M8 - Cashel to Mitchelstown

Rovi · 27-06-2008 7:41pm

Furet wrote: »

Many thanks for that, Rovi.

Any chance you'd be able to take a few photos and post them here?

It'll be a week or two before I'm down that area again, but I'll see what I can do.

Amtmann · 27-06-2008 11:57pm

Some photos, taken 27 June 2008, including a few shots of the M8 Mitchelstown to Fermoy Scheme, where it joins the Cashel to Mitchelstown. A workman I spoke to says they hope to have it open by March 2009. All I could say to the man was: "fair play!".

(*See the post below this too)

Amtmann · 28-06-2008 12:00am

More photos...

AugustusMaximus · 28-06-2008 12:55am

Dual carriageway all the way to Horse and Jockey in time for the 2009 Munster Championship.

Will make trips to Thurles all the easier.

Furet wrote: »

Well, the first junction is at Portlaoise. South of Cashel is 9. Cahir is 10. Kilcoran/Mitchelstown Caves is 11. Carrigane (north of Mitchelstown) is 12. Exit 13 is south of Mitchelstown. North of Fermoy we have exit 14. South of Fermoy is exit 15. I think Glanmire is 16, and Watergrasshill 17?.

I'm guessing we'll eventually see signage for the Glanmire exit with 18 on it ?

D'Peoples Voice · 28-06-2008 10:32am

AugustusMaximus wrote: »

Dual carriageway all the way to Horse and Jockey in time for the 2009 Munster Championship.

Will make trips to Thurles all the easier.

Tis a pity, Cork won't be in any more Munster finals for a while the way things are going!

icdg · 28-06-2008 2:20pm

Well, at least they remembered the chopsticks this time! They've been omitted in Dublin on the new signage for the M50.

Amtmann · 05-07-2008 6:03pm

Some new photos. Some lining and laying of cats eyes was done on Thursday and Friday.

Amtmann · 17-07-2008 9:47pm

It's ready to be opened at last.

July 25 is the big day, but they could open it sooner if they wished.

Attached is a photo of the southernmost point of the scheme: Exit 12, at Carriagane.

AugustusMaximus · 17-07-2008 11:24pm

Great to see it finished so fast.

While its not bypassing any major bottlenecks, its still nice to see the project move along.

Culahill to Cashel hopefully within a few months now.

corktina · 18-07-2008 7:35am

they were erecting the blue M8 signs at the halfway roundabout yesterday

its great for the residents of the villages en route with these new roads isnt it...they can reclaim their villages at last....all that they need now is the pathments widened and the carrigaeways narrowed...

AugustusMaximus · 20-07-2008 10:52pm

Are they doing any of the signage on the Cahir - Cashel section yet ?

Added to that they'll have to put a solid yellow line down for the hard shoulder to replace the dashed yellow line.

childoforpheus · 21-07-2008 12:06am

AugustusMaximus wrote: »

Are they doing any of the signage on the Cahir - Cashel section yet ?*Added to that they'll have to put a solid yellow line down for the hard shoulder to replace the dashed yellow line.

I'd say they'll leave the green signs up on the Cahir - Cashel section until September some time.
The line for the hard shoulder is solid since that section opened.

AugustusMaximus · 21-07-2008 12:26am

childoforpheus wrote: »

I'd say they'll leave the green signs up on the Cahir - Cashel section until September some time.
The line for the hard shoulder is solid since that section opened.

Interesting cause that section has been open quite some time.

Is everyone sure that, that section will open as motorway with a 100kph speed limit. Anytime I've driven it I thought it looked fine for 120kph and more

Stark · 21-07-2008 1:26pm

Definitely opening as 100km/hr and will be until the motorway orders come into force. Opening it as 120km/hr would require a special speed limit order to be issued by the council and everyone knows that councillors don't do any work that they don't have to!

ipodrocker · 21-07-2008 1:54pm

so when is the date for the phase to be open?

Stark · 21-07-2008 1:58pm

The date is mentioned a few posts up.

AugustusMaximus · 21-07-2008 1:59pm

Stark wrote: »

Definitely opening as 100km/hr and will be until the motorway orders come into force. Opening it as 120km/hr would require a special speed limit order to be issued by the council and everyone knows that councillors don't do any work that they don't have to!

No the Cashel bypass section.

By all accounts, a few people here believe that the road has some sharp bends which may mean when the motorway order goes through, it will still be restricted to 100kph.

I on the other hand think 120kph is perfectly reasonable on that stretch of road.

ipodrocker · 21-07-2008 1:59pm

so 25th july is the confirmed date?

xabi · 21-07-2008 2:03pm

ipodrocker wrote: »

so 25th july is the confirmed date?

You answered your own question.

Stark · 21-07-2008 2:08pm

AugustusMaximus wrote: »

No the Cashel bypass section.

By all accounts, a few people here believe that the road has some sharp bends which may mean when the motorway order goes through, it will still be restricted to 100kph.

