M6 - Ballinasloe to Galway

oddiot

The Coolagh junction - despite not being a trumpet is coming along well. Travelling eastbound through it yesterday, they have motorway ahead signs, the M6 chopsticks and even the roundabout has it's name sign. Traffic from both directions using eastern side of the roundabout.

Chris_533976

Motorway signs at the new junction near the Galway clinic??

Cool, but shouldnt be there as this is N road from Coolagh to the Glennascaul (Galway Airport junction).

KevR

Chris_533976 wrote: »

Motorway signs at the new junction near the Galway clinic??

Cool, but shouldnt be there as this is N road from Coolagh to the Glennascaul (Galway Airport junction).

Forgot to mention that! Hopefully they won't realise..

cjpm

Chris_533976 wrote: »

Motorway signs at the new junction near the Galway clinic??

Cool, but shouldnt be there as this is N road from Coolagh to the Glennascaul (Galway Airport junction).

Nope, it's the property of the PPP for the next 30 years and there's an existing alternative route to Glennascaul.
It's better off being a motorway,
1)no tractors, learners etc
and
2)no chance of any developer with a brown envelope getting permission to build an access onto it to line his own pockets....


2) was was the reason that the NRA moved the start of (and end of) motorway signs right up to the roundabouts at any junctions, apperently An Bord Pleanala were giving guys access onto the slips despite the objections of the NRA

cjpm

BluntGuy wrote: »

I think a second concrete barrier running concurrent to the "zig-zagged" one will be put here, since it passes under an overbridge.

kaizersoze wrote: »

Correct. You can see the groove cut into the road surfaceto receive the second part of the barrier.

Yep that's right. The barrier tapers into 2 section either side of the central piers before rejoining again. It is slip formed using a machine on tracks, thus only one side is done. Formwork (about 1m long) must be used for the actual points where the barriers meet as the machine can't do it all

KevR

http://www.galwaynews.ie/9132-ballinasloe-residents-halt-works-n6-motorway

BALLINASLOE RESIDENTS HALT WORKS ON N6 MOTORWAY

Mon 12th October 2009
Works on a section of the new N6 Ballinasloe to Galway motorway have been suspended for the week following a blockade by residents.
Several residents from Moher in Ballinasloe, blocked the road near the Portumna new roundabout out of Ballinasloe with a tractor and front loader this afternoon.
The blockade is in protest over revised conditions as part of the N6 motorway, and it's understood the machinery will remain in place until negotiations take place on Friday.

serfboard

Galway News wrote:

The blockade is in protest over revised conditions as part of the N6 motorway

What does that mean? I hope it's not about the motorway re-designation? Anyone have any insight?

?Cee?view

serfboard wrote: »

What does that mean? I hope it's not about the motorway re-designation? Anyone have any insight?

Dunno, but the whole thing seems a bit distasteful to me.

Either, the residents have been treated badly (local roads unrepaired etc.) and the company is trying to avoid doing the work needed,

or

The locals are seeing this as a chance to extort a few bob (more maybe in some cases), when a project is under pressure to be completed.

Either way, it's all a bit banana republic. Why the delay until Friday to try to sort this?

Nath

churchview wrote: »

Dunno, but the whole thing seems a bit distasteful to me.

Either, the residents have been treated badly (local roads unrepaired etc.) and the company is trying to avoid doing the work needed,

or

The locals are seeing this as a chance to extort a few bob (more maybe in some cases), when a project is under pressure to be completed.

Either way, it's all a bit banana republic. Why the delay until Friday to try to sort this?

I've heard on several occasions from various people that the contractor has left local roads, especially around the Athenry area, in an awful state and they have neglected their agreement to keep them in a reasonable state of repair.

I think they are right to protest, it doesn't set a good precedent for other road scheme activity in the country if contractors think they can do what they like without any consequences.

serfboard

Nath wrote: »

I've heard on several occasions from various people that the contractor has left local roads, especially around the Athenry area, in an awful state and they have neglected their agreement to keep them in a reasonable state of repair.

