M9 - Waterford motorway construction updates

Trick of the Tail

I suspect there may be other parties, who wear a uniform for work, thinking the same way as you.

Imagine the speed gun lenses being shined up as we speak.

After all, it will be a 'dangerous' road, so speed limits will have to be rigorously enforced.

A.

Minister

I received a phone call from a very sure source within Kilkenny Co Co that all works on the new road are complete. All that remains is cosmetic stuff...trees, link road tidying etc. There are, possibly, some audits being completed. However, this is hard to imagine as we discussed these audits here in the last two weeks and they appeared nearly complete.

At this stage, according to my source, the new road is fit to take traffic from Grannagh to Danesfort.

Maybe we should storm the barricades and use our vehicles to clear the barriers and use the bloody road!!

dougal

Minister wrote: »

I received a phone call from a very sure source within Kilkenny Co Co that all works on the new road are complete. All that remains is cosmetic stuff...trees, link road tidying etc. There are, possibly, some audits being completed. However, this is hard to imagine as we discussed these audits here in the last two weeks and they appeared nearly complete.

At this stage, according to my source, the new road is fit to take traffic from Grannagh to Danesfort.

Maybe we should storm the barricades and use our vehicles to clear the barriers and use the bloody road!!

Yeah they should open it and have their ribbon cutting ceremony later.
It is obviously finished but they care more about getting pictures in the paper!

fresca

dougal wrote: »

Yeah they should open it and have their ribbon cutting ceremony later.
It is obviously finished but they care more about getting pictures in the paper!

Yip. It's all about PR for this government...

Road-Hog

Minister wrote: »

I received a phone call from a very sure source within Kilkenny Co Co that all works on the new road are complete. All that remains is cosmetic stuff...trees, link road tidying etc. There are, possibly, some audits being completed. However, this is hard to imagine as we discussed these audits here in the last two weeks and they appeared nearly complete.

At this stage, according to my source, the new road is fit to take traffic from Grannagh to Danesfort.

Maybe we should storm the barricades and use our vehicles to clear the barriers and use the bloody road!!

Road safety audits can result in quite a singnifcant amount of work, I have heard of over 500m of concrete median barrier having to be replaced as it was out of spec, signs blocking sight lines at intersections having to be relocated.............all within a couple of weeks of opening........a lot of people on this site appear to think/have opinions on when a road can open based on rumour and hearsay and the odd cycle up an unfinished motorway with the odd glance over an under/overbridge...!!

Amtmann

Road-Hog: What are your sources for that? More hot air from the the offices of those involved with the scheme, or are you actually being serious? If you can tell us which signs are obscuring sight-lines I'm sure one of the lads here will happily confirm whether or not they get moved in the next two weeks. Ditto for the barrier.

Road-Hog

Furet wrote: »

Road-Hog: What are your sources for that? More hot air from the the offices of those involved with the scheme, or are you actually being serious? If you can tell us which signs are obscuring sight-lines I'm sure one of the lads here will happily confirm whether or not they get moved in the next two weeks. Ditto for the barrier.

I think you should read things a bit more carefully/slowly, where did I say I was referring to the M9? I was merely making the point that Road Safety Audits can sometimes throw up remedial works of significant scale...........

Mr Clonfadda

Any Audit of anything can throw up issues which are generally sorted before an audit is signed off. I don't believe anyone is suggesting that the M9 should open prior to a safety Audit being signed off

Amtmann

Road-Hog wrote: »

I think you should read things a bit more carefully/slowly, where did I say I was referring to the M9? I was merely making the point that Road Safety Audits can sometimes throw up remedial works of significant scale...........

I think you should think about how you compose your prose a bit more carefully in the future so, so that misunderstanding is avoided. Given the context of the post you were replying to, it was far from unreasonable of me to conclude that you were referring to the M9.

Road-Hog

Furet wrote: »

I think you should think about how you compose your prose a bit more carefully in the future so, so that misunderstanding is avoided. Given the context of the post you were replying to, it was far from unreasonable of me to conclude that you were referring to the M9.

I apologise for my sloppiness, unfortunately we don't all have the liberty of time to be able to compose and proof read 'prose' for posting on an informal Internet discussion board.

Tech3

Road-Hog wrote:

a lot of people on this site appear to think/have opinions on when a road can open based on rumour and hearsay and the odd cycle up an unfinished motorway with the odd glance over an under/overbridge...!!

