Looking forward to M3?

anotherlostie

For those that regularly travel the N3, are you looking forward to the opening of the motorway though Meath? Or will the €5.60 cost of a return journey mean you stick to the old route (it is €1.40 per toll, one at Dunshaughlin, one at Kells).

Personally I cannot wait til it opens and I no longer have to endure the Navan 'relief road' and its multiple traffic lights, along with Friday evening Dunshaughlin and Kells. I am a little worried about how the resulting traffic will be in Virginia though, and I would not like to be someone trying to get out from the Ballyjamesduff Road at that time. I imagine traffic lights could become necessary at that junction.

Estimated opening is the June bank holiday weekend according to someone in the Infrastructure forum. Unfortunately there will be a few month's lag before the M50 freeflow junction opens and really improves getting around Dublin.

meercat

thats for a car.A van 3.80 per toll.Thats 15.20 return.Total 76 euro per week.Think i will stick to old road especially as the traffic is lighter now.By the way the government has to pay the toll company if enough traffic doesnt use the toll road.What a mess

anotherlostie

meercat wrote: »

thats for a car.A van 3.80 per toll.Thats 15.20 return.Total 76 euro per week.Think i will stick to old road especially as the traffic is lighter now.By the way the government has to pay the toll company if enough traffic doesnt use the toll road.What a mess

Where do you get that figure from? According to the draft toll document on the NRA site, the cost for a goods vehicle under 3500kg is €2.

meercat

sorry .just assumed they would charge the same as the other tolls.still 8euro round trip.40euro per week.thats before i get to m50 toll.traffic much lighter lately.have to see what the time saving is.maybe less traffic on old route when m3 opens.thanks for toll price info

celt262

I have heard that the N3 will be down graded to a Regional road and will have a 80Kmph speed limit. Anyone know if any of the other N roads have being downgraded where there are motorways now in place?

baalthor

celt262 wrote: »

I have heard that the N3 will be down graded to a Regional road and will have a 80Kmph speed limit. Anyone know if any of the other N roads have being downgraded where there are motorways now in place?

They all have; the M3 is now the primary road so no need for another one beside it. It doesn't follow that the speed has to be reduced but it has been in all the downgraded roads AFAIK

shannon82

the speed limit was reduced from kinnegad to dublin from 100 to 80.

Also i heard that it now wont be opened the June Bank holiday. The contracter apparently got another job and took alot of his people off the M3, but it will open on the expected date in Sept!

unclebill98

I can not wait for it, but I a sure this has been talked about on other post but we on earth have they put up 2 tolls with barriers.... When Barrier Free Tolling is working very well on the M50.

F'in stupid.

sarahinnavan

I'm really looking forward to it. The N3 is a pain in the a**e. Epecially with all the changes to facilitate the building of the new road. Can't wait for it to be finished

M three

unclebill98 wrote: »

I can not wait for it, but I a sure this has been talked about on other post but we on earth have they put up 2 tolls with barriers.... When Barrier Free Tolling is working very well on the M50.

F'in stupid.

true. completely ridiculous. why didnt they utilise the technology currently used only a few miles up the road.

who was responsible for this brainwave??

bauderline

I cannot wait for this to open, it will chop my commute time in half, and will make trips to the mother in laws (childminder) a good deal handier....

Pissed off though they are stringing this out to September....

_Kaiser_

unclebill98 wrote: »

I can not wait for it, but I a sure this has been talked about on other post but we on earth have they put up 2 tolls with barriers.... When Barrier Free Tolling is working very well on the M50.

F'in stupid.

M three wrote: »

true. completely ridiculous. why didnt they utilise the technology currently used only a few miles up the road.

who was responsible for this brainwave??

It's simple really...

In years to come they'll decide to go "barrier free" to much applause and headlines.. it'll cost a fortune, cost massive disruption, and the contractor will make a fortune in the process.