I think they are right to protest, it doesn't set a good precedent for other road scheme activity in the country if contractors think they can do what they like without any consequences.

I'm aware of the problems around Athenry and agree that people should protest until local roads are fixed. However, I was wondering if this was a different issue due to the fact that the protest is not happening around Athenry, but rather around the Ballinasloe->Portumna road.

kaizersoze

churchview wrote: »

Dunno, but the whole thing seems a bit distasteful to me.

Either, the residents have been treated badly (local roads unrepaired etc.) and the company is trying to avoid doing the work needed,

or

The locals are seeing this as a chance to extort a few bob (more maybe in some cases), when a project is under pressure to be completed.

Either way, it's all a bit banana republic. Why the delay until Friday to try to sort this?

I noticed a bit of a gathering there this mornin alright.
It's not the actual motorway itself. It's where the new link road from the existing N6 joins the Portumna road at Moher. I'm not sure what the problem is tbh but it's a bit of a mess there alright.
It's not the state of the road that's the problem but the road layout since the new RAB went in. At least house has it's entrance on the RAB itself and another resident has to drive occross one of the islands to get in his gate.

Chris_533976

cjpm wrote: »

Nope, it's the property of the PPP for the next 30 years and there's an existing alternative route to Glennascaul.
It's better off being a motorway,
1)no tractors, learners etc
and
2)no chance of any developer with a brown envelope getting permission to build an access onto it to line his own pockets....


2) was was the reason that the NRA moved the start of (and end of) motorway signs right up to the roundabouts at any junctions, apperently An Bord Pleanala were giving guys access onto the slips despite the objections of the NRA

Its better off as motorway yes, but the Redesignations Round 2, which reclassified Ballinasloe - Galway as motorway, only come into effect at Glennascaul. Glennascaul to Galway is not motorway. I hope they do put the signs up though

http://www.transport.ie/upload/general/10978-0908_2ND_TRANCHE_N6_LEAFLET-6.PDF

cjpm

Chris_533976 wrote: »

I hope they do put the signs up though

You needn't worry, they're up since last week!!

Sponge Bob

Means you can be nicked doing 120kph between Doughiska and about the west end of the airport runway where the designation kicks in . Cue the ***** in the Gatso van on revenue duty

KevR

Sponge - given that motorway signage has gone up at Doughiska we could well see this stretch being appropriately signed as 120kmh.

Sponge Bob

KevR wrote: »

Sponge - given that motorway signage has gone up at Doughiska we could well see this stretch being appropriately signed as 120kmh.

If you trust the revenue squad with their Gatso then feel free

I assumed the Motorway started where they mean to split off the bypass , I was wrong .

The Motorway sign may be entirely wrong in Doughiska. In fact if it is all blue and white it IS wrong. A TRACTOR may take legally the N6 Dual Carriageway between Doughiska and Glennascaul as long as they exit there.

The Motorway sign should be at the beginning of the eastbound sliproad onto the current N18 in Glenascaul as there is no other exit before the Motorway .

This is what the law says and that is what determines whether you are fined for doing 119kph west of Glennascaul

http://www.transport.ie/upload/general/10978-SI_255_OF_2009-0.pdf

N6 — Galway to Ballinasloe (also known as the N6 Galway to East Ballinasloe Dual Carriageway). The section of the proposed N6 between its junction with the proposed R357 at Ardcarn in the county of Roscommon and its junction with the existing N18 at Glennascaul in the county of Galway

KevR

Surely if there are 120kmh speed limit signs then any court challenge against a speeding fine by someone doing 120kmh or less would have to be successful?

Sponge Bob

KevR wrote: »

Surely if there are 120kmh speed limit signs then any court challenge against a speeding fine by someone doing 120kmh or less would have to be successful?

Well You would reasonably think so , yes

However I do not fancy telling Mary Fahy why I felt I needed to do 120kph in a 100kph.

