M6 - Ballinasloe to Galway

KevR

They started laying the binder course at the southern end of the Loughrea link road a few days ago. I'd say they nearly have the whole 7km (both lanes) done by now.

rekrow

KevR wrote: »

They started laying the binder course at the southern end of the Loughrea link road a few days ago. I'd say they nearly have the whole 7km (both lanes) done by now.

KevR's comment reminded me of an interesting point. Why do contractors concentrate on link roads and tie ins before completing the main road. I remember before Athlone Kilbeggan opened being stuck in traffic on the way to a concert in Dublin outside Athlone while the contractors had a stop go system in place to surface the tie in to the existing N6. I thought at the time if they had concentrated on the mainline and then focus on the local roads and ties when the bulk of traffic had moved onto the new road it would have been less disruptive. I know local roads are important but getting the majority of the long distance traffic off the existing roads sooner would surely be a benefit?

kaizersoze

rekrow wrote: »

KevR's comment reminded me of an interesting point. Why do contractors concentrate on link roads and tie ins before completing the main road. I remember before Athlone Kilbeggan opened being stuck in traffic on the way to a concert in Dublin outside Athlone while the contractors had a stop go system in place to surface the tie in to the existing N6. I thought at the time if they had concentrated on the mainline and then focus on the local roads and ties when the bulk of traffic had moved onto the new road it would have been less disruptive. I know local roads are important but getting the majority of the long distance traffic off the existing roads sooner would surely be a benefit?

Because link/local roads are all part of the contract. The main road cannot be opened or handed till the contract is complete.

KevR

Just a guess but could it be that they will use the Loughrea link road as an access point to the mainline M6?

serfboard

kaizersoze wrote: »

Because link/local roads are all part of the contract. The main road cannot be opened or handed till the contract is complete.

AFAIR though, the Ennis Bypass was opened before the link roads were completed? (The fact that it was just before an election was surely conincedental )

veryangryman

serfboard wrote: »

AFAIR though, the Ennis Bypass was opened before the link roads were completed? (The fact that it was just before an election was surely conincedental )

I guess that it doesnt matter which is open first so they try to make progress look good by doing the easier sections first? Like at the junctions between the old road and new road. Gives people confidence in the progress i guess...

Chris_533976

Yeah the Ennis bypass mainline opened almost a year before the rest of it. The downside to it was that the rest of the scheme slowed to a pathetic crawl once the mainline was done.

kaizersoze

Well just after a year of construction the River Suck bridge is all but complete. Not much left for doing except installation of the guard rail and a few odds and ends.






Guard rail/crash barrier waiting to be installed.





Album.....http://gallery.m6.kaizersoze.net/index.php?album=suck-bridge-june-2009

kaizersoze

July 08


August 08


September 08


March 09


April 09


May 09


June 09

KevR

Thanks for the pictures! It's good to see the Suck Bridge almost completed.

Just a little side note - but on the current N6 going over the bridge in the town a pipe or something has collapsed beneath the surface on the Eastbound lane. There a huge pothole there now. Similar happened on the Westbound lane a while back (it was eventually filled in). I do wonder what sort of crappy pipes were laid there when they are colapsing like that..

kaizersoze

KevR wrote: »

Thanks for the pictures! It's good to see the Suck Bridge almost completed.

Just a little side note - but on the current N6 going over the bridge in the town a pipe or something has collapsed beneath the surface on the Eastbound lane. There a huge pothole there now. Similar happened on the Westbound lane a while back (it was eventually filled in). I do wonder what sort of crappy pipes were laid there when they are colapsing like that..

Not pipes collapsing but the bridge itself. It's in a bad state for an overhaul but nothing can be done without huge disruption. They're hoping it holds out until the motorway is open so they can close it for some major structural work.

KevR

It really is in a sorry state, hopefully it will hold out. Do you know if there are any plans to resurface the other bad sections of the current N6 through the town when the motorway opens? It's badly needed.

kaizersoze

Thats up to the NRA and they've been dragging their heels for a long time. The worst stretch is from Portiuncula hospital to the Portumna turn off. Their latest story is that they'll do it before it's reclassified.

dubhthach

Of course once the section bypassing around Ballinasloe is open the old bridge will no longer have national road designation. In which case Galway County council foots the bill and not the NRA. Of course that could be the very reason that the NRA are dragging their feet over it.

KevR

http://www.galwaynews.ie/7941-expensive-construction-equipment-destroyed-fire

Galway News wrote:

EXPENSIVE CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT DESTROYED IN FIRE
Thu 25th June 2009

An investigation is underway in Ballinasloe after 200 thousand euro worth of construction machinery was destroyed in a fire at an open compound on the new N6 roadway
A dumper and an excavator were destroyed in the fire which took place at around midnight last night
Gardaí are treating the blaze as "suspicious

I hope this doesn't cause any delays!

kaizersoze

Jaysus thats poor form. Didn't hear anything about that yet today.:eek:

It won't cause any delays but will probably mean that it'll start getting harder get onto the site with gates being locked and security in place. It's been basically wide open to date.:(

Sponge Bob

kaizersoze wrote: »

They're hoping it holds out until the motorway is open so they can close it for some major structural work.

