Inter-Urbans and Atlantic Corridor

veryangryman

Lads why didnt they just widen the existing roads to DC (building new ones where they need to bypass towns of course) to save a shedload of money

Just the old roads lie exremely dormant, some of these roads built to good spec. Numerous examples around the country gone completely to waste now save for the locals

I think that for the future, new road projects need to consider simply dualing existing routes

kaizersoze

The ammount of houses and property along existing routes would make it very expensive to dual. Lots of costly cpo's.

Amtmann

veryangryman wrote: »

Lads why didnt they just widen the existing roads to DC (building new ones where they need to bypass towns of course) to save a shedload of money

Just the old roads lie exremely dormant, some of these roads built to good spec. Numerous examples around the country gone completely to waste now save for the locals

I think that for the future, new road projects need to consider simply dualing existing routes

No. That was considered in the Road Needs Study (1998). The cost involved in house demolition as well as access provision (for surviving houses as well as fields, etc.) would be abominable. As would the engineering problems - sightlines, bends, undulation, unsuitable terrain, not to mention all the towns and villages along the routes that would need to be bypassed. The DCs need to be grade separated. The existing roads are all AT grade.

D'Peoples Voice

veryangryman wrote: »

Lads why didnt they just widen the existing roads to DC (building new ones where they need to bypass towns of course) to save a shedload of money

I always thought the same - by building new roads it simply increases the number of roads to maintain - so its a case of pay a once off CPO payment now and knock houses, versus paying to maintain badly constructed roads into infinity.
The good news is that the recession should see a lot of houses in rural Ireland being boarded up as more people migrate to urban areas to get a job. Hence the houses will be easier and cheaper to Compulsory Purchase.

Dr. Kenneth Noisewater

D'Peoples Voice wrote: »

The good news is that the recession should see a lot of houses in rural Ireland being boarded up as more people migrate to urban areas to get a job. Hence the houses will be easier and cheaper to Compulsory Purchase.

Don't think I'd be too quick to call that "good news" :P

But I don't think the urban migration figures would be large enough to signifigantly reduce the cost of CPOs, the days of people just abandoning their houses because they are moving away are long gone.

spacetweek

deccurley wrote: »

Don't think I'd be too quick to call that "good news" :P

Call me harsh, but to be quite honest very few of those houses should have been built. They're monstrosities and a blight on the landscape. They're architecturally dismal. They're energy inefficient. If they're abandoned and the owners forced to bulldoze them, the countryside can be allowed to return to nature - so much the better.