What's your favourite rat-run

westtip

We all have our own short cuts and by-passes using back roads and laneways created usually in frustration with the current road network - what's your favourite and do you want to share it.

Mine used to be a small lane which runs around the back of Edgeworthstown -as you used to come in to Etown from Dublin there was a swing to the right by the church, a small road forked off to the left here, you could drive parallel with the main street avoiding the snarl up and pop out back on the N4 just beside a little cafe called the Dolphin. Amazing how many times flash cars overtook me before Edgeworthstown, I would use this rat run and they would overtake me again looking very frustrated somewhere past Longford on the N4, they would always look bemused thinking I am sure I passed this guy before. It really used to work everytime, of course now made redundant by the Bypass.

Chopperdog

Heading East out of Ballaghadreen.

Take the left turn before the church and follow the road to the left, cutting across the corner of the market square leadiing you directly onto the Dublin Road out of the town.

Cuts out that wicked T Junction to get onto the main street.
Every little bit helps

Kashkai

From the old Leixlip Road into Maynooth, turn off to the left after the Hire shop and this laneway runs parallel to the Main Street and leads onto the access road for the M4. You save a lot of time as the traffic lights sequence is awful on the Main Street.

jd

take a left at the omni santry, can help if traffic is backed up swords rd.

Trampas

Prosperous Dave wrote:

From the old Leixlip Road into Maynooth, turn off to the left after the Hire shop and this laneway runs parallel to the Main Street and leads onto the access road for the M4. You save a lot of time as the traffic lights sequence is awful on the Main Street.

I know the one. Lights are crap on the main street

Bluetonic

westtip wrote:

We all have our own short cuts and by-passes using back roads and laneways created usually in frustration with the current road network - what's your favourite and do you want to share it.

Can't see why anybody would want to share their short cuts and have them online for all to see.

Idleater

Mine's the M50.

r3nu4l

Trampas wrote:

I know the one. Lights are crap on the main street

In fairness, everyone in Maynooth knows this one and if the lights are with the people on Main street you can end up sitting beside Super-Valu for a long, long time The lane is called Doctors Lane.

Mine is for an easy route to NUIM through MeadowBrook and Beaufield avoiding the town and crappy traffic altogether.

From Beaufield, turn left away from Maynooth, towards Rathcoffey, cross the M4 flyover and about 1/2 mile down the road turn right, another 1/2 mile, right again at the end of this short road turn right onto the Kilcock Road and you are at the NUIM entrance. It used to knock about 5-10 minutes off my journey when traffic was heavy on wet Autumn mornings

Victor

I'm not sure I like this thread.

Please stick to discussion about responsible routes.

Chopperdog

Victor wrote:

I'm not sure I like this thread.

Please stick to discussion about responsible routes.

What is so irresponsible what this discussion or the contents of it?

The routes being quoted are all public thoroughfares with no restrictions to public access.


Why go all Nazi on us?

r3nu4l

Victor wrote:

I'm not sure I like this thread.

Please stick to discussion about responsible routes.

I'm not sure if you are asking future posters to make sure their routes are responsible or saying that something already posted is irresponsible. I can say that having lived in the Lucan and Maynooth areas for 28 years, all of the Leixlip, Maynooth routes posted so far are responsible and legal routes.

I dislike the term "rat-run" myself and prefer "short-cut" or "time-saver" as I think "rat-run" implies, speeding through back roads and estates to beat slower traffic. You'd be pretty mad to speed on the route I posted for example as they are narrow, country back-roads where meeting a tractor on a bend is a distinct and real possibility.

The Devil

Victor wrote:

I'm not sure I like this thread.

Please stick to discussion about responsible routes.

:rolleyes:
do you drive victor?
or are you one of these cyclist nazi types?

there's nothing irresponsible about taking a short-cut, the locals may not like it, but people don't like sitting in traffic jams either and if there is an alternative route available people have every right to use it.

Idleater

The Devil wrote:

:rolleyes:
do you drive victor?
or are you one of these cyclist nazi types?

there's nothing irresponsible about taking a short-cut...

I hope you are not one of those car/van driver nazi types that get so het up about "saving" time by ratrunning that they fail to take into account other road users along their chosen route.

Next time you are driving and take a "short cut" to "save time" please just try to sit back for 10 seconds and look at your state of mind. Driving to make up time reduces awareness to other road users and pedestrians because of the concious effort made to "get ahead".

L.

r3nu4l

Whoa guys, ease up on the Nazi comments! I didn't realise there were so many National Socialists here :eek:

Sometimes everybody needs to save time when driving. Some things can't wait, if you have to speed through a rat-run then you shouldn't be driving, however if you know of a route that avoids congestion then why not use it, you will be utilising other roads and reducing traffic build up!

Many routes that are full of traffic and heavily congested are that way simply because many drivers are too lazy to find an alternative and would rather sit in traffic with everyone else and blame the Government for the congestion when there might be a perfectly good road that can be used elsewhere.

The route I posted is safe and can be used by many of the drivers from the estates I mentioned to bypass traffic in Maynooth town to get to Kilcock, Dunboyne and other towns while avoiding the main street in Maynooth. Instead, most of these drivers just drive without thinking and end up blocking up the town and making themselves and other motorists miserable.

I come from Hillcrest in Lucan and that is a serious rat-run for cars, vans and delivery trucks so I grew up living in a rat-run. The route I posted takes the driver into the country and is a nice relaxing drive. These are the kind of routes I would promote.

Kashkai

r3nu4l wrote:

In fairness, everyone in Maynooth knows this one and if the lights are with the people on Main street you can end up sitting beside Super-Valu for a long, long time The lane is called Doctors Lane.

Mine is for an easy route to NUIM through MeadowBrook and Beaufield avoiding the town and crappy traffic altogether.

