Athlone thread

flazio

In my opinion They should reduce the Auburn underpass to one lane controlled by traffic lights and set up a cycle lane through there to get greenway users south.

demanufactured

flazio wrote: »

In my opinion They should reduce the Auburn underpass to one lane controlled by traffic lights and set up a cycle lane through there to get greenway users south.

Traffic is bad enough with the lights at the hospital.

demanufactured

demanufactured wrote: »

Tunnel under dunnes will be prime spot for drug use...assault...etc.
Not to sound negative because the greenway is a great thing...but a sad reality .

Yeah, any underpass that is more than several metres long and less than few metres wide can easily become a "trap" that undesirables can exploit to rob greenway users.

Zubeneschamali

Zubeneschamali wrote: »

They are not literally tunnelling under Dunnes. At Dunnes, the Greenway has to get from North of the active railway to South somehow. The active railway is up on an embankment as it approaches the White Bridge over the Shannon, so alongside Dunnes, the greenway has to come down off the embankment and then under the railway.

Would make more sense to construct a footbridge that is attached to the existing railway bridge and link up with the existing roads at the old railway station.
Using the existing bridge to carry the load will save a fortune in construction costs as the bridge is more than string enough to carry a lightweight structure designed for pedestrians & cyclists.
Then it remains at the same level as the rail lines all the way to the old railway station, without having to construct anything elsewhere.

flowerbattle

veryangryman wrote: »

Some good news im advertiser.

Greenway extension granted funding to bridge. 3million to include tunneling under dunnes. Bit ott for a small town i thought but the new bridge will really pull in users of the greenway and hopefully make some lolly for the surrounding shops cafes etc.

Also a link road from garycastle road to IDA business park. Brilliant idea. Traffic that direction is getting hectic.

Making it happen. Good man Boxer

How is this Boxer's doing? Boxer is a great man for making a press release about funding or plans that were going to be launched anyway and he collects a rake of praise for it, regardless of the fact that it would have happened with or without him.

Mearings

Deleted User wrote: »

Would make more sense to construct a footbridge that is attached to the existing railway bridge and link up with the existing roads at the old railway station.
Using the existing bridge to carry the load will save a fortune in construction costs as the bridge is more than string enough to carry a lightweight structure designed for pedestrians & cyclists.
Then it remains at the same level as the rail lines all the way to the old railway station, without having to construct anything elsewhere.

That sounds like common sense but the powers that be have decided they want a new bridge beside the 1844 bridge, no doubt with some unknown's name on it.

Mearings

Mearings wrote: »

That sounds like common sense but the powers that be have decided they want a new bridge beside the 1844 bridge, no doubt with some unknown's name on it.

Yes, and an even cheaper option would be to move the track to the southern side of the bridge and put a segregated greenway along the northern side.
The bridge was built for and used to have two tracks.

flazio

I think allowing public access to a railway bridge like that is just asking for it to be vandalised and smeared with graffiti. It's probably one of Athlone's most recognised landmarks and needs to be protected.

Mearings

flazio wrote: »

I think allowing public access to a railway bridge like that is just asking for it to be vandalised and smeared with graffiti. It's probably one of Athlone's most recognised landmarks and needs to be protected.

re Vandals & graffiti the same argument could be made against the proposed bridge from the Marina to the Luan Gallery. This bridge will also spoil the view of "one of Athlone's most recognised landmarks".

4ensic15

flazio wrote: »

In my opinion They should reduce the Auburn underpass to one lane controlled by traffic lights and set up a cycle lane through there to get greenway users south.

A cheaper option would be to install lifts in the station to take passengers and bikes across the line.

Alternatively they could come down it the ends of the front gardens in Auburn Terrace and under the railway line through a new tunnel before the existing underpass. The existing underpass is expected to be a key element of the plan in bringing traffic into the Towncentre to the railway field and it is more likely to be widened that narrowed.

veryangryman

flowerbattle wrote: »

How is this Boxer's doing? Boxer is a great man for making a press release about funding or plans that were going to be launched anyway and he collects a rake of praise for it, regardless of the fact that it would have happened with or without him.