As the junctions are 4km apart and as life is too ****ing short in general I will not chance meeting her over a less than one minute time saving , so you do it .

L1011

If there are 120km/h signs up a 100km/h limit is unenforceable, end of.

MYOB

MYOB wrote: »

If there are 120km/h signs up a 100km/h limit is unenforceable, end of.

Yes, even if the sign is wrong! anyway there's nothing to stop the council applying a 120k limit for the short section of N road.

schween

Sponge Bob wrote: »

Well You would reasonably think so , yes

However I do not fancy telling Mary Fahy why I felt I needed to do 120kph in a 100kph.

As the junctions are 4km apart and as life is too ****ing short in general I will not chance meeting her over a less than one minute time saving , so you do it .

Life is too short to worry so much over a non issue and to be so paranoid of the Revenue and Gatso vans. If it says 120, it is 120 end of, they can't prosecute.

Besides, I would love to sit there and tell Mary Fahy that the case would have to be dismissed and they wasted public money.

Nath

Passed by the new M6 junction at Doughiska at 9.30pm this evening, they were still working at that hour. Currently resurfacing the various carriageways on the existing N6 DC. The roundabout is more or less finished, just some tidying up now from what I could see.

Tech3

It's fairly hairy driving up to those two roundabouts in the night on the N18. For a national primary road the construction company should have finished off this dumbell alignment correctly. The road layout is a disgrace at the moment especially in the dark.

Nath

tech2 wrote: »

It's fairly hairy driving up to those two roundabouts in the night on the N18. For a national primary road the construction company should have finished off this dumbell alignment correctly. The road layout is a disgrace at the moment especially in the dark.

It is pretty hairy driving around there at the moment, especially at night, the temporary lanes are very narrow and poorly lit. But on the plus side they look almost finished, another 2 weeks will complete this junction IMO.

Zoney

Looks like there are those "No" signs at the junction - there isn't a single one on the M18 or M20 from what I've seen.

BluntGuy

Zoney wrote: »

Looks like there are those "No" signs at the junction - there isn't a single one on the M18 or M20 from what I've seen.

I think they shaved them off to cut back costs a little which is fair enough - they aren't necessary -, but they are welcome in a nation of drivers who still have to properly get their head around the concept of motorways.

cjpm

Zoney wrote: »

Looks like there are those "No" signs at the junction - there isn't a single one on the M18 or M20 from what I've seen.

Correct the 2 motorway restriction signs are up, in both Irish and English.

They are adjacent the free flow slip and when leaving the roundabout onto the new M6

BluntGuy wrote: »

I think they shaved them off to cut back costs a little which is fair enough - they aren't necessary -, but they are welcome in a nation of drivers who still have to properly get their head around the concept of motorways.

They would have been part of this contract. However, on most jobs started later the NRA have decided that they are not necessary as the motorway restrictions are laid out in the Rules of the Road and therefore everyone is expected to know them.

KevR

tech2 wrote: »

It's fairly hairy driving up to those two roundabouts in the night on the N18. For a national primary road the construction company should have finished off this dumbell alignment correctly. The road layout is a disgrace at the moment especially in the dark.

Nath wrote: »

It is pretty hairy driving around there at the moment, especially at night, the temporary lanes are very narrow and poorly lit. But on the plus side they look almost finished, another 2 weeks will complete this junction IMO.

I honestly don't understand what the delay is with switching on the street lights at the N18 junction and at Doughiska. The lighting columns were installed weeks ago.

wackjob

drove the diversion route and other back roads in Galway at the weekend, not in good shape.. the festival in Ballinasloe didnt help either

Chris_533976

Nath wrote: »

Passed by the new M6 junction at Doughiska at 9.30pm this evening, they were still working at that hour. Currently resurfacing the various carriageways on the existing N6 DC. The roundabout is more or less finished, just some tidying up now from what I could see.

Although I'm glad that blue has gone up for sanity reasons, it still is quite entertaining that every single one of those signs is wrong.