N40 - Cork South Ring Bandon & Sarsfield Flyovers

crc

Days 298 wrote: »

Do you have any idea when it'll be finished up?

No idea I'm afraid. I'm just an observer; I have no specific knowledge of the project.

phatmanwc

Days 298 wrote: »

Fair enough, just wanted others thoughts.

Sorry, it was a fair question, I've just had so many close calls when it's supposedly subject to a 60km/h limit, I can't imagine what it would be like at 120km/h! I agree though, can't wait for all the traffic management to be removed...

murphym7

Quick lane question. I have started coming off at the Bandon road roundabout these days, coming from the East. The right hand lane has B’Town painted on the road and a right arrow just before you get to the roundabout. The middle lane at this point has a straight arrow painted. When you move on through the roundabout the middle lane then has a straight and right arrow painted on the road. Question is: Am I fine to use the middle lane to go around the roundabout to take the Bishopstown exit? I think I am, but just want to make sure. You can’t use the middle lane at Sarsfield, just want to make sure I am doing the right thing. Thanks.

alaimacerc

murphym7 wrote: »

Quick lane question. I have started coming off at the Bandon road roundabout these days, coming from the East. The right hand lane has B’Town painted on the road and a right arrow just before you get to the roundabout. The middle lane at this point has a straight arrow painted. When you move on through the roundabout the middle lane then has a straight and right arrow painted on the road. Question is: Am I fine to use the middle lane to go around the roundabout to take the Bishopstown exit? I think I am, but just want to make sure. You can’t use the middle lane at Sarsfield, just want to make sure I am doing the right thing. Thanks.

Odd. And weirdly inconsistent. I think sometimes they avoid putting right arrows immediately before a roundabout just in case some looper decides to take that over-literally and do a hard right and go around the wrong way. (BRR used to have "straight" arrows in both lanes 2 and three at this point.) But not the case if they have a right arrow in the right lane now. Hopefully they'll repaint this in a way that's clear and unambiguous. Presumably the logic of this arrangement is that there's now going to be relatively more traffic going right, rather than straight ahead.

In the meantime, this is the last thing in the world you'd get pinched for: you're doing what the then-applicable marking is telling you to do, at the time you do it.

murphym7

Thanks for that. This morning I went around in the middle lane and two cars went around in the right hand lane. Think I'll just go around in the right hand lane and watch for cars coming in from my left till they sort out the road markings. The natural thing is to use the right hand lane so I might just do that. Its so quiet at that hour of the morning I don't get a chance to see what most drivers do!

Ludo

It has been marked like that for AGES...even before the works started. It is actually a pain in the ass when people use the middle lane ut that is mainly due to people not merging properly when coming off the roundabout towards Bishopstown. They race each other rather than merge in turns.

alaimacerc

I think it's changed a couple of times. In thinking about mm7's post, I had a look at google maps, which although it's updated the map and satellite data, is still using the old street view (understandably, but confusingly). On the road as it enters the BRR, there's two "straight ahead" arrows on lanes 2 and 3. But the lane 3 one's clearly been modified from a "right turn" one (hence my comment about them worrying about people doing a handbrake turn and going around it widdershins).

This might not exactly be breaking news, as I've not hit the roundabout for a few days, but the S->W sliproad is now open at last. I think the walkway is too, until it runs into yet another blockage in SR. They've moved the cones on the eastbound entry, at least somewhat: at least enough that rather than queuing behind me, one car felt happy to move over into the "harder shoulder" and speed past on the right. Still cones on the left.

Totally puzzled by the way they have a segment of the roundabout on that corner lined and chevronned -- and currently also coned -- off. They going to keep that as an emergency slip/hard shoulder?

blindsider

Work has slowed to an almost complete standstill.

Lots of cones etc need to be removed after small cosmetic-looking work e.g. entering the SRR from the North (from Wilton/Hospital) and driving East.

There were 3 guys on the whole Roundabout at 1200 on Friday - a few weeks with a decent crew would get the whole thing finished quickly.

It's getting a bit frustrating to see the job 98% done - and now it's starting to drag on.

bg07

The quality of the job they’re doing with the under matting and gravel at the edge of the junctions isn’t great. There’s already a lot of weeds coming through. The section of road will look very untidy by next summer’s growth if they don’t sort it out.

kub

blindsider wrote: »

Work has slowed to an almost complete standstill.

Lots of cones etc need to be removed after small cosmetic-looking work e.g. entering the SRR from the North (from Wilton/Hospital) and driving East.

There were 3 guys on the whole Roundabout at 1200 on Friday - a few weeks with a decent crew would get the whole thing finished quickly.

It's getting a bit frustrating to see the job 98% done - and now it's starting to drag on.

Looks to me like the original crews have been replaced by council 'workers'.

Days 298

Anyone else getting frustrated by the lack of progress on the removal traffic calming.

moyners

Came through the BRR around lunchtime and they're applying contrasted light coloured tarmac on the approaches. Finishing touches hopefully.

phatmanwc

moyners wrote: »

Came through the BRR around lunchtime and they're applying contrasted light coloured tarmac on the approaches. Finishing touches hopefully.

Yup, saw they had installed anti-skid surfacing on the westbound diverge lanes, entering the BRR. Looks pretty decent.

Still a lot of finishing to be done on the roundabout itself, will be interested to see how they landscape it. I'm hopeful it won't be the same gravel, and will be a little more pleasing to the eye. Some manicured grass, with a few flowerbeds, perhaps?! Seeing as the flyover is the first glimpse of the city coming from West Cork, it would be nice if something different was done. Maybe even add some creeping plants, to take from the vast expanse of concrete?

