Driver Location Signs on N7???

Little yellow signs? They've been around for at least 20 years.

If I'm correct, the distance would be 17.8 miles from the end of the route. That said, the end of the route is likely to have changed.

If they're like the little yellow ones Victor is talking about (which are disappearing fast), there will be no information campaign and they will be removed after 20 years of serving no purpose whatsoever. There used to be one at the junction of the N11 and Nutley Lane, its gone now but the dedicated pole is still there.

Here's one of them outside Athlone at the end of the road from Birr (N62) where it joins the old N6, does anyone know what their purpose was?

http://goo.gl/maps/6yBTn

Lapin wrote: »

I often wondered about that.

The M6 has coundown markers every 100 metres between The M4 and Galway along the top of the central median barrier.

But they're tiny (less than the size of a credit card) and difficult to read.

They are more likely there so that maintenance crews from the company which maintains the median can be sent to the correct spot to do repairs, I doubt if they are there for either the emergency services or the general public. What you're describing is similar to the identification numbers on ESB and Eircom poles.

The medians on the different motorways are tendered out so different companies installed them and presumably have 10 year contracts to maintain them. That's why there's no consistency in the medians, there are cheese cutters, solid concrete and armco barriers. As long as they comply with EU standards, the contractor can pick whichever solution he likes. The NRA would prefer a unified style but EU tendering rules means they can't.

Lapin wrote: »

Surely the NRA can specify their preferred standard median before the tendering process ?

Solid concrete is my own choice.

The cheese (motorcyclist) cutters being the least.

Nope, only that they comply with some EU standard so the contractor ultimately decides the style in each case.

etchyed wrote: »

I don't mean to be rude, so apologies if it comes across that way, but do you have any links or info to back this up? I find it difficult to believe that the law would preclude a government putting a contract out to tender from specifying exactly what they want.

I heard someone from the NRA say so on the radio. He said that they would like a consistent median style (can't remember if he expressed a preference on air) but said that they can't dictate which solution to implement as long as it complied with the appropriate EU standard.

If you don't believe me, can you offer a suggestion as to why a network of motorways all of which are constructed under contracts issued by the NRA have different style medians?

coylemj wrote: »

I heard someone from the NRA say so on the radio. He said that they would like a consistent median style (can't remember if he expressed a preference on air) but said that they can't dictate which solution to implement as long as it complied with the appropriate EU standard.

If you don't believe me, can you offer a suggestion as to why a network of motorways all of which are constructed under contracts issued by the NRA have different style medians?

Well, all of the narrow-median schemes except Athlone-Ballinasloe have concrete step barriers. I was under the impression that the reason for the armco barriers' being used on this scheme was that the NRA hadn't specified which type of barrier was required.

My query is with your assertion that EU law would ban the NRA from specifying such on any future scheme. If that's what you heard on the radio, I believe you, of course, but it still seems a little odd to me. An EU rule like this could conceivably exist to prevent national governments from setting obscure requirements for their own projects, thus diminishing the ability of bidders from other member states to compete. But apparently it is the policy of the UK Highways Agency to install concrete step barriers on all new projects. Such a policy could not exist if the EU was preventing it.

Carawaystick wrote: »

The french system with road markings showing the direction and distance to the nearest emergency phone
https://maps.google.ie/maps?saddr=Portlaoise&daddr=Urlingford,+Kilkenny&hl=en&ll=46.442086,-0.845068&spn=0.010617,0.024462&sll=52.876315,-7.441055&sspn=0.5951,1.565552&geocode=FWw3KQMdF6GQ_ykHTklLNQxdSDHQdDGXqccACg%3BFYVwJAMdhUeM_yklfq5xU99cSDFw0zGXqccACg&oq=Urli&dirflg=w&mra=ltm&t=m&z=16&layer=c&cbll=46.442484,-0.845704&panoid=ksA-V92Sm3NSRAJjt0FBCg&cbp=12,346.84,,2,20.68



Markers for all bridges and powerlines crossing the motorway
https://maps.google.ie/maps?saddr=Portlaoise&daddr=Urlingford,+Kilkenny&hl=en&ll=46.443816,-0.843673&spn=0.010616,0.024462&sll=52.876315,-7.441055&sspn=0.5951,1.565552&geocode=FWw3KQMdF6GQ_ykHTklLNQxdSDHQdDGXqccACg%3BFYVwJAMdhUeM_yklfq5xU99cSDFw0zGXqccACg&oq=Urli&dirflg=w&mra=ltm&t=m&z=16&layer=c&cbll=46.443938,-0.847928&panoid=I3TAVzvDVHhinpb9aWTbTQ&cbp=12,328.27,,2,2.27

And km markers
https://maps.google.ie/maps?saddr=Portlaoise&daddr=Urlingford,+Kilkenny&hl=en&ll=46.446862,-0.852449&spn=0.010616,0.024462&sll=52.876315,-7.441055&sspn=0.5951,1.565552&geocode=FWw3KQMdF6GQ_ykHTklLNQxdSDHQdDGXqccACg%3BFYVwJAMdhUeM_yklfq5xU99cSDFw0zGXqccACg&oq=Urli&dirflg=w&mra=ltm&t=m&z=16&layer=c&cbll=46.44668,-0.852175&panoid=VrBhOPWefMIh9QA68vdT-w&cbp=12,150.77,,0,12.95

Thats a long walk from Portlaoise to Kilkenny

Victor wrote: »

I think they (not the first time) or you might have picked that up slightly garbled.

Sorry Victor, I did not pick it up garbled. I remember the exact conversation, it was on Pat Kenny or a similar program i.e. it was a responsible, intelligent radio presenter and the conversation was civilised and matter of fact.

What the NRA man said was quite specific and was to the effect that they cannot dictate the form and style of the median barrier. All the contract could specify was that the median must comply with the appropriate EU standard and as several different styles were capable of complying with that standard, ultimately the choice was down to the contractor.