Good ole Ireland eh! :rolleyes:

(oh and I hear there ARE traffic lights due to be installed in Virginia at the Baileborough junction - about time too! Now if they could sort out that garage on the same corner.. the way idiots cut in and out of the forecourt there is lethal!)

spacetweek

I assume there will be a freeflow lane for people with tags? Every other toll plaza in the country has them.

So it is freeflow, then.

FYI, completely removing barriers is usually only done on urban distributor roads like the M50 (The M50 is not a bypass). Everyone using the M50 lives in Dublin and isn't inconveniced by having to get a tag.

The M3, on the other hand, is a long distance trunk road and a lot of the traffic mightn't live anywhere in the area and is just passing through. In which case having to get a tag would be annoying as you'd hardly ever use it. So cash needs to be accepted.

M three

Kaiser2000 wrote: »

It's simple really...

In years to come they'll decide to go "barrier free" to much applause and headlines.. it'll cost a fortune, cost massive disruption, and the contractor will make a fortune in the process.

Good ole Ireland eh! :rolleyes:

(oh and I hear there ARE traffic lights due to be installed in Virginia at the Baileborough junction - about time too! Now if they could sort out that garage on the same corner.. the way idiots cut in and out of the forecourt there is lethal!)

not much they can do about that filling station. they gave planning permission for it in the first place. unless they bought it of the guy for a fortune and that'd cause some fuss!

anotherlostie

The Irish Times yesterday confirmed the M3 is opening on June 4th and that the toll would be €1.30, so it will be 10c less than originally proposed. Looking forward to using it now!

taffy1973

Signs last week put up on the M3 at fairyhouse said 1.90 for car and 3.80 for vans but were then covered with grey paint, think the 1.30 for car and 2.00 for van is only until the end of the year as a sweetener to reel you into using this road all the time, plus there are 2 tolls, one at fairyhouse and another north of kells so i am told, can anyone confirm this?????

cournioni

taffy1973 wrote: »

Signs last week put up on the M3 at fairyhouse said 1.90 for car and 3.80 for vans but were then covered with grey paint, think the 1.30 for car and 2.00 for van is only until the end of the year as a sweetener to reel you into using this road all the time, plus there are 2 tolls, one at fairyhouse and another north of kells so i am told, can anyone confirm this?????

Yes, that is true and is an absolute disgrace.

unclebill98

Yes its a farce tbh. I bet the aul truckers will still use the old road.... and rightly so.

So it will be over 23 euro to go from Cavan to Tallaght and back.

M three

You'll find that a number of changes will probably be made to the old road to "encourage" drivers to use the tolled motorway
- speed limits will be decreased on the old road
- more traffic lights and pedestrian crossings will be erected on the old route
- traffic lights on the old route will be programmed in favour of local roads, around navan etc
the street in kells will probably be dug up and redone. this needed to be done for years but couldnt due to volume of through traffic

all in all even allowing for toll, the vast majority of people will use the tolled motorway. truckers will save fuel on the motorway which in some way negates the toll charge

unclebill98

M three wrote: »

You'll find that a number of changes will probably be made to the old road to "encourage" drivers to use the tolled motorway
- speed limits will be decreased on the old road
- more traffic lights and pedestrian crossings will be erected on the old route
- traffic lights on the old route will be programmed in favour of local roads, around navan etc
the street in kells will probably be dug up and redone. this needed to be done for years but couldnt due to volume of through traffic

all in all even allowing for toll, the vast majority of people will use the tolled motorway. truckers will save fuel on the motorway which in some way negates the toll charge

A feck you, you right in what you say... after all your the roads named after you.

There is many sections of the road that need to be re-done, in Navan at the tracks is shocking.

munchkin_utd

unclebill98 wrote: »

Yes its a farce tbh. I bet the aul truckers will still use the old road.... and rightly so.

So it will be over 23 euro to go from Cavan to Tallaght and back.

Free though if you go via Mullingar (and Kinnegad town rather than tolled motorway bypass) and hit the M50 south of the toll bridge!!

With a truck theres no big time saving to be on a motorway seeing as they cant take advantage of the 120kmh anyhow.