Here's a shot of the flyover in Douglas, taken from the parallel access road alongside the SC (Google Streetview), shows how some well-placed planting can make it a little more sympathetic to its surroundings:

kub

phatmanwc wrote: »

Yup, saw they had installed anti-skid surfacing on the westbound diverge lanes, entering the BRR. Looks pretty decent.

Still a lot of finishing to be done on the roundabout itself, will be interested to see how they landscape it. I'm hopeful it won't be the same gravel, and will be a little more pleasing to the eye. Some manicured grass, with a few flowerbeds, perhaps?! Seeing as the flyover is the first glimpse of the city coming from West Cork, it would be nice if something different was done. Maybe even add some creeping plants, to take from the vast expanse of concrete?

Here's a shot of the flyover in Douglas, taken from the parallel access road alongside the SC (Google Streetview), shows how some well-placed planting can make it a little more sympathetic to its surroundings:

I have my doubts that they will finish it off that well. AFAIK that planting in Douglas was done by the developers of Douglas Shopping Centre, they also built that road alongside the shopping centre.

alaimacerc

kub wrote: »

I have my doubts that they will finish it off that well. AFAIK that planting in Douglas was done by the developers of Douglas Shopping Centre, they also built that road alongside the shopping centre.

Well, if my supermarket conspiracy theory has any basis, perhaps they'll get a bung for some potted plants from the one that now has a dedicated off-lane -- not to say a sliproad at SRR and a footpath all the way between.

I doubt that the one that's now only reachable via seven sets of pedestrian lights will be pitching in much, mind...

sonnyblack

phatmanwc wrote: »

Yup, saw they had installed anti-skid surfacing on the westbound diverge lanes, entering the BRR. Looks pretty decent.

Still a lot of finishing to be done on the roundabout itself, will be interested to see how they landscape it. I'm hopeful it won't be the same gravel, and will be a little more pleasing to the eye. Some manicured grass, with a few flowerbeds, perhaps?! Seeing as the flyover is the first glimpse of the city coming from West Cork, it would be nice if something different was done. Maybe even add some creeping plants, to take from the vast expanse of concrete?

Here's a shot of the flyover in Douglas, taken from the parallel access road alongside the SC (Google Streetview), shows how some well-placed planting can make it a little more sympathetic to its surroundings:

Is that shot recent? Planting looks a lot more dense now

dulpit

sonnyblack wrote: »

Is that shot recent? Planting looks a lot more dense now

2011 according to the copyright writing you can just about make out... (next to the tree on the right)

antoobrien

dulpit wrote: »

2011 according to the copyright writing you can just about make out... (next to the tree on the right)

It's not immediately visible until pointed out (unless one is examining the picture closely), then the watermark is faded enough to make one have to look very closely to see what it is.

alaimacerc

More anti-skid resurfacing work on the westbound entrance to BRR this evening, with lane closures.

Ron Scott

Traffic at a near standstill over the 2 flyovers eastbound at rush hour this morning. All those cones blocking off the inside lane, and the only work inside them was one small truck and a couple of lads working in the same spot they have been for about a week. Crazy.

Ludo

Cones finally removed at some stage over night from approaches to Sarsfield Roundabout and three lanes now open on flyover.

hoodwinked

Ludo wrote: »

Cones finally removed at some stage over night from approaches to Sarsfield Roundabout and three lanes now open on flyover.

got caught by that this morning, i was wondering where the cones went before i realised the wilton lane (coming from the east) was opened and indicated in!

spacetweek

hoodwinked wrote: »

got caught by that this morning, i was wondering where the cones went before i realised the wilton lane (coming from the east) was opened and indicated in!

Still not an official completion though? These things seem to drag on for aaages.

Days 298

Nice to see its opened. I didn't see much work done at all during September,

alaimacerc

I suspect someone's earlier speculation that the contractors were finished is correct. Or some large proportion of the contracted workers, at least. But given how little there seems to be left to do, I'd hardly expect Leo V to appear with a ribbon and a brass band, at this stage.

DerMutt

There are still a few contractors finishing off fencing and landscaping around, not a lot left to be done there.

Next thing is when are they going to get to the stabilization (aka mega-subsidence) work on the Sarsfield Road R/A southern end and eastern approach ramp which are as dippy as hell? There are patches done but they're sinking again already!

paulhardman

Does anyone know whether the 60km/h restriction currently in place on the mainline will be lifted? As far as I can see right now there's not really a reason to keep it at 60km/h - no roadworks and no restrictions on the mainline at present.

moyners

Those 60km/h limits can take ages to lift. As far as I know they're only changed after a full safety inspection. On the improvements they did on the N4 at The Downs the 60km/h was in place for a couple of months after all visible work had finished.

alaimacerc

It's not at all clear what they're doing at present -- if anything -- but there was significant coning quite recently. (For example on the eastbound entry to the SRR.) They may be working on the basis that it's better to keep the restrictions continuously until they're completely done, than to take them up and down periodically. As people ignore them either way, I'm not sure I really subscribe to that, but it's the best I have.

TheChizler

The sooner the better, I've been keeping to the limits but had people doing what seems like well over 100 come way too close for comfort before overtaking, and subsequently giving digital abuse for me being so audacious as to keep within the law. Either police the restrictions properly or remove them, the huge speed differences can be lethal.