You have mentioned this now how many times? Is it not reasonable enough to assume a road is close to completion given a visual look of the wearing course is down, ADS is up and the road is lined and studded? I would have thought so maybe there is a snag list but the road itself is 98% completed? Generally we have predicted road openings very accuractly except the one mishap of the Nenagh-Limerick scheme and it isint suprising to see why given the shambolic work being carried out there.

dougal

Road-Hog wrote: »

a lot of people on this site appear to think/have opinions on when a road can open based on rumour and hearsay and the odd cycle up an unfinished motorway with the odd glance over an under/overbridge...!!

Actually you are the only one making that assumption.
What we are saying is based on the fact that KK Co Co said that the final Road Safety Audit was conducted 2 weeks ago that IF this is satisfactory ( and we have no reason to believe it wasn't ) the road should be opened and not delayed for some nonsensical photo opportunity.

This piece of infrastructure is 1 year LATE and now they are planning a celebration to open it even later!!!!!

tonc76

dougal wrote: »

Actually you are the only one making that assumption.
What we are saying is based on the fact that KK Co Co said that the final Road Safety Audit was conducted 2 weeks ago that IF this is satisfactory ( and we have no reason to believe it wasn't ) the road should be opened and not delayed for some nonsensical photo opportunity.

This piece of infrastructure is 1 year LATE and now they are planning a celebration to open it even later!!!!!

1. Even when a RSA is conducted, the report has to be compiled and sent to the Designers who then have to either agree to the recommendations and mitigate against the issues raised or disagree with the recommendations on grounds of x, y or z. Once this has been done , the road will have to be revisited by the auditors to check if any issues remain. If no issues remain the RSA can then be signed off.

2. Unless you have seen the RSA report, there is no way of telling what works are required.

3. If my aunty had balls she'd be my uncle. :pac:

dougal

tonc76 wrote: »

1. Even when a RSA is conducted, the report has to be compiled and sent to the Designers who then have to either agree to the recommendations and mitigate against the issues raised or disagree with the recommendations on grounds of x, y or z. Once this has been done , the road will have to be revisited by the auditors to check if any issues remain. If no issues remain the RSA can then be signed off.

2. Unless you have seen the RSA report, there is no way of telling what works are required.

3. If my aunty had balls she'd be my uncle. :pac:

Sorry the opening has already been confirmed - no if's about it. My mistake in the original post!

Bards

I just think it is a huge coincidence that the road is being opened (everything signed off etc etc) the very first working day that the ministers are back form their anual St. Patrick day Jaunt.

Bear in mind a lot of people (Council Staff etc) will take an extra long weekend considering St. Patrick day falls on a Wednesday this year, therefore it should be safe to assume that all paperwork e5tc would have to be finalised by close of business Friday 12th March (The original Date being mooted):rolleyes:

lotie

I think we just need to accept that we are right that the road should already be open but that it will not be open until 22nd.

However, we should not accept that any 'celebration' of the shocking project management of this scheme is appropriate.

Therefore we need to prepare a campaign of information to highlight the fact that this scheme was delieverd one year late. Our goal should be that no reportage of the opening should not include this fact.

I'll leave it open as how this campaign should be prepare and executed!

johnbk

I have been so disappointed in the Sothern section of this road. I will be using it every day when it opens for getting to work and the sooner it opens the better. IMO there is only one reason this road has been so delayed and that is BAM’s involvement in the Waterford bypass. For whatever reason they did not commit resources off the Waterford bypass onto the M9. The delay had nothing to do with bad weather or the water around Mullinavat. BAM didn’t start the section between the scrap yard and Mullin vat at all until 15 months ago. The rate at which they completed it once they started was actually quite impressive. Before this nothing was happening for 9 months on this section.
The delay now of 10 days doesn’t bother me as much at all as the debacle of the Castledermot section on the northern end. That section was finished officially and ready to open. I suspect that there is considerable snagging still to be carried out on BAM’s section and lane closures wont surprise me over the next couple of months either. Their general tidiness too leads a lot to be desired.

