired concrete shells and the big pile of soil is mostly gone.

Bards

mfitzy wrote:

I think it's very interesting actually. It's because people in Kilkenny in particular are so apathetic to things like roads that they are in the sorry state they are currently. Fair play to the guys taking these photos so important to Kilkenny's economic future that keep us updated I say...

I totally agree with you... live and let live.... if it aint hurting anyone so what.... just like some people like to collect stamps old coins etc...

at least it keeps us informed as to what is going on in terms of road building that this country never has seen the like of it and will probably never again once Transport 21 has run its course

road_high

Looking at the 'progress' of the project I am now resigning myself to a 2008 opening date... Which means this relatively simple project has taken the bones of 3 YEARS to build; I find that outrageous....
Has anyone an update re the laying of track on the realigned bit of railway they have to do?? I haven't taken the train for ages but last time I saw it they hadn't an inch of new track layed...

Plug

i'll give it mid octuber and it'll be opened.

road_high

Plug wrote:

i'll give it mid octuber and it'll be opened.

Optimistic in my view...look at the CW road roundabout. Not a bit of road layed into your left on what should now be the ring road extension....

Plug

mfitzy wrote:

Optimistic in my view...look at the CW road roundabout. Not a bit of road layed into your left on what should now be the ring road extension....

Give it the end of October then.

Nightwish

I was on the train 2 weeks ago, and theres still an awful lot of work to be done there. I reckon the train will have to bypass KK for a short time while they do the work on it. It'll be 2008 before thats ready.

Firetrap

Should we place bets on Paddy Power as to when the Ring Road opens?

Plug

How about £4 Ted?
:cool:

PhilipMarlowe

Isn't it supposed to be opened in October, but only the section from the Hebron Road to the Castlecomer Road and then the rest to the Carlow road will be next year?
Of course, although this will be some help, it will still suck a lot until the rest is added to it.... and then, ffs, build a new bridge over the river and complete the ring, take people out of the centre who don't want to be there, giving good access to the hospital into the bargain... bah