Threadneedle Road junction?

galah

Hi all,

just wondering, couldn't find anything in the search - has anyone here actually ever complained to the council about the stupid light sequence at the Threadneedle Road junction/Taylor's Hill?

I usually go through there early enough not to encounter issues - however, last week I had to be in UHG for an appointment at 8.30 am, left the house way before 8 am, and it took me 45 minutes for a 15 km journey (barely made it in on time) ! And it was just those poxy lights that were holding everyone up - the sequence is way too short to let enough people coming from the Barna side through (no tailbacks on any of the 3 other directions, but traffic was all the way back to Joyce's...).

Would it be that hard for the council to extend the green light in the mornings?There must be enough people sitting iin traffic everyday to warrant that change? or has noone actually said anything to the council?

gordongekko

They have allocated funds to improve the junction in this years budget. But ya they are a joke.

Col200sx

They're a disaster if anybody is turning right coming up Taylors Hill too. Backs up the whole row of traffic.

I read that there was to be an outlaw by the Council on "right turns" with this junction mentioned, but haven't heard anything since about it

JillyQ

Col200sx wrote: »

They're a disaster if anybody is turning right coming up Taylors Hill too. Backs up the whole row of traffic.

I read that there was to be an outlaw by the Council on "right turns" with this junction mentioned, but haven't heard anything since about it

Thought they were going to ban right turns coming up from Threadneedle Road side. Mind you they could do with an arrow there on those lights for that right turn.

gordongekko

The simple solution coming from bearna would be to get rid of the left hand turn filter lane. Have the left lane for traffic turning left or going straight on and the right lane for traffic turning right.

galah

that would make perfect sense (and would be easy to implement also). But even extending the green light by just a few seconds would probably help matters a lot - not many cars make it across that junction even if noone is turning right.

I shall write to the council and enquire (so far, they have always been quick to forward my mails to the 'relevant engineer' but then nothing in terms of response. Maybe I'm lucky this time though ;-)).

Iwannahurl

galah wrote: »

...last week I had to be in UHG for an appointment at 8.30 am, left the house way before 8 am, and it took me 45 minutes for a 15 km journey (barely made it in on time) !

No help to you now OP, perhaps, but if you were me you might go via the Western Distributor Road instead, especially at that hour.

In my experience traffic starts to build up on the Kingston Road quite early, whereas it's still quite manageable on the WDR before 8:30am.

Or perhaps you could even try this 10 km route?

inisboffin

Iwannahurl wrote: »

No help to you now OP, perhaps, but if you were me you might go via the Western Distributor Road instead, especially at that hour.

In my experience traffic starts to build up on the Kingston Road quite early, whereas it's still quite manageable on the WDR before 8:30am.

Or perhaps you could even try this 10 km route?

Yikes, that stretch down to the right turn from Rahoon Rd out to BOD road can be an absolute nightmare though

spurscormac

inisboffin wrote: »

Yikes, that stretch down to the right turn from Rahoon Rd out to BOD road can be an absolute nightmare though

Agreed, think this is the route required to avoid all the crap traffic in the morning

zarquon

spurscormac wrote: »

Agreed, think this is the route required to avoid all the crap traffic in the morning

That section is also chaotic in the morning as the narrow roads cannot support the level of cars on it. All it takes is one or 2 vehicles coming the opposite direction to the traffic flow to create a major traffic jam.

The traffic has gotten worse over the last few weeks on this section. It seems that people are avoiding routes they would formally have taken coming from barna direction.

Paddyfield

That junction is worse at school times but it is not ideal at any other time either. I live on the same side of town but I avoid the junction as often as possible.

The road between Knocknacarra Cross and Blackrock is slow moving between 8.15 and 9am but then it moves reasonably quick from Blacrock onwards.

spurscormac

zarquon wrote: »

That section is also chaotic in the morning as the narrow roads cannot support the level of cars on it. All it takes is one or 2 vehicles coming the opposite direction to the traffic flow to create a major traffic jam.

The traffic has gotten worse over the last few weeks on this section. It seems that people are avoiding routes they would formally have taken coming from barna direction.

