M6 - Ballinasloe to Galway

Chris_533976

Even if they opened one carriageway (say) for a fortnight before Christmas then shut the whole thing early in the new year to finish up.

flazio

EAFC_rdfl wrote: »

loughrea link road looks pretty much done, at least at the loughrea end its all lined etc and I havn't seen lorries going in there since early last week, when they seemed to be putting down the final layer. not sure how the junction at the M6 end is though. as someone doing loughrea-athlone 5 days a week, it would be great if it is all ready in mid december

Surely if you are heading from Athlone to Loughrea wouldn't you be better off getting off at the West Ballinasloe exit and taking the old (current) N6 as

1. It is a direct road to Loughrea
2. You avoid the Cappataggle Toll

Delta Kilo

flazio wrote: »

Surely if you are heading from Athlone to Loughrea wouldn't you be better off getting off at the West Ballinasloe exit and taking the old (current) N6 as

1. It is a direct road to Loughrea
2. You avoid the Cappataggle Toll

That is why some genius has applied for permission to build a massive filling station just at that exit. I think it is going to be around the entrance to Ard Scoil Mhuire. They reckon a load of people will get off there to avoid the toll but I don't know, its not the best stretch of road from Ballinasloe to Loughrea and it will be an 80kph speed limit. If it was me and I was just finished a days work Id be staying on the motorway and throwing the €2 into the basket.

NFD100

Sponge Bob wrote: »

Naths Picture at Glenascaul Posted 19th October . Big paver in distance with large truck feeding it .

Why is the central median so wide? Are they going to grass it?

NFD100

NFD100 wrote: »

Why is the central median so wide? Are they going to grass it?

Space for a third lane, Is dócha I

Sponge Bob

Only to west of Athenry where the N18 tie in will be . Concrete median thereafter . Someone told us so earlier in this thread .

cjpm

NFD100 wrote: »

Why is the central median so wide? Are they going to grass it?

The N6 east of the proposed junction with the future Galway City Outer Bypass up to the proposed junction with the N17/N18 Scheme is designed such that it may be widened in the future within the boundaries of the existing Road to a dual three-lane, similar to what was done with the M50

EAFC_rdfl

flazio wrote: »

Surely if you are heading from Athlone to Loughrea wouldn't you be better off getting off at the West Ballinasloe exit and taking the old (current) N6 as

1. It is a direct road to Loughrea
2. You avoid the Cappataggle Toll

Delta Kilo wrote: »

That is why some genius has applied for permission to build a massive filling station just at that exit. I think it is going to be around the entrance to Ard Scoil Mhuire. They reckon a load of people will get off there to avoid the toll but I don't know, its not the best stretch of road from Ballinasloe to Loughrea and it will be an 80kph speed limit. If it was me and I was just finished a days work Id be staying on the motorway and throwing the €2 into the basket.

since i use it every day, i'll have plenty opportunity to try both, and whichever is quickest will soon become apparent. I reckon as DK says, staying on the new road will probably be what i'll choose, given the bendiness of the road from Aughrim to past Kilrekil. I've sat behind enough lorries, buses and 40mph teabags for the past 2 years!! I think taking the linkroad-M6 to west ballinasloe junction will be about 5km longer than taking the existing N6, so it should be quicker

Progress seems slow enough on completing the overbridge at Aughrim, doesn't seem to be much filling in done to complete the ballinasloe side yet, low priority i suppose

KevR

I had to commute Galway-Athlone for the summer. If the motorway had been open at the time I would have definitely used it and paid the toll. Would have meant an extra 30 mins in bed every morning and 30 mins extra in the evening to spend doing whatever I wanted.

I suppose the odd day I would take the old road home in the evening for a change if the weather was nice and I had no plans for the evening.


Just a side-note: was out around Briarhill/Ballybrit/Doughiska last night and noticed a few cable traffic counters around the place.

• One on each carriageway on the N6 DC leading up to the M6 roundabout.
• One on each carriageway on the N6 DC near the racecourse.
• There was one stretching across the R339 (Dublin Road) just after you come off the Galway Clinic Roundabout.
• One stretching across the R865 just off Morris Roundabout.

