Athlone link road phase 2..

veryangryman

Since 2007 its been clear to all that the crescent junction has been a total failure for access to and around town. Terrible bottleneck and made worse since roundabout was removed.

I noticed the other day that the link road area is named 'phase 1', Maybe there is light at the end of the tunnel for the hard pressed motorist. But nothing is known of phase 2. Can anyone enlighten me on this?

I think that this may have something to do with the aborted one way system they had a few years ago, a system that was designed to be implemented after "phase 2" was complete.
Instead it was implemented before and chaos resulted. :rolleyes:

I believe that there was to be a link road from behind the shopping centre there to somewhere near the Raddisson hotel, most likely shelved indefinitely now.

whyulittle

Getting the land off CIE is the problem, they can't CPO it off them.

They (CIE) rejected the latest proposal because they said they needed an underpass, but weren't willing to pay for it.

nice_guy80

Good old CIE

owned by the taxpayers, but screwing them at every turn

billbond4

yeah not sure where the CPO is on the land the CIE own, as the council will re-introduce the one way once they build the new road over the CIE land.
I didnt think the one way as all that bad

Long Gone

billbond4 wrote: »

I didnt think the one way as all that bad

You can't be serious - The one way system was an absolute disaster.

It made it almost impossible to get from one end of town to the other. What they need to do is get rid of all the bottlenecks in town. For example that island of shops in front of the bawn should have been demolished years ago.

Long Gone

Long Gone wrote: »

You can't be serious - The one way system was an absolute disaster.

It made it almost impossible to get from one end of town to the other. What they need to do is get rid of all the bottlenecks in town. For example that island of shops in front of the bawn should have been demolished years ago.

The oneway was a disaster because they set it up without building the link road for the return leg, how stupid was that!

veryangryman

[QUOTE=billbond4;90894822
I didnt think the one way as all that bad[/QUOTE]

One way is fine if there isn't so many traffic lights. Since they seem to love these lights (and close off any possible rat run), one way is not an option.

A question springs to mind. If the project is in limbo/cancelled, why not reinstate the roundabout? Arguments for and against please. Pedestrians could get across the same way they used to before this sh1t - in fact they'd get across quicker this way.

Long Gone

Deleted User wrote: »

The oneway was a disaster because they set it up without building the link road for the return leg, how stupid was that!

Where are they going to put a link road for the return leg to form a sensible one way system ?

If you want to get from say Irishtown to the town bridge then driving down Gleason Street to the Crescent, up around by the train station to the hospital and then up Northgate Street is NEVER going to be a reasonable option ! .:rolleyes:

Long Gone

veryangryman wrote: »

A question springs to mind. If the project is in limbo/cancelled, why not reinstate the roundabout?

It would cost a lot of money to reinstate the roundabout. They need to do something though. The Cresent junction is an absolute sick joke at the moment.....

Lenin Skynard

I don't think the junction is all that bad from a driving point of view, pain in the arse crossing it as a pedestrian though. The only annoyances about it are the lack of filter lights turning right from Ballymahon road and Garden Vale, otherwise it's handy enough I find.

charlieIRL

Another bottleneck they should get rid of is the one where O'Neills pub used to be, I know it was a listed building but there wasn't much of it left there the last time I passed.

Long Gone

charlieIRL wrote: »

Another bottleneck they should get rid of is the one where O'Neills pub used to be, I know it was a listed building but there wasn't much of it left there the last time I passed.

The building that used to be The Goldsmith Tavern and before that Maguires ?

I don't see that building as being a bottleneck, unless you mean demolishing it and widening the road from St. Mary's place down to Irishtown ?

charlieIRL

Long Gone wrote: »

The building that used to be The Goldsmith Tavern and before that Maguires ?

I don't see that building as being a bottleneck, unless you mean demolishing it and widening the road from St. Mary's place down to Irishtown ?

yes, that's the spot. When you are coming up from the crescent you have 4 lanes of traffic merging at the brow of the hill. If the pub was gone the main traffic to and from the shopping centre could have more room and allowing say a better turn left to St. Mary's, better flow to and from shopping centre. Mardyke Street should be pedestrianised.

Hard describe it without a photo / map!!

veryangryman

From Advertiser today

Ongoing attempts to alleviate traffic issues in Athlone town centre have taken a new twist, after the council revealed a change in design for the long anticipated Railway Field link road.

The council unveiled the updated plans at the April meeting of Athlone Municipal District, which would see a link road run between St Vincent’s Hospital and the Crescent junction. The new plans were prepared following failed negotiations with CIE over the acquisition of the necessary lands for the road.

The original proposal, which was approved in 2004, was for a link road extending from the Coosan Point Road/ Station Road junction, directly through the CIE lands to the Crescent junction. However this plan ran into trouble after talks between the council and CIE broke down.

The Crescent junction was constructed in 2006, and while the council feels the layout “has worked satisfactorily”, it is “convoluted and complex in the absence of the full link to the Coosan Point Road”.

In contrast, the reviewed design reveals an entirely new layout, with an estimated cost of more than €5 million.

The junction design with the Coosan Point Road has been changed from a roundabout to traffic signals, and the proposed link road has moved from the western side of the CIE site to the east. This change reduces the amount of land required, and the CIE lands would not be severed - an issue that was a major stumbling block in the council’s talks with CIE.

This change also reduces the cost of the scheme, as the land required for the road’s construction is reduced, and there will be no need for the realignment of St Francis Terrace.

According to the council’s director of services Barry Kehoe, the new plan also provides for full cycle facilities, and improved safety for both pedestrians and cyclists.

The council is currently preparing Part 8 planning documentation for the new layout. Once this is in place, the council can go back to the Department of Transport to seek funding for the project.

In advance of this, they plan to initiate new discussions with CIE regarding the land required to construct the new scheme, and the works required on CIE lands to facilitate the continued operation of the bus garage.

However Mr Kehoe said he is confident that CIE will be more receptive to the new scheme.

billbond4

What exactly is the new road?
Isnt the "link road run between St Vincent’s Hospital and the Crescent junction." the existing road?

whyulittle

More of a straight line between the two. There is another article somewhere saying part of the new plan involves handing over Southern Station Road to CIE.

billbond4

Ah I see it better now using google maps, yeah I would assume they council would need some land from CIE the way they are making the new link road.
Wish they would paint the roads around town first, place looks like a joke for the last few months

roosterman71

Can someone pop up a map of this proposed road so we can understand what they are on about? Even a line drawn in paint would do!

whyulittle

http://www.bing.com/maps/?v=2&cp=53.426385~-7.937312&lvl=18&sty=h&cid=331DFC68C37C8DBD!174

That's the basics of it, my guess at the route shown.

Mearings

The land was known as 'The Stationer's Field'. Southern Station Road had no public lighting because it belonged to the railway company. This was very convenient for those who had struck lucky at the nearby dancehall.

roosterman71

That was what I expected
To the untrained eye, I don't see the need for a new road there or am I missing something? The junction is a bit farcical alright, but apart from that the road by the station flows pretty well

roosterman71

roosterman71 wrote: »

That was what I expected
To the untrained eye, I don't see the need for a new road there or am I missing something? The junction is a bit farcical alright, but apart from that the road by the station flows pretty well

Same here, it appears to provide virtually no improvement, apart from removing a slow bend from a slow road. I'm guessing that is the plan"B" what was the plan "A" that was refused?

And.. tie-in in with the current (mad) junction that replaced the roundabout on the BallyMathon road