Traffic on the Dunmore Road

fricatus

Right, we haven't had a good old infrastructure debate on this board in some time...

I moved from Dublin to the Dunmore Road (Farmleigh) about a year ago now, and people here warned me about the traffic. With my Dublin hat on, of course I dismissed what they had to say. "Sure I'm used to the M50" I would say.

Now I don't in any way regret moving out here. It's always been one of my favourite places and I'm very happy here. However, the traffic does drive me ever so slightly cracked now and again. One morning I was late for work up in KK because it took 25 minutes to get to the roundabout in front of the hospital, and another 20 to get to the bridge. Contrast that with the fact that the rest of the journey to KK took me just another 45 minutes.

As usual, Waterford City Council don't even seem to have the problem on their radar. Nothing is being done to ease this serious problem. There are no bus lanes, no traffic cameras, no Operation Freeflow.

Who is responsible for sorting out this mess? What can be done?

mike65

What can be done? Thats easy, get on the ORR via Ballygunner and go as far as the N25 take the entrance to the industrial est at ther West Extension and make your way to the Old Kilmeaden Road at the Northern Extension entrance go into town and down Summerhill from the Yellow road junction. Should take 25 mins to reach the bridge.

As for the broader issue, the ORR should have had a spur taking it out to the Dunmore road at the Passage/Dunmore junction.

Mike.

christophicus

In all fairness there is not enough room for bus lanes between the hospital and newtown, there would just be a bottleneck there, and the buses are full to teh doors at rushour anyway so its not as if there are not enough people using the bus's, they are at capacity as it is. It would be great if they put more buses on the rout, but that is not going to happen.

You can see my ignorance as a non driver here, but what would traffic cameras do?

Dublin only has operation freeflow for a 2 or 3 months a year, do you really think Waterford is going to get it, a city that always gets left out of the lists of cities in Ireland!!!

What they really need is a bridge going from ferrybank, to the Tower, at least that would free up the quey in the mornings.

angry_fox

Alot of the traffic in the mornings has to do with parents on the school run, would more school buses make a difference or if more kids just walked or cycled to school. I hate driving past waterpark and de la salle in the mornings because of kids just running out in front of you, avoiding open car doors, people pulling in and out in front of you. Its a wonder there has never been any serious accident there

AdMMM

You could try and avoid the traffic? Try going along the ORR, go through the Industrial estate, head around by Gracedieu and down the old back roads towards the end of the Quay. You should find yourself emerging by the Brewery and save yourself a lot of hair pulling in the morning

[edit]Think Mike65 got there before me[/edit]

kensutz

I think Mike beat you to it Murderer

Tanabe

mike65 wrote: »

What can be done? Thats easy, get on the ORR via Ballygunner
Mike.

Bottleneck city aswell!

The minute you go past the church, take a right past the school, McInerney building all around you, twisty, turney, bumpedy-bump of a road, it's jam packed!

Havin' the 'Dolly Parton' out this direction must be a pure nightmare!

It makes no odds if you ask me!

OP - Your best bet is to leave at least an hour early if you commute during these peak hours. Tuff luck!

ROCKMAN

buy a bike lads

BBM77

People living in Viewmount might savage me for saying this, but it seems a waste having that road inside the wall at Viewmount left the way it is. If it was part of the main road you could have two lanes on the leed up to the Ardkeen roundabout, and a slip lane onto the Outer Ring Road. On the Powerscourt side of the road there is not even a footpath; there would be room to put in a footpath as well if the wall at Viewmount were removed. One way or the other if there was more space on the road a more appropriate traffic management and road layout system could be built. Instead of this one lane in – one lane out that is ridiculous at this stage for the Dunmore Road. I suppose it is like all planning in this country, it is all reactive instead of proactive.

fricatus

ROCKMAN wrote: »

buy a bike lads

Great idea, never thought of that! Dunmore Road to Kilkenny in just 4 hours, 38% chance of survival along the way. Sounds like a winner!

mike65

Tanabe wrote: »

The minute you go past the church, take a right past the school, McInerney building all around you, twisty, turney, bumpedy-bump of a road, it's jam packed!

Havin' the 'Dolly Parton' out this direction must be a pure nightmare!

I understand they are upgrading that section ie straightening and widening, is that right?

Mike.

jmcc

Ballybrickenman wrote: »

People living in Viewmount might savage me for saying this, but it seems a waste having that road inside the wall at Viewmount left the way it is.

The problem is not at the front of Viewmount. The problem is after Waterpark (Park Road and the streets after it.). That's where a lot of the traffic flow gets stopped.