To be honest, the only time I've noticed a "major" traffic jam on that route is when a bus or truck decides to come in the opposite direction at morning rush hour, show impatience & plough on to a narrow section, blocking the road.
Only seen it a handful of times and I'm using the route for years.

what_traffic

spurscormac wrote: »

Agreed, think this is the route required to avoid all the crap traffic in the morning

That is one serious rat run.

what_traffic

Iwannahurl wrote: »

Or perhaps you could even try this 10 km route?

Should any car traffic accept local traffic be on majority of stretches of this route?

irisheddie85

what_traffic wrote: »

Should any car traffic accept local traffic be on majority of stretches of this route?

On public roads paid for and maintained by everyone's tax money. Pretty sure anyone is entitled to use them yes.
I would have thought rat runs usually refer to driving through housing estates at stupid speeds not on public roads where admittedly I don't think you could safely hit the speed limit

Iwannahurl

inisboffin wrote: »

Yikes, that stretch down to the right turn from Rahoon Rd out to BOD road can be an absolute nightmare though

Even at 8am or thereabouts?

Iwannahurl

what_traffic wrote: »

Should any car traffic accept local traffic be on majority of stretches of this route?

Fair point. I have been feeling a bit guilty since suggesting it!

irisheddie85 wrote: »

On public roads paid for and maintained by everyone's tax money. Pretty sure anyone is entitled to use them yes.
I would have thought rat runs usually refer to driving through housing estates at stupid speeds not on public roads where admittedly I don't think you could safely hit the speed limit

In truth, though, these are narrow rural roads adjacent to suburban areas. My first thought was that it would be a useful back road for the OP to take for a specific trip. Unfortunately if thousands of people think the same, the result is a network of rat runs.

At the end of the day the fundamental problem is too much traffic, on any and every road.

Mrs OBumble

Iwannahurl wrote: »

Fair point. I have been feeling a bit guilty since suggesting it!

It's well enough known, though even without your help I had colleagues (not locals either) who regularly used in back in 2007/8.

Iwannahurl wrote: »

At the end of the day the fundamental problem is too much traffic, on any and every road.

I actually think it's not enough jobs or schools located close enough to where people live

what_traffic

irisheddie85 wrote: »

On public roads paid for and maintained by everyone's tax money. Pretty sure anyone is entitled to use them yes.
I would have thought rat runs usually refer to driving through housing estates at stupid speeds not on public roads where admittedly I don't think you could safely hit the speed limit

True - everybody pays for the upkeep of public roads. Rat run's do not usually refer to driving through housing estates. If car traffic is diverting from National and Regional roads/routes to avoid car traffic, then that is Rat Running.
Why does one have to "hit" the speed limit?
Speed limits are that - limits, not targets.

zarquon

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

I actually think it's not enough jobs or schools located close enough to where people live

Bingo. In particular as a local resident of the rat run in question i can attest that the majority of the traffic on this run between 8.00 am and 8.45 happens to be school going. When the schools are off, it takes me 15 mins to get across town. When the schools are open it takes 35 minutes for the same journey :mad:

Paddyfield

Most schools were built for a different generation in a small town called Galway when kids walked or cycled to school.

As an example, in Salthill, Scoil Ide was built in a residential cul-de-sac. I'd wager that there isn't a pupil in that school who lives within a 500 meter radius of the main gate. All of the neighbours are mature and their kids have left home.

Every day, that neighbourhood becomes a bottleneck at drop-off time and pick-up time.

McTigs

Paddyfield wrote: »

Most schools were built for a different generation in a small town called Galway when kids walked or cycled to school.

As an example, in Salthill, Scoil Ide was built in a residential cul-de-sac. I'd wager that there isn't a pupil in that school who lives within a 500 meter radius of the main gate. All of the neighbours are mature and their kids have left home.

Every day, that neighbourhood becomes a bottleneck at drop-off time and pick-up time.

any kid living within a few miles of their school should be making their own way to school be it walking, cycling or taking the bus. I know galway isn't as compact as it once was but i reckon most kids are still within a 2-3 mile radius of their school.

irisheddie85

what_traffic wrote: »

Why does one have to "hit" the speed limit?
Speed limits are that - limits, not targets.

sorry i meant these roads have too high of a speed limit not that some one should try and hit it. maybe that didnt come across through text.

what_traffic

irisheddie85 wrote: »

sorry i meant these roads have too high of a speed limit not that some one should try and hit it. maybe that didnt come across through text.