M three

munchkin_utd wrote: »

Free though if you go via Mullingar (and Kinnegad town rather than tolled motorway bypass) and hit the M50 south of the toll bridge!!

With a truck theres no big time saving to be on a motorway seeing as they cant take advantage of the 120kmh anyhow.

Not sure about that. there's a time saving even for lorries using a motorway or bypass, far less or almost no slowing down at junctions, towns, schools, lights etc etc

our lorries go from dublin to cavan during work hours and average a speed of 35mph. they will average 60 mph on that route now with the M3

unclebill98

munchkin_utd wrote: »

Free though if you go via Mullingar (and Kinnegad town rather than tolled motorway bypass) and hit the M50 south of the toll bridge!!

With a truck theres no big time saving to be on a motorway seeing as they cant take advantage of the 120kmh anyhow.

yes, going far out of the way would be the best option..... :rolleyes:

_Kaiser_

Just under a week to go, and from looking at the thread over in Infrastructure it seems there's a fair bit to be done yet!

I'm predicting traffic in Virginia will be chaos when this opens. It's bad enough during school start/finish and peak commuting hours, but with all this motorway traffic about to be dumped on the town (where previously it would have been staggered by Dunshaughlin, Navan and Kells), I can already see the massive tailbacks that will result

Two tolls on the road is a massive disincentive - as has already been noted it's not too bad if you're only going as far as Navan say, but if you're going across the M50 as well the money will soon add up!

I'll be out next weekend for the spin anyway, but I'd imagine a lot of traffic will continue to use the old road once the novelty wears off and the costs go up.

unclebill98

People are going to avoid the M3 for the tolls. I'm looking forward to using it.

IIRC there is only 2 tolls from the M50 to the Jack Lynch tunnel and that road has got to be at least twice the lenght of the m3 if not longer, that is hit with 2 also. Somethings not right with that.

Its very unfair and its not barrier free!

Virginia will be a nightmere and as mentioned and it seems like a logical thing to do, extra traffic lights in Virginia are due and thats not going to help things.

Does any know where the 2nd toll is located? Can you head from Cavan to Kells and then join the M3 to avoid the 2nd toll?

Also, from a service point of view. I'm no longer going to come off at Navan to use the 24hr garage or the one outside Dunshaighlan, So its a petrol station before the M50 round about or then Cavan town. Not very good....

anotherlostie

Until services are built on the route, people should try and toll dodge when they need to get petrol/ pee/ eat. I'm sure the two stations at Maghera are delighted - they'll be the first stations after the Esso just before the M50 junction on the route. And I wonder will the likes of the Emo between Dunshaughlin and Clonee survive (it looks very isolated from driving on the final stretch of the motorway last night).

I think the tolling is fairer than on the M4, where you pay €2.90 at a single point, regardless of how long you're using the road for. This way you'll pay €1.30 if you only use some of it, and €2.60 if you travel the length of it. I haven't heard about these being 'special 2010 rates' anywhere other than here. I hope it's not true. As for toll dodging, I'm sure it will probably cost more in petrol sitting in traffic at lights in the various towns (not to mention crawling through Carnaross and Rathbeggan). They've already installed a pedestrian crossing by the Super Valu in Kells, and I'm sure more changes will follow to give preference to the crossing traffic. No doubt Virginia awaits Friday evening with interest!

unclebill98

Yeah, the garage at the end has started a small chip van..!!! Wishful thinking tbh!

Whats the price for vans? Under 3.5ton.

munchkin_utd

unclebill98 wrote: »

Yeah, the garage at the end has started a small chip van..!!! Wishful thinking tbh!

Whats the price for vans? Under 3.5ton.

goods vehicles up to 3.5 ton is 2 euro per toll

http://www.nra.ie/Publications/DownloadableDocumentation/PublicPrivatePartnership/file,17145,en.pdf

_Kaiser_

Just to note that they were out this evening between the Silver Tankard (Navan) and the new roundabout on the Meath/Cavan border taking down all the 100 km/h signs and replacing them with 80s

Not sure if these are "legal" yet but be warned!

unclebill98

Well in all fairness, I have clocked up over 200,000km on the N3 over the years and the people i see don't stick to the 100km limit anyhow.