I on the other hand think 120kph is perfectly reasonable on that stretch of road.

Ah right. I remember someone mentioning here before that they asked a councillor about this and the councillor replied that the Cashel bypass section would have a permanent 100km/hr section. Bit silly I know. It's a better road than the Fermoy bypass in my opinion.

WithCheesePlease · 21-07-2008 2:24pm

1huge1 wrote: »

I dont really understand why the did all that big job with the mitchelstown ring road (for the fermoy bypass) and now there gonna make a motorway bypassing it, why did they build both

Biggest waste of money ever. I hate that stretch of road. I never take it, I prefer to drive through Sh!tchelstown...

Amtmann · 21-07-2008 2:28pm

childoforpheus wrote: »

I'd say they'll leave the green signs up on the Cahir - Cashel section until September some time.
The line for the hard shoulder is solid since that section opened.

This is correct. They won't take the green signs down before September for some reason. More wasted money and foolishness.

AugustusMaximus · 21-07-2008 3:20pm

gearoid_healy wrote: »

Biggest waste of money ever. I hate that stretch of road. I never take it, I prefer to drive through Sh!tchelstown...

No its not.

It will take a considerable number of vehicle out of the centre of Mitchelstown who are coming in from several regional roads from the west and north of mitchelstown.

It was opened before the main bypass as unlike the main bypass, the relief road can act as both the N8 bypass aswell as a ring road to take traffic from the other attaching regional roads.

WithCheesePlease · 21-07-2008 3:23pm

AugustusMaximus wrote: »

No its not.

It will take a considerable number of vehicle out of the centre of Mitchelstown who are coming in from several regional roads from the west and north of mitchelstown.

It was opened before the main bypass as unlike the main bypass, the relief road can act as both the N8 bypass aswell as a ring road to take traffic from the other attaching regional roads.

Ah, I see....

Bards · 21-07-2008 3:55pm

AugustusMaximus wrote: »

No its not.

It will take a considerable number of vehicle out of the centre of Mitchelstown who are coming in from several regional roads from the west and north of mitchelstown.

It was opened before the main bypass as unlike the main bypass, the relief road can act as both the N8 bypass aswell as a ring road to take traffic from the other attaching regional roads.

Exactly, I use it to get onto the Mallow road when coming from Cahir

Colm R · 21-07-2008 3:58pm

gearoid_healy wrote: »

Biggest waste of money ever. I hate that stretch of road. I never take it, I prefer to drive through Sh!tchelstown...

Indeed most people do travel through the town however the current Mitchelstown relief road will take on a new life after the motorway is complete. It will become the N73 connecting the M8 to to Mallow. You have to remember that this was built in anticipation of the motorway, not despite of it.

The M3 around Kells will have similar roads built around it to ensure traffic on the N52 does not have to go through the town.

The street through Mitchelstown will undergo a bit upgrade to make it more pedestrian friendly. This wouldn't be possible of all traffic coming from Dublin going to North Cork had to continue through it.

corktina · 21-07-2008 4:36pm

thats what I thought BUT its got brand new signs on the N8 section saying R439 (or somesuch number....) thats at the new roundabout north of M'town...

Stark · 21-07-2008 4:40pm

corktina wrote: »

thats what I thought BUT its got brand new signs on the N8 section saying R439 (or somesuch number....) thats at the new roundabout north of M'town...

R639? That's what old sections of the N8 get designated as when new sections get built.

corktina · 21-07-2008 4:51pm

but what about the link from the N73 to the M8? does it just stop at the roundabout? I had assumed a section of the old bypass and the N8 would become N73...not the case it seems...

Colm R · 21-07-2008 5:33pm

It wouldn't be the first time that signs are wrong during or after contruction.

From the enigneer I have talked to, my understanding is (please don't hold me to this):

The N73 will come from Mallow onto the roundabout about midway on the Mitchelstown Relief Road and proceed North along the existing N8 to the Junction with the M8 and terminate at this point.

That section of road from the point where the N73 joins the Mitchesltown Relief road to the M8 Junction north of Mitchelstown will also be designated (R639). There is precedent for this. N52 piggy backs on the N6 for about 5Km near Tullamore.

The R639 will continue from the roundabout midway on the Relief Road (current N8 Mitchestown bybass) south to the existing N8 at the roundabout south of Mitchestown and continue to Fermoy once the M8 Mitchelstown Fermoy section is complete in Q1 2010.

The road going through Mitchelstown itself will be then designated an LXXXX, or local road, thus allowing Mitchesltown to develop as a street and not a through road.

This is not the only place that the R639 will piggy back on another road. The section of road from the roundabout on the old Cahir bypass to the new Junction north of Cahir will be redesignated the N24 Limerick - Waterford route. In fact the signs here already reflect this, and this road will also be the (R639).

My biggest fear about all this is that the Signs will be all wrong.

M8 - Cashel to Mitchelstown

Comments