N4 Upgrade Works

L1011

Don't think we have a thread that covers this amongst the many-paged various road upgrade threads

Noticed now that the new kerbing for what will be the slips on/off the N4 are going down, as are the street lights, and from just before the Spa Hotel westbound, they were casting the Jersey Barrier in the middle this evening.

The obstructions to the hard shoulder - the islands at Kew Park and the slip out of Lucan - have also been obliterated.

One question - are they going to resolve the carraigeway heights outside the Spa Hotel? And if they do, how are they going to get the frontage road in for the Spa/McCoys/Kew Park/exit from Lucan? They seem to be awfully tight on the constraints there...

icdg

The talk was that the carriageways would be moved further north at this point, but the scheme has been scaled back since it was announced so I don't know if the frontage road for Spa-> McCoys has survived that.

The Stop sign at the Lucan on-ramp is playing havock with 66/A/B services from Leixlip and traffic in the mornings, I have given up getting to the bus to work most mornings...

Rawr

That stop sign is just crazy. How can you be expected the merge when you have to stop? Only in Ireland!! A motorway on-ramp with a stop sign!

L1011

The hatchings along the offramp westbound at Leixlip had been burnt off today, suspect the lanes are moving over one here shortly.

df1985

that stop sign is an accident waiting to happen.someone driving up from galway who doesnt realise that its all changed comes flying off the M4 and smashes into the back of some car pulling out from leixlip.i bet itll happen, just hope its not me!

L1011

They'd need to ignore the 80/60 ramp down speed wise on the M4, the "MIND YOUR SPEED" VMS, the radar trap that tells you what speed you're doing, the lane change over and sudden reduction in surface quality, etc.

Unfortunately, its still probably going to happen

Holsten

Oh.. my god.

This is such a stupid mistake to make. I was stuck in traffic for the guts of an hour today throughout Lucan village.

As you now have to stop and there is no slip road in use, the traffic was backed up as far as woodies, and all the way up Tandys lane, up towards Tescos, all throughout the village.

Idiots! Lucan is total gridlock atm.

sgt.bilko

Rawr wrote: »

That stop sign is just crazy. How can you be expected the merge when you have to stop? Only in Ireland!! A motorway on-ramp with a stop sign!

Have you not noticed that the M4 motorway actually ends before this junction ?????

Holsten

Holsten wrote: »

Oh.. my god.

This is such a stupid mistake to make. I was stuck in traffic for the guts of an hour today throughout Lucan village.

As you now have to stop and there is no slip road in use, the traffic was backed up as far as woodies, and all the way up Tandys lane, up towards Tescos, all throughout the village.

Idiots! Lucan is total gridlock atm.

If you think its' bad now just wait 'till they move N4 traffic onto the (what will be) on & off ramps, while they construct the new carriageway & over(or is it under)pass!

L1011

Garda on a motorbike controlling flow out of Lucan village on to the N4, pushing all existing westbound traffic in to the outside lane. Most of the westbound carraigeway is running along the hard shoulder/former inner lane in two narrow lanes now.

I think I might go back to coming home via Newcastle...

Cionád

Absolute madness out there. My friend got the 5:20 bus from Pearse, its just at the Statoil in Lucan now, thats a disgrace.

Rawr

sgt.bilko wrote: »

Have you not noticed that the M4 motorway actually ends before this junction ?????

I know, but 'Dual-Carriageway On-Ramp' doesn't sound as good .

markf909

Left town at 19:55.

Got through Lucan (via village) at 21:15.

What the hell are they doing?

icdg

The fact that Maynooth/Leixlip trains aren't running may have something to do with the volume of traffic through Lucan. Also the problems in Lucan tonight, as far as I could see anyway, are due to change to the layout of the on-slip at the Spa/Dodsborough.

whosedaddy?

From SDCoCo website

http://www.sdublincoco.ie/index.aspx?pageid=939&pid=14317

.....

By the end of 2009 there will be

* A widened and improved road from 2 lane dual carriageway with hard shoulder to 3 lane dual carriageway with bus lanes;
* A grade separated Newcastle Road junction with the N4 ;
* New Footbridges, Cycle Tracks and bus lanes;
* Closure of Esker Lane

The scheme is being managed by South Dublin County Council for the National Roads Authority Funded by them under the National development plan and Transport 21. The Scheme Contractor is Jons Civil Engineering.

Traffic management

....

Update on Work

The works have been divided into 5 phases for construction purposes. (see attached map for details). Phases 1 and 2 are currently ongoing and Phase 3 is due to commence in early May 2008. Work on Phases 4 and 5 is planned to commence in June of this year and updates on these phases will be provided as the Works progress.

