Now we are working on a National Motorway Newtork..................

Berty

Do we now need?

http://www.highways.gov.uk/

A national highways agency?

Discuss...........I guess.

To satisfy those who will ask what I think.

Their job is to co-ordinate traffic, alert us to traffic issues, clear the roads if their are crash's etc and assist the police in certain road traffic issues and traffic management.

I think they would be a benefit in removing dangerous elements from the roads like rocks, truck tyres, bumpers and help re-open roads faster when a truck decides to either break down or flip over on a motorway.

spideog7

Yea they should also look after the traffic cameras that would help greatly to monitor the roads.

Fey!

Shouldn't this be up to the people who charge us tolls on the motorways, rather than starting a new agency?

After all, aren't the tolls payments toward the upkeep of the road, which should include all of the above?

B11gt00e

I like the idea very much.

The scale of operations tend to make such agencies as proposed here cumbersome. They don't tend do integrated so good here in Éireann.

But since they can't integrate public transportation on a city or national level (physically or electronically with transferable ticketing), you would imagine that the expertise to setup and govern such an elaborate operation as cited here is not within the scope of the bickering types who get the oppertunities to iniatate these iniative.

They first need to learn to do things with the resources and means that they've already had. Many of the the positive outcomes cited in your post are available if only one could get that co-ordinated.

... my input to the discussion would be to ask what kind of agency could co-ordinate such a multi-disciplined type of operation at an economical cost to a country who already question the running and costing of such agencies on a daily basis?




note: I'm not looking to instigate anything here. Merely looking for peoples' interpretation on how to sort real issues such as are regularily debated here

JHMEG

One of the fundamental functions of such a body would be to alert the public to accidents/closures etc. Without an RDS TMC system in place first such an agency would be little more than yet another quango.

B11gt00e

JHMEG wrote: »

One of the fundamental functions of such a body would be to alert the public to accidents/closures etc. Without an RDS TMC system in place first such an agency would be little more than yet another quango.

Right ON.


... how do you avoid this and do it on the cheap? All you need is a few smart and very 'tuned-in' type fellas with the authority to deal with all the parties/organisations involved... Lots of people here are very much tuned in on motor issues, but how do you assure that the right kind of person will get the job?

Big problem nationally was the hiring of certain types for certain jobs... How would you get the right man for the job - the one really best qualified instead of your man who's got a hook.

Big Nasty

If they can educate people on the keep left gig I'm all for it!

Berty

MCMLXXV wrote: »

If they can educate people on the keep left gig I'm all for it!

They would not be a replacement for the Gardai or the department of transport.

Big Nasty

Berty wrote: »

They would not be a replacement for the Gardai or the department of transport.

No s**t Berty, I said educate, not enforce dude!

triple-M

you misspelled a word in your title might wanna give it a quick edit

galwaytt

No, we're carrying 30k/40k/50k too many Civil (self-)Servings, as-is, that's quite enough thank you.........

L1011

We have had one since 1992. Its called the NRA.

The highways agencies job is to *build* and manage roads, just like the NRA. Traffic management is only a part of their duties! They also only do the serious traffic management on stretches of road that make the M50 look quiet; most of our motorways have traffic that wouldn't get a dual carriageway in the UK.

www.nratraffic.ie provides all the traffic data the NRA has its hands on.

Seth Brundle

Motorway network?
I don't think this is a network!

KindOfIrish

Berty wrote: »

Do we now need?

http://www.highways.gov.uk/

A national highways agency?

Discuss...........I guess.

We need to build at least one highway for the start.;)

Berty

MYOB wrote: »

We have had one since 1992. Its called the NRA.

The highways agencies job is to *build* and manage roads, just like the NRA. Traffic management is only a part of their duties! They also only do the serious traffic management on stretches of road that make the M50 look quiet; most of our motorways have traffic that wouldn't get a dual carriageway in the UK.

www.nratraffic.ie provides all the traffic data the NRA has its hands on.

The NRA currently have Lagan doing motorway services with branded vehicles but they are not under specific long term contract to do so. That being said, Lagan would be the most qualified to mantain the road surface.

The operators of the Tolled roads are currently operating their own roads management system as it is their responsibilty to maintain the road they are earning money from but this contract will only last so long.

kbannon wrote: »

Motorway network?
I don't think this is a network!

By the definition itself it is a network though.

Bonito

i like it,brilliant idea,AFAIK the dublin port tunnel is the only stretch of road to have its own private sorta help crew,for lack of a better word,no offence will be taken if im wrong just seen the sign and the jeep for it the other day an remembered it there

galwaytt

Berty wrote: »

... That being said, Lagan would be the most qualified to mantain the road surface.....

Ho Ho Ho, there's a v.large road construction company 3kms from my house that might take issue with that statement !!

L1011

Bonito wrote: »

i like it,brilliant idea,AFAIK the dublin port tunnel is the only stretch of road to have its own private sorta help crew,for lack of a better word,no offence will be taken if im wrong just seen the sign and the jeep for it the other day an remembered it there

*Every toll road
*Large amounts of the untolled parts of the M1
*The entire untolled parts of the M50

are also covered under "concession" contracts with a company that looks after them, provides breakdown assistance, etc.

The NRA has to look after the rest, and doesn't provide breakdown cover!

markpb

kbannon wrote: »

Motorway network?
I don't think this is a network!

You're missing DPT there, would that help?

L1011

kbannon wrote: »

Motorway network?
I don't think this is a network!

By German standards, no.

By UK standards even, it is.