L1011

Noticed some interested 'recycling' by Roadbridge - the temporary green signs on the roundabout at Paulstown have "N8" half-arsedly painted out on them. Probably stroked off the leftovers from Cashel Mitchelstown...

kieranb07

I noticed something there on Wed night about 8:35pm there at J6 Powerstown junction just
as you come onto the motorway going northbound there was 2 fire trucks with
full lights blazing on the closed off part of the road in behind the concrete barriers not sure what the were at...?
Anyone hear anything about it?
The road wouldnt be near enough for saftey checks would it!!!

redtelephone

A neighbour tells me that he heard from one of the Roadbridge workers at J7 last week that Powerstown - Danesfort should be finished by early July. I think it's certainly possible, so hopefully we'll have the full M9 up and running by midsummer!

johnbk

I think that date should be easily achieved. The entire section has concrete barrier in place. It looks like the wear surface will be placed the entire length of the scheme shortly and not placed in a series of short sections and then driven on by construction such as Knocktopher to Waterford.

Also the remedial work on replacing the concrete deck of the bridge at Bennestsbridge seems to be nearing completion.

The link road into Kilkenny needs substantial work. They are still placing drains along this route with no road surfaces down yet. Maybe the motorway will open ahead of this road been completed?

flop

Well to-day was my last journey up to Dublin via Ballyhale and Mullinavat. Thankfully for next weeks journey the bypass will be in place. I'll be driving back via Kilmaganny/Carrick on suir to Dungarvan on my way home for old times sake.

On a side note as i am driving between Mullinavat and Ballyhale northbound, i always pass through a couple of houses hear a railway bridge. One of the houses looks like it used to be a Pub, the name READE is outside one of the houses. Any idea what this area is called?

Flop

fricatus

flop wrote: »

On a side note as i am driving between Mullinavat and Ballyhale northbound, i always pass through a couple of houses hear a railway bridge. One of the houses looks like it used to be a Pub, the name READE is outside one of the houses. Any idea what this area is called?

Flop

Lukeswell, as far as I'm aware.

I've also seen the name Knockmoylan, but I think if you passed under the new viaduct heading north and then turned left after the bends, that would be Knockmoylan.

dougal

flop wrote: »

On a side note as i am driving between Mullinavat and Ballyhale northbound, i always pass through a couple of houses hear a railway bridge. One of the houses looks like it used to be a Pub, the name READE is outside one of the houses. Any idea what this area is called?

That still is a pub by the way and yes it is Lukeswell as fricatus says.
Knockmoylan is the left after the viaduct although there is also a left just after the pub that leads there too.

Silverado

I was driving down to Waterford from Dublin last night after midnight and couldn’t help but notice that the signs on the motorway were very hard to read in the reflected light of my car. In fact when I came to the junction with the M7/M9 it really was almost impossible to make out until you are almost upon it and gave very little opportunity to make a quick left safely onto the M9. The signs all the way down seem to be like this. Has anybody else noticed this?

Another point, while I have the floor, what about Motorway Service Areas? On the M9 we are due to have two. One near Kilcullen and the other near Bagnalstown (see https://us.v-cdn.net/6034073/uploads/attachments/176815/68362.JPG )
I notice that there is a layby near Castledermot at present. Is that all we are going to get for the foreseeable future?

These, we are told on the MSA thread ( #1) , will take 12-18 months to build so we need to start agitating now if anything is going to be done. Otherwise we will see fatal crashes caused by fatigue and pileups caused by people literally running out of petrol. We won’t even mention pee breaks since they don’t represent a possible safety hazard unless you have to stop in the hard shoulder.

wellbutty

Silverado wrote: »

Another point, while I have the floor, what about Motorway Service Areas? On the M9 we are due to have two. One near Kilcullen and the other near Bagnalstown (see https://us.v-cdn.net/6034073/uploads/attachments/176815/68362.JPG )
I notice that there is a layby near Castledermot at present. Is that all we are going to get for the foreseeable future?

That's all we're getting for now since the NRA have decided to save huge money by postponing them: :rolleyes: :mad:

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055842175

emfifty

anyone got any more pics of this fine new road before it opens next monday?:)

Sponge Bob

Noel Dempsey sends his big greets from sunny Atlanta Georgia replete with summer rules on the golf course, bless.

fresca

Sponge Bob wrote: »

Noel Dempsey sends his big greets from sunny Atlanta Georgia replete with summer rules on the golf course, bless.

tell him to slow down .... he's working too hard... laying all that tar...

Wild Bill

When they started to slash the infrastructure programme last year Dempsey said "we can't just keep building roads for the sake of it".

I guess if that's what he thought he was doing we need look no further to see why the economy is in a mess.