If it was part of the main road you could have two lanes on the leed up to the Ardkeen roundabout, and a slip lane onto the Outer Ring Road. On the Powerscourt side of the road there is not even a footpath; there would be room to put in a footpath as well if the wall at Viewmount were removed.

And where would people walk? Where would the cars for the front of Viewmount go? ( A lot of idiots use the front road of Viewmount as an extended footpath already.)

There is some asshole plan to move the wall back a bit but it has met with complete opposition. It also wants to take a huge bite out of the lower Viewmount entrance so that there is space for busses to park and turn about. However the bus service (Keneally's) is irregular and highly dependent on traffic flow. The same plan also wanted to add footpaths to the Powerscourt side and nice bicycle paths for a few hundred metres.

I suppose it is like all planning in this country, it is all reactive instead of proactive.

What planning?

Regards...jmcc

kitty_kilkenny

fricatus wrote: »

One morning I was late for work up in KK because it took 25 minutes to get to the roundabout in front of the hospital, and another 20 to get to the bridge. Contrast that with the fact that the rest of the journey to KK took me just another 45 minutes.

As a fellow commutee from the Dunmore Road to KK, when you get to the hospital roundabout, take the left and head all the way along the Outer Ring Road till you get to the Cork exit. Take the Cork Road till just past Kilmeaden when there is a right turn for Carrick on Suir. Take that road, take a right at Fiddown across the bridge, then it's Piltown, Owning, Kilmaganny, Kells, Kilkenny - all with zero traffic.
My average journey is 55 mins all in.
Watch out for slow tractors...

fricatus

kitty_kilkenny wrote: »

As a fellow commutee from the Dunmore Road to KK, when you get to the hospital roundabout, take the left and head all the way along the Outer Ring Road till you get to the Cork exit. Take the Cork Road till just past Kilmeaden when there is a right turn for Carrick on Suir. Take that road, take a right at Fiddown across the bridge, then it's Piltown, Owning, Kilmaganny, Kells, Kilkenny - all with zero traffic.
My average journey is 55 mins all in.

Thanks Kitty, I'll consider it once the back road by Ballygunner is finished, but the main problem is getting as far as the ORR, whether via the Dunmore Road or Ballygunner.

To be honest, if I leave at 7.50 most mornings, I'm in KK by 8.45, so it's 55 minutes via the main road too. It's just that the odd morning the traffic is out just that little bit earlier than usual, and that fu(ks me up...

I suppose the real reason I was posting is not so much looking for a solution to my own problem; that's not too difficult: I just get up and leave earlier. The problem is that the situation is unacceptable for people living out this direction, and I'm just wondering what would people do to solve it, that's all.

kitty_kilkenny wrote: »

Watch out for slow tractors...

Hehe, you can't avoid them in any part of rural KK. I wonder will they try to use the M9 when it's finished... I really would not be surprised!

AdMMM

You're living out the Dunmore Rd right? Why don't you simply buy a helicopter?

fricatus

|.Murderer.| wrote: »

You're living out the Dunmore Rd right? Why don't you simply buy a helicopter?

But where would I, loike, pork it?

rogue-entity

Another victim of the morning traffic.. its a blasted nightmare just trying to get to college on a Monday morning. The problem is the blasted school run, and then the idiots that use the road as a bloody carpark between the church and the gaelscoil. This, then, compounded by the inept planning of the road upgrades "lets do it, after the schools reopen" :rolleyes:

If a few people actually objected to these frackin housing estates being built, we might not have so much traffic to compete with. On the other hand, with the housing estates so close to the schools, would it really kill those children to walk or cycle in the mornings.

And, they used to use that front road of Viewmount as a second lane all the time, until a few people objected, and they made it a one-way street going in the opposite direction :rolleyes:

mike65

Like I said the ORR needs a spur going south of the Williamstown golf club and hooking up with the Dunmore road near the Passage junction.

Mike.

jmcc

fricatus wrote: »

But where would I, loike, pork it?

This isn't Deefer land. Besides, if I had a helicopter, the temptation to launch a few hellfires to sort out the traffic problem would be too much.

Regards...jmcc

fricatus

mike65 wrote: »

Like I said the ORR needs a spur going south of the Williamstown golf club and hooking up with the Dunmore road near the Passage junction.

Mike.

From my priveleged position of OP that's the best solution I've seen so far.

Check out the city development plan:

3.10 Objectives:

4. To identify and provide for, in cooperation with Waterford County Council, a new or improved route between the Airport Road and the Dunmore East Road.

De-fin-ite-ly needed... with a bit of luck they'll fast-track that.

The same development plan calls for the ORR to be extended north and cross the river near Maypark. They will really need to seriously upgrade the junction in front of the hospital if they do that.