Phase 1 Newcastle Road Junction

The permanent Slip-roads are currently being constructed on either side of Newcastle Road Junction. Adamsdown Road will be closed for a period of three weeks commencing on 28 April 2008 in order to complete service diversions in this area. A Temporary diversion will be in operation during this period. On completion of this work, all traffic will be transferred onto the new Slip-roads and a new temporary gyratory/roundabout will be in place at Newcastle Road Junction, see map below for further details. This will enable work to commence on the construction of Newcastle Road Bridge and the new N4 carriageway beneath.

Phase 2 Leixlip Interchange to Newcastle Road Junction

Works in the median are progressing well. The median concrete barrier is being constructed and the new widened section of the N4 carriageway surfaced. It is planned to move both east and westbound traffic from their current positions to the two new lanes immediately adjacent to the median in early May to facilitate works on the existing carriageways and verges.

Phase 3 Newcastle Road Junction to Ballydowd

Work on this section is planned to commence in early May. Initially works will be limited to the placing of a temporary barrier along the median and narrowing of eastbound traffic lanes. Narrowing of westbound traffic lanes will follow shortly after that.

Phases 4 and 5 Ballydowd to M50 Junction

Work on these sections is not planned to commence until June this year.

L1011

that 'temporary gyratory' looks... dangerous.

It'll probably be safer during peak periods as the traffic will be slow moving and hopefully enough drivers will be courtious enough to let vehicles merge before the queues back up onto the opposite carriageway.

It would make more sense to have lights at these merge points rather than at the junction.

L1011

Does the map not show lights at the merge points? I'm more worried at there being terrible, terrible weaving done by people trying to go N4 West -> Lucan Village and N4 East -> Adamstown/Newcastle than anything.

MYOB

MYOB wrote: »

Does the map not show lights at the merge points? .

Not that I can see!

L1011

Deleted User wrote: »

Not that I can see!

Feck, you're right. I saw the lights symbols when I scanned over it quickly and assumed it had them for the crossing points too!

So if its a roundabout and the most dangerous manoeuvres aren't light protected, what are the lights for?

murphaph

MYOB wrote: »

Feck, you're right. I saw the lights symbols when I scanned over it quickly and assumed it had them for the crossing points too!

So if its a roundabout and the most dangerous manoeuvres aren't light protected, what are the lights for?

The vast majority of traffic will be taking the through route, so in theory it makes sense to leave no signals preventing this traffic from making progress. The signals will be where they are to allow traffic from Lucan/Newcastle to actually get onto the N4 as the stream of traffic would otherwise prevent this at peek times anyway.

Whether or not this arrangement works is anyone's guess. I've never seen anything like this before to be honest. Might surprise us all and flow better than presently!

I would just have lights on the main lines that stop for a few seconds every couple of minutes to allow traffic to "escape" from the loops and from the side roads.

L1011

Leixlip -> Newcastle Road inbound was down to 1 lane in parts tonight (e.g. 10pm ish), but there was an accident at the merge.

Newcastle Road -> Ballydowd seems to have started in earnest now, was also 1 lane both inbound and outbound, suspect this is so they can mark it for two for tomorrow. The lines had clearly been recently burnt off under the bridge at Ballydowd based on the amount of dust being thrown up by the lorry in front of me!

L1011

Passed this last night for the first time in a while (due to avoiding it mostly) "The pit" at the Newcastle junction looks to be pretty much down to terminal depth and the support pillars for the overbridge are being set up (the rebar for the concrete is there anyway). Jersey barrier in place all the way from the junction to the M4 but not from the junction to the existing 3 lane section to the West.

All in all it seems to be coming along fairly well, and the weird 'roundabout' thats in place at the moment at the junction is working fairly well.

MYOB

MYOB wrote: »

All in all it seems to be coming along fairly well, and the weird 'roundabout' thats in place at the moment at the junction is working fairly well.

That weird roundabout works better than the original junction.

jmkennedyie

Newcastle Road / N4 junction bridge beams started going in this week...maybe 50% were done by yesterday.

spacetweek

Just wondering if anyone has a completion date for this? I've heard everything from February to September. I'm thinking not February anyway judging from the amount of work left to do. The SDCC page says February (18 months from September 2007).

bg07

spacetweek wrote: »

Just wondering if anyone has a completion date for this? I've heard everything from February to September. I'm thinking not February anyway judging from the amount of work left to do. The SDCC page says February (18 months from September 2007).

NRA website says 3rd quarter of this year. That is a lot more realistic than september

http://www.nra.ie/RoadSchemeActivity/SouthDublinCountyCouncil/N4LeixliptoM50Junction/SchemeName,15415,en.html

spacetweek

bg07 wrote: »

NRA website says 3rd quarter of this year. That is a lot more realistic than september

http://www.nra.ie/RoadSchemeActivity/SouthDublinCountyCouncil/N4LeixliptoM50Junction/SchemeName,15415,en.html

Just emailed them there and they say "end of summer". They are unable to give me a closer date.