Not long now...

Does anyone know from the start in Carnaross to the M50 interchange exactly how long it will take? Also, does the quicklane only allow cars? I drive a van...

M three

i wouldnt forsee an issue Unclebill driving a van in the quicklane. so long as you are going quick and not getting in someone else's way. as you point out no body pays any attention to the speeds on the N3.

Is new road definately opening this Friday after the local politicians stick their fat faces in front of the cameras? The NRA website is still saying July and the contractors website doesnt mention a specific open date.

_Kaiser_

unclebill98 wrote: »

Well in all fairness, I have clocked up over 200,000km on the N3 over the years and the people i see don't stick to the 100km limit anyhow.

Not long now...

Does anyone know from the start in Carnaross to the M50 interchange exactly how long it will take? Also, does the quicklane only allow cars? I drive a van...

M three wrote: »

i wouldnt forsee an issue Unclebill driving a van in the quicklane. so long as you are going quick and not getting in someone else's way. as you point out no body pays any attention to the speeds on the N3.

Is new road definately opening this Friday after the local politicians stick their fat faces in front of the cameras? The NRA website is still saying July and the contractors website doesnt mention a specific open date.

I know that a lot of people pay no heed to the current 100 km/h limit - hell most of the people I meet on this road in particular (never seen it as bad anywhere else!) can't do anything about 80 km/h anyway, so a reduced limit will make no difference to them! :rolleyes:

However, I'm sure the Gardai, will be all over the "old" road (for the first few weeks anyway) catching people who dare to exceed the now ridiculous 80 km/h limit it'll now carry.

cournioni

Kaiser2000 wrote: »

I know that a lot of people pay no heed to the current 100 km/h limit - hell most of the people I meet on this road in particular (never seen it as bad anywhere else!) can't do anything about 80 km/h anyway, so a reduced limit will make no difference to them! :rolleyes:

Couldn't agree more. It's the worst road I've ever seen for people actually holding up traffic. Some at 60-80 kmph, which would put alot of drivers at risk of falling asleep behind the wheel. :pac:

Imbolc57

In the summer of 2007 I joined the protests against the M3 motorway cutting through the Tara Complex. On the protest lines and in the camps I heard about the dark machinations of Capitalism, the one and only reason accepted for the road’s construction.
Yet when I read the NRA, Meath County Council or Government reasons on why this road was being built an exploding population in Meath was always the main reason given.
The population of Meath was indeed exploding and it was caused solely by immigration.
However when I mentioned this on the protest lines, in the camps etc, it was rejected.
People had been programmed to believe that immigration would enhance us.
I did not believe this.
I told people instead that if they accepted the rise in population then they must accept the rise in road building, development etc, but it was inferred that this was racism.
The present jobs problem trots along this exact same line.
Unemployment has been caused as much by the dismantling of borders and mass immigration into here as by banking failure or corruption.
A look into any shop, building site or van will show this. There are still loads of jobs available but they pay only minimum wages; the result of a surplus of workers. Others gain the jobs that we can’t accept and we can’t accept them because they pay wages so low as to be worthless.
Deregulation and open borders leads to rising populations in lands with “opportunities” and long term these bring only problems for the natives of these same lands.
This is precisely what they have brought us.
Mass immigration leads to more roads and shanty towns, collapsing wages, lengthening dole queues and environmental destruction. These problems grin at us now regardless whither we look at them or look away.
Chants of racism cannot hide this just as we cannot hide the road before us now.
That’s what the M3 drives into our lives and that’s what the people who planed it want; a society and populace without roots which cannot resist it aims.
Those with vested interests hide this, those on the “Left” who oppose them hide this truth on rising population too. Both camps carry only dogma. Truth is the enemy of Dogma. We must realize that now!
We must realize too that its along these M3’s that our future is planned; a ribbon development that is for profit only; packed, multicultural and filled with struggles just to keep our heads above water and as long as one person accepts these low conditions then we all must accept them; we are all the same now, existing in the same market.
Our old green land has been sold for profit and for the first time nothing stands behind us.
More people is what we should fear because it will bring more of this, more of what we now have and less of what we once had. This will hold true. I believe that.
So the question that must be asked is this;
Can we really expect solutions to problems when we refuse to factor in the causes?