The same can be said about any politician on any project. However, 2 things make me think he has had an impact...

1. He is regularly seen working personally on amenities in Athlone(e.g the artwork on roundabout at cornamaddy, coosan point etc).

2. The greenway stopped at Garycastle for years. He got elected and within a short time it was extended to white gates.

All of this could.of course be coincidental, but again Im giving him the benefit of the doubt. If it quacks, its probably a duck that did it.

flowerbattle

veryangryman wrote: »

The same can be said about any politician on any project. However, 2 things make me think he has had an impact...

1. He is regularly seen working personally on amenities in Athlone(e.g the artwork on roundabout at cornamaddy, coosan point etc).

2. The greenway stopped at Garycastle for years. He got elected and within a short time it was extended to white gates.

All of this could.of course be coincidental, but again Im giving him the benefit of the doubt. If it quacks, its probably a duck that did it.

Having taken a look at it, he did push for it as soon as he joined the coalition government. But my point still stands, he does announce any tranche of funding that comes to Westmeath and Athlone as if he was personally responsible for it, which he often isn't.

Since you brought it up, fair play to him for working personally on amenities in Athlone, but he's a national politician ffs, he's a minster for the entire country, yet he keeps carrying on like a councillor, or even a council worker. Surely he has more pressing priorities as Minister for Public Works? It's a bit of a joke.

Dr. Kenneth Noisewater

flowerbattle wrote: »

.....but he's a national politician ffs, he's a minster for the entire country, yet he keeps carrying on like a councillor, or even a council worker. Surely he has more pressing priorities as Minister for Public Works? It's a bit of a joke.

All true, but he's elected to Dáil Éireann by people who live locally. It's all about votes, his voters are in Longford-Westmeath and Athlone is his stronghold. It isn't much use to him if people in Dundalk think he's great. Our parish pump political system dictates that this will be the case forever and a day.

pawrick

If you are the Minister in a particular dept. then yes you can get things moving if it's within the remit of that dept. or if you are vital to the government you can put pressure on other Ministers. Outside of that a TD can write as many letters of support as they want and they will have as much impact as writing to the North Pole at Christmas.

Mate of mine worked for a former Taoiseacht and he required all work being commenced in his area to be notified to him beforehand so that he could claim credit. Sometimes he would want to spread out the good news so would delay projects on purpose to suit his agenda, locals loved him.

Unfortunately this is the system we have and it benefits TD's to appear as though they can pull strings even in instances where they cant. I have no doubt having Boxer in the OPW has helped on infrastructure related projects but at the same time it's a shame that we have a highly paid Minister going around filling potholes etc. rather than supporting the councils better so that they can do the work they should be doing. Good PR does not equal good management.

veryangryman

Agree 100% that the parish pump encouraging system is dire, but he's nowhere near Lowry, Healy Raes etc for ficshing roads to get elected. The shannon flood work was impressive during and after the 2009 and 2015 instances and he deserved a Dail seat for that alone.

Sure he bangs his own trumpet, but who gets a job without pushing how great they are to the employers.

Of the people, by the people, for the people. A very Athlonian middle aged man who has similarities to scores of them ive met over the years and deserving of his seat.

Devils advocate paragraph for balance: The times make the man and he has been lucky. The shannons recent floods and the minority government reliant on external support is clearly getting him Varadakars ear more often than Leo would give otherwise.

In summary, democracy is working, just a little bit.

guylikeme

Another photo op today from boxer. Sod turning at 33 new houses in Arcadia. Whoring self out asides i hope to see him doing many more similar whoring sod turns in the town in the coming weeks and months.

Mearings

guylikeme wrote: »

Another photo op today from boxer. Sod turning at 33 new houses in Arcadia. Whoring self out asides i hope to see him doing many more similar whoring sod turns in the town in the coming weeks and months.