Ah OK. I would agree limits on these boreens are set far to high.

Iwannahurl

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

I actually think it's not enough jobs or schools located close enough to where people live

What's "close enough" though?

Nationally, almost 40% of all trips to school/college are less than 2 km in length, and half of these trips are by car. Overall, 2 in 3 school/college trips are made by car either as a driver or passenger. Source: National Household Travel Survey, 2012. http://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/car-remains-favourite-form-of-transport-for-irish-people-1.1552888

The proportion of kids walking to school in Galway City declined 2006-2011, while the percentage travelling by car went up. The locations of jobs and schools did not change in that period.

zarquon wrote: »

When the schools are off, it takes me 15 mins to get across town. When the schools are open it takes 35 minutes for the same journey :mad:

That invites a discussion that many people just do not want to engage in.

McTigs wrote: »

any kid living within a few miles of their school should be making their own way to school be it walking, cycling or taking the bus. I know galway isn't as compact as it once was but i reckon most kids are still within a 2-3 mile radius of their school.

That's around 3-5 km in metric units. According to the Smarter Travel documentation, 47% of the population in the "Galway Metropolitan Smarter Travel Area" travel 4 km or less to work and education.

Paddyfield wrote: »

Most schools were built for a different generation in a small town called Galway when kids walked or cycled to school.

As an example, in Salthill, Scoil Ide was built in a residential cul-de-sac. I'd wager that there isn't a pupil in that school who lives within a 500 meter radius of the main gate. All of the neighbours are mature and their kids have left home.

Every day, that neighbourhood becomes a bottleneck at drop-off time and pick-up time.

My child cycles 3 km to Senior Infants, and every morning most other children we encounter are being driven the same distance or less to the same school, to other schools in the same area, and to schools even closer to home than that.

Neighbours of ours are driving 800 metres to the local primary school, and 400 metres to a creche.

Iwannahurl

A cyclist was hit by a car at this junction this morning. When I arrived the bike was stuck under the front wheel of a vehicle that had been turning right from Taylor's Hill onto Bishop O'Donnell Road. The female cyclist was shocked but uninjured. Her partner, who was there at the time of the incident and was taking their child to school, also by bike, said that she had been travelling towards Taylor's Hill when the collision occurred.

It's a dodgy junction for cyclists and pedestrians at the best of times, and the sooner layout modifications and safety improvements are carried out the better.

Let's all be careful out there.

dilallio

I used to live next to this junction and there are accidents on this junction every week.
From my own experience, most of these were due to cars turning right into the path of oncoming traffic.
The council's proposal is to get rid of right hand turns for traffic on Taylors Hill Rd & Kingston Rd.

what_traffic

dilallio wrote: »

The council's proposal is to get rid of right hand turns for traffic on Taylors Hill Rd & Kingston Rd.

Not for cyclists though.

http://www.galwaycity.ie/GeneralNews/010813_03.html
"
The prohibition on Right Turns at both of these locations will not apply to Cyclists.
"

Does anybody have an idea when this change will occur? Or will it occur at all?

dilallio

I only know a bit of history going back to June.

It was raised by the city manager at the end of the June Council meeting. He was asking the city councillors to rubberstamp the proposal with a view to carrying out the work in the subsequent 4-6 weeks. This was despite the fact that these changes had not been communicated to the councillors, nevermind the public.

There were a number of subsequent proposals put forward afterwards such as allowing bicycles & buses to turn right (buses leaving the Ardilaun can only turn left so they would have to travel as far as Knocknacarra / Clybaun Rd / Western Distr. Rd. to travel East). There was also a proposal to erect bollards on the footpath to prevent cars on Kingston Rd. from mounting the pavement to turn left onto Bishop O'Donnell Rd.

Not sure what the latest is though.

hal9000

The sooner right hand turns from Taylors and Kingston direction are stopped the better, its a mess! One car holds up the entire light sequence to turn right then 3 other cars rush after them and break the lights, just when the opposite pedestrian light is green!

jkforde

there were council engineers out today with theodolites marking the road around the junction and down to the Deane roundabout, anyone know what the plan is?