N9 realignment Grannagh

fricatus

Just came through the newly-realigned section of the N9 at Grannagh. There's a new mini-roudabout a couple of hundred metres up the road too, and that will give access to the new road to Kilmacow.

You really get the feeling now that things are moving along and that it won't be long before we have proper roads on the approach to the city. Not before time!

Sully

Been a while since iv been up that direction - is it completed then? Was under construction on my last visit!

fricatus

Sully wrote: »

... - is it completed then?

No, they just had to realign a section of the current road because it apparently has to make way for the construction of the big roundabout junction where the N9 will cross the new M25 bypass. The really big bits are yet to come.

As you head for Dublin now, instead of heading up and over that big hump, you go down to the right, sort of in the valley, and then come back up to join the existing road. There's a roundabout there now, and a new turn off to the left for Kilmacow.

alpha2zulu

The new roundabout on the N9 has a very higgedly-piggly feel to it. Only 5 hours since it has opened several of the cones in the middle of the road have been demolished, the slope on the outbound lane is so steep, there are already scrape marks visible on the surface from presumedly the underbelly of trucks.

Also visiblility for Kilmacow (future N24)- Waterford traffic at the new roundabout is very poor as oncoming vehicles from the Waterford direction are hidden down the slope until the last second. I think a few accidents are inevidently on this section, particularly when the N24 traffic is routed down the gulley aswell.

fricatus

alpha2zulu wrote: »

Also visiblility for Kilmacow (future N24)- Waterford traffic at the new roundabout is very poor as oncoming vehicles from the Waterford direction are hidden down the slope until the last second.

Yeah, it takes some getting used to, a roundabout at the top of a hill. I was taking it easy coming up the slope today, but I sort of arrived very quickly on it.

alpha2zulu wrote: »

...particularly when the N24 traffic is routed down the gulley aswell.

Why, what's happening the N24? Are they planning to run the traffic from Carrick along by that new Kilmacow road or something?

alpha2zulu

Why, what's happening the N24? Are they planning to run the traffic from Carrick along by that new Kilmacow road or something?

Yeah, thats the plan. All the new road signs around the new kilmacow roundabout initially indicated this, before being blanked out. There is now tarmac stretching all the way from the new N9 roundabout, as far as the Thatch pub on the N24. I would say the N24 is only weeks away from being sent down this new route, as similarly to the Kilmacow Road, the current N24 will need to be removed as the new dual carraigeway to the new bridge is at a much lower level than the current road structure around it.

JohnC.

Are these bits and pieces just temporary until the real road is built?

fricatus

Kahless wrote: »

Are these bits and pieces just temporary until the real road is built?

Yeah, that tends to be the way with something as complex as the new junction they're building. They're putting two major arteries (new N9/M9 and new M25) crossing one another in that area and leaving the existing roads intact (albeit slightly realigned).

They already realigned the N9 up and over the "hump" in Grannagh at the end of last year so that they could build some sort of concrete wall or abutment. Now that that's complete, they've moved the road down into the gully so that it runs alongside that wall. My guess is that they're going to tear up the road we had been driving on so as to build the other side of that abutment to take the new N9 dual carriageway across.

You can also see further out that there are pillars going up all across that valley, presumably for the M25 going towards Slieverue.

It would be very interesting to see a detailed plan of the works for that area. It must take some planning to get all that done in 2 or 3 years or whatever time it takes.

ToxicPaddy

Been through it a few times and every time I'm there is changed.. getting bloody confusing.. grrrr...

I've also gone out the KK road and the small paint spot (wont call it a roundabout) has had 2 accidents as you cant see it when you come over the small hill..

Starting to take shape though.. good to see..

Heathen

has anyone got a map/aerial view of what the completed road will look like and where its ending on the kilkenny end?

Bards

Macker Eire wrote: »

has anyone got a map/aerial view of what the completed road will look like and where its ending on the kilkenny end?

http://www.nra.ie/RoadSchemeActivity/WaterfordCityCouncil/N25WaterfordCityBypass/Map,15022,en.pdf