Two plus one

BrianD3

There's a new stretch of 2+1 road on the N4 just west of Mullingar. Well it's not a new road, it's just that the markings and layout have changed. There's no barrier in the central "median" yet, not sure if one will be added later.

Anyhow it's apparent that drivers haven't a feckin clue how to use a 2+1. Already I've seen:
-someone stop in the inside lane to answer a mobile phone
-a long train of cars hogging the overtaking lane with the inside lane completely empty
-someone going onto the wrong side of the road (i.e the "1" part) to overtake one of the above hoggers
-someone driving along straddling both lanes of the "2"

el tel

Yikes! sounds like a recipie for disaster-
there's a couple of these 2+1s radiating from the Ballygawley roundabout Co. Tyrone and the best way to describe the effect these two roads have is carnage.

fletch

Excuse my ignorance but what is a 2+1 road?

vorbis

not sure either, I'm guessing its one of those roads where the overtaking lane changes every mile or so to the other side. I think the road from Mallow to Cork is a 2+1 road?

fletch

vorbis wrote:

not sure either, I'm guessing its one of those roads where the overtaking lane changes every mile or so to the other side. I think the road from Mallow to Cork is a 2+1 road?

Oh I've seen one of these alright on the N4 between Boyle & Sligo where its kinda hilly....don't they call them a climber lane or summit?

whippet

2+1's are a great idea in utopia. Unfortunatly in ireland we have incompetent drivers which cause a potentially usefull road develop in to a death trap.

prospect

fletch wrote:

Excuse my ignorance but what is a 2+1 road?

It is a road that has 2 lanes in one direction & 1 lane in the opposite direction.
This alternates every couple of miles.
The idea is you only get stuck behind a slow vehicle for the short stertch, and then you can pass whne your side opens into two lanes.

alias no.9

Lane discipline in Ireland is particularly poor, there needs to be a serious tv and radio adveritsing campaign to support the introduction of these roads.

In queensland in austrailia they have something similar where they have 2km overtaking lanes every 10 km or so. In addition to this (possibly one of the best things about their system), every km or so, there's a sign telling you how far to the next overtaking lane. I found it really drove home the message of why bother overtaking now when theres an overtaking lane just up ahead.

ds20prefecture

When I last drove that road outside Mullingar (about 10 days ago), the 3 lanes were separated by continuous white lines - has this been removed?

BrianD3

There's continuous white lines in the median, but I don't think the median is fully finished yet and it may be about to receive some hatch markings. It may look a little strange at the moment from the eastbound "1" side. But when heading west, there are 2 lanes separated by a broken white line and it is this part that the morons weren't using correctly.

AMurphy

whippet wrote:

2+1's are a great idea in utopia. Unfortunatly in ireland we have incompetent drivers which cause a potentially usefull road develop in to a death trap.

I'd be inclined to agree.
Add to that, sineage may be poor or late or incorrect. Bad weather & darkness does not help.
and there is probably little or no news in the TV/papers as to how to use them.
without some form of "barrier" and or warnings at the transitions, one may never know when one has gone into the oncoming lane.

DoctorEdgeWild

They are excellent ideas in theory and often in practice. As a truck driver, I am often pulling over to let others pass me and these roads give me an oppurtunity to do that safely. Sadly, it is more often than not that I see them being used by morons with absoultely no idea on proper lane etiquette.

byte

I think when the Ballybofey/Stranorlar bypass in Donegal starts, that they will also be using the 2+1 scheme. They are apparently on a trial basis?

I think this idea is already being used in some European countries, I think Germany is one.

vorbis

i think it works well when you have the barrier in the middle of the road. The one by Mallow leaves you in no doubt what side of the road you should be on.

el tel

I've often found that in the few miles beyond the end of these 2+1 schemes is where the real 'action' starts whereby all those frustrated drivers who were unable to make a pass on the 2+1 stretch find themselves on a single carriageway stuck behind a truck or tractor and they would literally burst their ball$ to get past. Maybe I'm relating too specifically to morons in Co. Tyrone but I see similar antics everywhere where dual carriageways have merged into single carriageways.

Alun

vorbis wrote:

i think it works well when you have the barrier in the middle of the road. The one by Mallow leaves you in no doubt what side of the road you should be on.

Surely the road markings (broken line between the "2" lanes, solid line(s) between the "2" and the "1" are a good enough clue as to what the intention is? Seems to work well enough in other countries ... it's not exactly rocket science, now, is it?

Seth Brundle

whippet wrote:

2+1's are a great idea in utopia. Unfortunatly in ireland we have incompetent drivers which cause a potentially usefull road develop in to a death trap.

They are great in principle but as said frustration can get the better of everyone.
Incidentally, my wife's sister in law's sister was killed on the Newry bypass last night which is notorious for revealing frustrated drivers

squibs

The Mallow-Cork 2+1 scheme has proven to be a huge failure. I travel this road every day to and from work, and have seen a serious traffic accident on the 2+1 stretch every other week for the past number of months, where previously I might have seen one or two a year.

The signage leading up to where the 2 lanes converge back into 1 is hugely inadequate. Combine this with the complete idiots who insist on overtaking just one more car when they can clearly see that they are running out of road and you have a recipe for disaster.

It's not speeding up traffic either - on the contrary. Many motorists do 40 on the one lane stretch (intimidated by the barrier) and then race up to 70 when they approach the two lane section terrified that they might be overtaken :rolleyes:

BrianD3

I'm beginning to think that the 2+1 isn't such a good idea due to the number of extremely slow vehicles on the road which could cause an obstruction on the "1" side of the road. At the moment, if Shamie McMucksavage is driving along an N road in his overloaded tractor at 5 mph, he can use the hard shoulder and stay well out of everyones way. With 2+1 roads, you could be stuck behind him for 2 bloody miles. You might as well get out and walk in this case.

el tel

kbannon wrote:

They are great in principle but as said frustration can get the better of everyone.
Incidentally, my wife's sister in law's sister was killed on the Newry bypass last night which is notorious for revealing frustrated drivers

Sorry to hear that dude. Just a fortnight ago a man was killed on that road.
(It's a 2+1 as well with cars in the single lane often overtaking into the dual lane)

prospect

kbannon wrote:

Incidentally, my wife's sister in law's sister was killed on the Newry bypass last night which is notorious for revealing frustrated drivers

Very sorry to hear that . Puts the whole tinted windows, loud exhausts, suv's in town, arguments into perspective.