From Beaufield, turn left away from Maynooth, towards Rathcoffey, cross the M4 flyover and about 1/2 mile down the road turn right, another 1/2 mile, right again at the end of this short road turn right onto the Kilcock Road and you are at the NUIM entrance. It used to knock about 5-10 minutes off my journey when traffic was heavy on wet Autumn mornings

If everyone in Maynooth knows this, how come its always empty when I use it, usually on a busy Friday evening?

The route you mention is a hell of a detour just to get the the Uni. I know the route well as I used to use it as a regular jogging route. Doubtful if you would save much time on it. Perhaps because you are moving, you think you're saving time?;)

r3nu4l

Prosperous Dave wrote:

If everyone in Maynooth knows this, how come its always empty when I use it, usually on a busy Friday evening?

I can't answer that, all I know is that on two occassions I got stuck for seven and ten minutes respectively waiting to turn, I was backed up to past the back of Caufields pub! I haven't driven there in two years and when I left Maynooth they were doing road works on Main street which may have contributed to the build up in Doctors lane. Who knows?

Prosperous Dave wrote:

The route you mention is a hell of a detour just to get the the Uni. I know the route well as I used to use it as a regular jogging route. Doubtful if you would save much time on it. Perhaps because you are moving, you think you're saving time?;)

I did time it on five occassions. If you are coming from Meadowbrook/Beaufield crossing Bond bridge and traffic is light then going through town is the quickest way, however on a wet morning with all the Mummy's doing the schoolrun in their MPVs then you can be waiting for as long as ten minutes just to get to the traffic llights in the town (There were no traffic lights there when I used to drive in Maynooth, which probably held things up more). The other route takes about five minutes or less, depending on weather, speed, joggers in the middle of the road etc

Seriously, not the safest jogging route, in the two years I used that route I never saw a jogger once (mind you I only used it before 9, at lunchtimes and around 5.30 every day).

Kashkai

I tended to jog in the middle of the road to slow down cars using it as a rat run:D

Yeah, I take your point about the school runs. When I went to school, and I mean from 4 years of age onwards, I walked. Why are nearly all kids brought to school nowadays by car, MPV, Jeep, etc?? Lazy little gits will all end up obese. Make 'em walk I say (where's my whip?):D

westtip

Prosperous Dave wrote:

I tended to jog in the middle of the road to slow down cars using it as a rat run:D

Yeah, I take your point about the school runs. When I went to school, and I mean from 4 years of age onwards, I walked. Why are nearly all kids brought to school nowadays by car, MPV, Jeep, etc?? Lazy little gits will all end up obese. Make 'em walk I say (where's my whip?):D

Firstly - I didn't mean to encourage people to nominate "rat-runs" they drive through fast to avoid bottlenecks in the thread title - so short-cuts would probably have been better.

Re driving to school - I agree these kids are molly coddled these days and provided there are safe footpaths for kids to walk on or even cycle on they should getting to school under their own steam - particularly after the age of 13, but they are just so lazy and parents make a rod for their own backs being providing a taxi service. The biggest problem in rural areas is not the distance to school (I used to Cycle 3 miles to school every day in the Midlands of England), but just how bloody dangerous our rural roads have become with the extended urbanisation of the country in one off houses cycling and walking has become a high risk activity - there is no way you would allow small children in particular to walk on a country roadside anymore, it is just too dangerous.

Kashkai

I live about a mile and a half away from the local village school and the road is narrow and used by morons speeding up and down it (its barely wide enough for 2 cars to pass each other without clipping wingmirrors). I drive my daughter to the outskirts of the village but walk the last 1/2 mile or so as (a) its quicker than trying to battle past the mums and dads who insist on driving to the school gate, thus blocking up the road and (b) its exercise for my daughter.

Back to the original point, the OP started out by asking what short cut do you use - there was no mention of rat run. A short cut is used by people with the sense to opt for another viable route instead of acting like an automoton sitting in their car inching along on the main road because thats what everyone else does.

A rat run to me is when drivers speed through built up housing estates putting the lives of kids going to school at risk.

narommy

Why would anyone let out their rat runs/ shortcuts. People should get a map and experiment themselves.

I am continiously looking for a better route to wherever i 'm going. I listen to Livedrive whenever it is on and factor what they say, and my desired objective into mt route.............

I'm going to disagree with myself in the same post.............. I make it from Sallins to Ballymoss rd in Sandyford in an 70 mins +- 10 mins and i'm going to announce it on boardsie (because i doubt many people will get out a map and of those that do several will not find out the finer points of the route and thus it will be dangerous and will scare them and they will give up rather than look at the map and travel an xtra half mle for their safety)(also because a safe speed on the route is 40mph and most people are capable of doing that and thus won't block me)

Sallins-Kill-Brittas-Bohernabeena- Firhouse (if they sorted out the approach from Firhouse to the Firhouse junction (two lanes each way where there is plenty of space ) it would reduce the above time by 10 minutes at least)

Capt'n Midnight

I used to use a shortcut from city west parallel to the N81 and Naas road but once the schools go back it's impassible in the mornings. So instead I join the Naas road from the Green Isle Road and end up crossing 5 or 6 lanes in a few hundred meters, it's only possible because traffic is so heavy it barely moves. The only reason is that SDCC have choked up the Fonthill road so it has less capacity than a single lane, even though most of it is wide enough to have two lanes each way.

Altheus

Here's a suggestion, use Live Local to map out the shortcuts... it's fairly accurate.

To save, sign in with Live/Hotmail/MSN address, and click Share via Email, then you'll get a link that you can give out.

For instance, here's Maynooth one: http://local.live.com/?v=2&sp=Point.swx4nzgfhqjc_From%20Here___~Point.swx9ktgfhvrd_To%20Here___