So 6 in total that I saw, but there could have been more that I didn't see. I didn't drive on the N6 DC between Galway Clinic Roundabout and Oranmore, but you would think that there could well have been a traffic counter there also given the location of the others.

I'm presuming these traffic counters are in relation to the M6 but they might not be..

ei.sdraob

KevR wrote: »

I had to commute Galway-Athlone for the summer. If the motorway had been open at the time I would have definitely used it and paid the toll. Would have meant an extra 30 mins in bed every morning and 30 mins extra in the evening to spend doing whatever I wanted.

I suppose the odd day I would take the old road home in the evening for a change if the weather was nice and I had no plans for the evening.


Just a side-note: was out around Briarhill/Ballybrit/Doughiska last night and noticed a few cable traffic counters around the place.

• One on each carriageway on the N6 DC leading up to the M6 roundabout.
• One on each carriageway on the N6 DC near the racecourse.
• There was one stretching across the R339 (Dublin Road) just after you come off the Galway Clinic Roundabout.
• One stretching across the R865 just off Morris Roundabout.

So 6 in total that I saw, but there could have been more that I didn't see. I didn't drive on the N6 DC between Galway Clinic Roundabout and Oranmore, but you would think that there could well have been a traffic counter there also given the location of the others.

I'm presuming these traffic counters are in relation to the M6 but they might not be..

today

theres also one as you come of the Morris roundabout onto Ballybane road heading towards GMIT

KevR

I meant to say R865 Ballybane Road rather than just R865, sorry. That's the same one that I saw last night.

KevR

I guess the traffic counters weren't anything to do with the M6 because I saw several traffic counters around Westside/Newcastle yesterday (Friday). They must be in relation to something else..

L1011

The 'please, please, please give us our sodding bypass' project of Galway City Council?

KevR

Could well be! I'm eager to see the results of the traffic counts. There are no inductive loop traffic counters in Galway so we don't get any traffic data. As far as I know, the nearest permanent traffic counter to the city is on the N6 to the East of the Derrydonnell junction. There are inductive loop traffic counters on the ring road between the Tuam Rd RAB & Menlo Park RAB but I'm pretty sure they don't work.

galwayrush

cjpm wrote: »

The N6 east of the proposed junction with the future Galway City Outer Bypass up to the proposed junction with the N17/N18 Scheme is designed such that it may be widened in the future within the boundaries of the existing Road to a dual three-lane, similar to what was done with the M50

They put in a full foundations for a possible third lane, 10-12 inches of soil is all that needs to be scraped off to progress it. I'm amazed, planning for the future, shocked in a way.

KevR

Just a few pictures from J19 to show lining progress.

Click thumbnails for full size images.

First 2 are looking West:



Stick on stud and sunken cat's eye:



Looking East:



Traffic Corps Eastbound. They looked to be in a hurry...



Start of solid yellow line:



Looking down the Eastbound on-ramp which needs to be washed and lined:



I have heard of a couple of people who have had sneak drives over the full length of the motorway. I heard of one person who drove Liffey Valley - Briarhill in 95 mins using the new road. I don't believe it for a number of reasons but I did hear it..

kaizersoze

[QUOTE=KevR;62914696Looking down the Eastbound on-ramp which needs to be washed and lined:



I have heard of a couple of people who have had sneak drives over the full length of the motorway. I heard of one person who drove Liffey Valley - Briarhill in 95 mins using the new road. I don't believe it for a number of reasons but I did hear it..[/QUOTE]

Needs a bit more than washing Kev. It's missing it's wearing course.:)

Great pics.
I wonder what the traffic boys were doing there. A few practice runs maybe?:D

I wouldn't believe the stories you're hearing either and believe me, I've tried.

KevR

Forgot to mention, the batching plant beside Junction 19 has been dismantled.

Also, they are putting up some fencing along the Western boundary of the N6 DC at Doughiska. I remember reading that local kids were climbing over the wall and playing on the DC a couple of years ago :eek:. The fence should stop this ever happening again.

Aidan1

Are they laying surface 24/7 on this scheme at the moment?

Passed the tie-in at Ballinasloe on Friday after 22:00, and there were works on going there, and a number of laden artics moving along the main line further west (where the existing N6 crosses between Ballinasloe and Aughrim).