bauderline

Imbolc57 wrote: »

In the summer of 2007 I joined the protests against the M3 motorway cutting through the Tara Complex. On the protest lines and in the camps I heard about the dark machinations of Capitalism, the one and only reason accepted for the road’s construction.
Yet when I read the NRA, Meath County Council or Government reasons on why this road was being built an exploding population in Meath was always the main reason given.
The population of Meath was indeed exploding and it was caused solely by immigration.
However when I mentioned this on the protest lines, in the camps etc, it was rejected.
People had been programmed to believe that immigration would enhance us.
I did not believe this.
I told people instead that if they accepted the rise in population then they must accept the rise in road building, development etc, but it was inferred that this was racism.
The present jobs problem trots along this exact same line.
Unemployment has been caused as much by the dismantling of borders and mass immigration into here as by banking failure or corruption.
A look into any shop, building site or van will show this. There are still loads of jobs available but they pay only minimum wages; the result of a surplus of workers. Others gain the jobs that we can’t accept and we can’t accept them because they pay wages so low as to be worthless.
Deregulation and open borders leads to rising populations in lands with “opportunities” and long term these bring only problems for the natives of these same lands.
This is precisely what they have brought us.
Mass immigration leads to more roads and shanty towns, collapsing wages, lengthening dole queues and environmental destruction. These problems grin at us now regardless whither we look at them or look away.
Chants of racism cannot hide this just as we cannot hide the road before us now.
That’s what the M3 drives into our lives and that’s what the people who planed it want; a society and populace without roots which cannot resist it aims.
Those with vested interests hide this, those on the “Left” who oppose them hide this truth on rising population too. Both camps carry only dogma. Truth is the enemy of Dogma. We must realize that now!
We must realize too that its along these M3’s that our future is planned; a ribbon development that is for profit only; packed, multicultural and filled with struggles just to keep our heads above water and as long as one person accepts these low conditions then we all must accept them; we are all the same now, existing in the same market.
Our old green land has been sold for profit and for the first time nothing stands behind us.
More people is what we should fear because it will bring more of this, more of what we now have and less of what we once had. This will hold true. I believe that.
So the question that must be asked is this;
Can we really expect solutions to problems when we refuse to factor in the causes?

.... in the words of Jeremy Paxman "Yeeessssss......"

I am sorry but I think there is really no substance to your argument, this road will mark a paradigm shift in the quality of lives for so many people living in Cavan, Virginia, Kells, Navan, Dunshaughlin and surrounding areas, there can be no doubt that a substantial number of vehicles will be removed from the local roads and those towns along the old N3 making those towns a more pleasant and safer place to live. Commuters and families travelling into Dublin will have an infinitely safer and more pleasant journey than travelling on the old road... families living on the old road will be infinitely safer and as someone suggested cycling on that road may now be realistic...

I really don't see a downside to this road, good for all the people of Meath / Cavan for a multitude of reasons.

baalthor

unclebill98 wrote: »

Well in all fairness, I have clocked up over 200,000km on the N3 over the years and the people i see don't stick to the 100km limit anyhow.

Not long now...

Does anyone know from the start in Carnaross to the M50 interchange exactly how long it will take? Also, does the quicklane only allow cars? I drive a van...

What's the "quicklane" ?

anotherlostie

I never thought this thread would descend into a party political broadcast for the Irish equivalent of the BNP.

Hopefully someone using the road this evening will post their experiences, including what tailbacks there were either at Virginia or at the M50 lights.

_Kaiser_

anotherlostie wrote: »

I never thought this thread would descend into a party political broadcast for the Irish equivalent of the BNP.