Kevin "Boxer-Sodturner" Moran TD.

Addle

Looking for somewhere we can bring a dog for a walk and safely let him off the lead within a few mile radius of Athlone town please?
Preferably somewhere scenic.
TIA

pawrick

Addle wrote: »

Looking for somewhere we can bring a dog for a walk and safely let him off the lead within a few mile radius of Athlone town please?
Preferably somewhere scenic.
TIA

What do you mean by safe? free from other dogs or not near traffic, livestock etc?

Brought my guy to the forest walk around Portlick a few weeks ago for the first time while it was quiet, seems a good spot if your dog is trained to commands.

Years ago I used to bring my dogs to the callows also, plenty of fields to let them run loose and a bit of nature along the river bank.

Addle

He's well behaved but I'd like to bring him somewhere quiet.
Will try portlick. Thanks.

charlieIRL

Politicians will go to the opening of an envelope if its going to get some media coverage, always have, always will.

Don’t know what all the fuss is about.

guylikeme

charlieIRL wrote: »

Politicians will go to the opening of an envelope if its going to get some media coverage, always have, always will.

Don’t know what all the fuss is about.

I think hes far more visible than his competition for westmeath seat. Mcfadden was as useful as Anne Franks drumkit

L.Jenkins

Another Friday and another weekend with no plans. Anyone want to socialise? :P

veryangryman

Traffic on the bypass has been up alot lately.

Schools back asides, it seems quite pronounced the growth. Did that many people really use the town bridge as a long distance route prior to one-way? Or is the town's economy just booming?

Enda Kenny says traffic = jobs. I always find that a cop out. Traffic = sh1te infrastructure and sh1te planning done by sh1te politicians.

veryangryman

veryangryman wrote: »

Traffic on the bypass has been up alot lately.

Schools back asides, it seems quite pronounced the growth. Did that many people really use the town bridge as a long distance route prior to one-way? Or is the town's economy just booming?

Enda Kenny says traffic = jobs. I always find that a cop out. Traffic = sh1te infrastructure and sh1te planning done by sh1te politicians.

Probably a lot to do with the restricted traffic flow in town, but yes the M6 either side of town is much busier as well.

flazio

I wonder if Athlone IT is suffering the same accommodation problems as the Galway 3rd level institutes and therefore everyone is driving into college instead of living locally.

pawrick

Cant speak for other people but I've been using the bypass more often since the town centre was redeveloped, in fact I haven't been through the town since the work started. Before that I'd drive through the town about twice a day when it was quiet. I go in and out on the bypass about 4 times a day or more. I'm all for the town being developed but I'm not even sure what way the traffic set up is now. I'd say a lot of others are the same and come in to golden island from the far side (Ballymahon road or AIT) side now.

4ensic15

Those new traffic lights at the LDC are the greatest curse to hit the town since Ginkell and his fireworks party.

guylikeme

4ensic15 wrote: »

Those new traffic lights at the LDC are the greatest curse to hit the town since Ginkell and his fireworks party.

Am i the only local who doesnt know what the LDC is?

Diskin centre perhaps? Did they finally stick in lights by the aldi turnoff? Badly needed. Alot of nobody knowing right of way there especially with the line paintings on the straight road. Nightmare if needing to cross with prams, elderly people etc.

Otoh maybe your talking about roscommon road junction? Needs more work... i dont think its finished

guylikeme

guylikeme wrote: »

Am i the only local who doesnt know what the LDC is?

Diskin centre perhaps? Did they finally stick in lights by the aldi turnoff? Badly needed. Alot of nobody knowing right of way there especially with the line paintings on the straight road. Nightmare if needing to cross with prams, elderly people etc.

Otoh maybe your talking about roscommon road junction? Needs more work... i dont think its finished

I don't know where LDC is either, but those junctions at Aldi and the Roscommon Rd should be roundabouts, far too many sets of traffic lights in the town already causing tailbacks.


It't back to the N6 most mornings as it is.