Chris_533976

Anyone who does go for a sneaky drive along it bring the GPS and map it for OSM

medoc

galwayrush wrote: »

They put in a full foundations for a possible third lane, 10-12 inches of soil is all that needs to be scraped off to progress it. I'm amazed, planning for the future, shocked in a way.

Did they build any part of the M17/M18 junction, at least any bit that would effect traffic on the M6. Any ideas when the third lane would be needed its a pity the Nass bypass wasn't built with the same thing in mind.

35x

Re the 80 KPH speed limit...I noticed the 'old N6' road between Moate and Athlone now has this speed limit...the same as my local 'boreen'!!!! Is this temporary or is this proposed for the 'old N6' Ballinasloe/Loughrea/Galway as well? What genius has come up with this mad idea or is it a ploy to force cars through frustration on to the new M6 to get them at the toll? Is there really a rationale or is it yet another example of what goes for 'planning' from NRA who thought rest-stops were unnecessary...so much for road safety and driver tiredness.

Delta Kilo

Well forcing motorists to use the motorway is one part of it but the main reason is because the roads are being re-designated to R or regional roads. For example, the old N6 is becoming the R446.

The reason for this is so that the NRA can hand the old N6 over to the relevant local authority. Basically the NRA will no longer have anything to do with the road and it will be up to the relevant county council to maintain it.

R or regional roads have a maximum speed limit of 80km/hr, just like N or national roads have a speed limit of 100 km/hr. So by redesignating them so they do not have to maintain them, they have to reduce the speed limit also.

GerardKeating

Delta Kilo wrote: »

Well forcing motorists to use the motorway is one part of it but the main reason is because the roads are being re-designated to R or regional roads. For example, the old N6 is becoming the R446.

The reason for this is so that the NRA can hand the old N6 over to the relevant local authority. Basically the NRA will no longer have anything to do with the road and it will be up to the relevant county council to maintain it.

R or regional roads have a maximum speed limit of 80km/hr, just like N or national roads have a speed limit of 100 km/hr. So by redesignating them so they do not have to maintain them, they have to reduce the speed limit also.

That might have been true in the past, but the NRA have recently been given responicibility for R roads as well

JayeL

Councils were given the discretion to set limits at whatever level they wish a year or two ago. So they can set an R road at 60 or 100, they're usually just too lazy/clueless to put that into practice.

The Athlone - Ballinasloe section of the old N6 is still 100k but is is not yet officially R446 either as the number is blanked out on the signs, looks loke thry are waiting for the remainder of the road to open before redesignation is completed.

Kevin11

According to Galway Indo road is open 21st Dec.
Also says that toll toll between galway and Dublin will be less than 6euro.
That rules out the 2euro proposed toll for Cappataggle. Will be more like 2.50-2.80euro. :mad:

bonaparte2

http://www.galwayindependent.com/local-news/local-news/december-opening-for-new-m6/

full story

KevR

They need to get real if they are thinking about charging anything like the M4 toll price. A lot less people will use it if they charge that much so they will probably make less money by charging that amount.

Just look at the M6 Toll in England. They charge a ridiculous £4. As a result most people opt to use the free M6 which is heavily congested and there are regular long delays on it. The M6 Toll is the least busy D3M in England and it's not at all surprising.

Loads of people dodge the Irish M4 toll too. Not surprising given that it's the most expensive toll in the country.

N6 Construction Ltd are probably looking at the M4 and thinking if people are willing to pay that, then they will be willing to pay the same again on the M6. People might be willing to pay it once, but not twice. Instead of looking at the M4, the M6 people should be looking to what people using the M7 or M8 will pay.

I for one won't be paying two €2.90 tolls to drive to Dublin.

ohnoigotsick

Kevin11 wrote: »

According to Galway Indo road is open 21st Dec.
Also says that toll toll between galway and Dublin will be less than 6euro.
That rules out the 2euro proposed toll for Cappataggle. Will be more like 2.50-2.80euro. :mad:

They envisage that a journey between Galway and the M50 in Dublin will then take less than two hours, with a total toll cost of less than €6.

are they including the M50 Toll on that ???