I would be surprised if it did not fall in this year, it would have to be replaced with a Bailey Bridge if it did ....unless they prioritise the Ballinasloe Bypass portion of the scheme that is .

kaizersoze

Sponge Bob wrote: »

....unless they prioritise the Ballinasloe Bypass portion of the scheme that is .

Even though I said before that the contractor had previously refused to do that, there has been a huge push on that section in the last couple of months. Maybe there's been a change of heart.

Sponge Bob

The delays are all on section 2 ( c athenry c bullaun) where they were still waiting for permission to build 2 or 3 railway bridges in March 2009 and where they cross or pass a deep disused quarry .

The other sections are progressing OK but the only section that can really be opened as a standalone is section 4 , Aughrim - Ballinasloe .

serfboard

Well you may be pleased to know that Frank Fahy was on Galway Bay FM this morning and as usual was erroneously (or maybe not?) welcoming the fact that the Athlone->Ballinasloe road would be open in time for the races and that this would be great since people wouldn't have to be driving through Ballinasloe any more!!

Sponge Bob

anybody who believes a word Frank Fahey says needs their head examined .

KevR

Sponge Bob wrote: »

The delays are all on section 2 ( c athenry c bullaun) where they were still waiting for permission to build 2 or 3 railway bridges in March 2009 and where they cross or pass a deep disused quarry .

The other sections are progressing OK but the only section that can really be opened as a standalone is section 4 , Aughrim - Ballinasloe .

No sign of any progress on the railway bridge adjacent to the R348 South West of Athenry when I passed last week. Irish Rail must really be dragging their heels.

serfboard wrote: »

Well you may be pleased to know that Frank Fahy was on Galway Bay FM this morning and as usual was erroneously (or maybe not?) welcoming the fact that the Athlone->Ballinasloe road would be open in time for the races and that this would be great since people wouldn't have to be driving through Ballinasloe any more!!

:rolleyes:

kaizersoze

serfboard wrote: »

Well you may be pleased to know that Frank Fahy was on Galway Bay FM this morning and as usual was erroneously (or maybe not?) welcoming the fact that the Athlone->Ballinasloe road would be open in time for the races and that this would be great since people wouldn't have to be driving through Ballinasloe any more!!

Holy fuck. What kind of a gombeen is he?:(

KevR wrote:

http://www.galwaynews.ie/7941-expens...destroyed-fire

Quote:
Originally Posted by Galway News
EXPENSIVE CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT DESTROYED IN FIRE
Thu 25th June 2009

An investigation is underway in Ballinasloe after 200 thousand euro worth of construction machinery was destroyed in a fire at an open compound on the new N6 roadway
A dumper and an excavator were destroyed in the fire which took place at around midnight last night
Gardaí are treating the blaze as "suspicious

I hope this doesn't cause any delays!

Doesn't look like spontanious combustion to me.
As I suspected, it happened in Pollboy.
Looks like the dump truck, the digger and the dumper were done.

Carawaystick

good stuff with the Suck bridge Kaiser, but there seems a good whack of work to go still, there was a big gap between the bridge and the embankment to be filled, and the bridge needs to be surfaced.

kaizersoze

Carawaystick wrote: »

good stuff with the Suck bridge Kaiser, but there seems a good whack of work to go still, there was a big gap between the bridge and the embankment to be filled, and the bridge needs to be surfaced.

It's the structure itself thats almost complete. Still a bit to be done around it and the rate they're moving that won't take long.
What gap do you mean?

The pavers are fast approaching...


Another question came to mind today as well.
How are they going to get services accross?
There's no obvious way left in the structure for it and there is ducting in both verges to be brought accross. They'll hardly just lay them on the surface and pave over them, will they?

antoobrien

KevR wrote: »

No sign of any progress on the railway bridge adjacent to the R348 South West of Athenry when I passed last week. Irish Rail must really be dragging their heels.
:rolleyes:

Excuse my ignorance but is that the road between Derrydonnell & Athenry? It looked like they had a lot of work done there when I passed last night. Can anyone shed any more light on this?

KevR

antoobrien wrote: »

Excuse my ignorance but is that the road between Derrydonnell & Athenry? It looked like they had a lot of work done there when I passed last night. Can anyone shed any more light on this?

That's the one. They have the bridge over the R348 road in place for quite some time. Work on the bridge over the railway has been very slow in comparison. A month or so ago they erected the retaining walls and have done a bit more earthwork at the railway bridge but work then stalled and the last time I passed there had been no progress since a month or more previously.

What was the situation there when you passed last night?

antoobrien

KevR wrote: »

What was the situation there when you passed last night?

Unfortunately I wasn't able to see very well as I was driving.

My passenger said it looked like they had the structure in place but i couldn't see myself and I didn't travel back that way (we were going to a match before heading to Dublin for work) so I wasn't able to take a look from the other side:(

KevR

I should be passing again in the next week or two so i'll try to see what the situation is then (and maybe get a picture).

Chris_533976

KevR wrote: »

I should be passing again in the next week or two so i'll try to see what the situation is then (and maybe get lots of pictures).

Fixed