Hopefully someone using the road this evening will post their experiences, including what tailbacks there were either at Virginia or at the M50 lights.

Well the other half is driving on it from Navan to Blanch as I type this and she tells me there are protestors out on one of the bridges (Hill of Tara brigade) but aside from that it seems to be busy but moving well (Navan - Dunshaughlin in 5 minutes)

meercat

clonee bypass-maghera 45mins at 4oclock today,a bank holiday weekend.worth it today but 2 tolls at 2euro(van) will work out at 2grand a year.i will be selective about using this motorway.

scorpion05

A guy from work travelling to navan said from m50 toll plaza to navan took him 18mins. Taking spin to Virginia from blanch on Sunday would like to know how long the journey might take now via the new M3

Fiskar

scorpion05 wrote: »

A guy from work travelling to navan said from m50 toll plaza to navan took him 18mins. Taking spin to Virginia from blanch on Sunday would like to know how long the journey might take now via the new M3

Not Possible - even I was bombing along and it took me 14 mins from the M3 Toll Plaza on the kawasaki. perhaps he meant the M3 Toll plaza?

it is 47 Km from the M50 toll plaza to Navan (kilcarn roundabout at Navan) meaning you would have an averge speed of 157 KPH not allowing for a toll stop! I averaged 137.5.

scorpion05

He must have meant the M3 toll plaza. I'm looking forward to knocking som time of the trip to virginia.

MN_Medic

baalthor wrote: »

What's the "quicklane" ?

The 'quicklane' or fastlane is the outer most lane. ie. the right one. This is for fast moving vehicles. HGV's are by law? not allowed in this lane. Trucks cannot overtake each other. It's a shame this is not enforced by the Garda. Vans can use this lane as most only require a B class licence. If a vehicle requires a HGV licence to drive then it's different. Ambulances (which require HGV licence) are of course exempt. The fastlane is for overtaking only. You must return to the left lane after an overtake. Just like you would on any other road. Please don't hog the fastlane.

daithip

Used the new road this morning at 6am to travel to Dundrum from Kells town, absolute pleasure and only 45 mins. Road was very quiet though, would like to see what it would be like on a weekday morning or afternoon, still well worth the two tolls for the comfort of not getting caught in the towns.

unclebill98

Imbolc57 wrote: »

In the summer of 2007 I joined the protests against the M3 motorway cutting through the Tara Complex. On the protest lines and in the camps I heard about the dark machinations of Capitalism, the one and only reason accepted for the road’s construction.
Yet when I read the NRA, Meath County Council or Government reasons on why this road was being built an exploding population in Meath was always the main reason given.
The population of Meath was indeed exploding and it was caused solely by immigration.
However when I mentioned this on the protest lines, in the camps etc, it was rejected.
People had been programmed to believe that immigration would enhance us.
I did not believe this.
I told people instead that if they accepted the rise in population then they must accept the rise in road building, development etc, but it was inferred that this was racism.
The present jobs problem trots along this exact same line.
Unemployment has been caused as much by the dismantling of borders and mass immigration into here as by banking failure or corruption.
A look into any shop, building site or van will show this. There are still loads of jobs available but they pay only minimum wages; the result of a surplus of workers. Others gain the jobs that we can’t accept and we can’t accept them because they pay wages so low as to be worthless.
Deregulation and open borders leads to rising populations in lands with “opportunities” and long term these bring only problems for the natives of these same lands.
This is precisely what they have brought us.
Mass immigration leads to more roads and shanty towns, collapsing wages, lengthening dole queues and environmental destruction. These problems grin at us now regardless whither we look at them or look away.
Chants of racism cannot hide this just as we cannot hide the road before us now.
That’s what the M3 drives into our lives and that’s what the people who planed it want; a society and populace without roots which cannot resist it aims.
Those with vested interests hide this, those on the “Left” who oppose them hide this truth on rising population too. Both camps carry only dogma. Truth is the enemy of Dogma. We must realize that now!
We must realize too that its along these M3’s that our future is planned; a ribbon development that is for profit only; packed, multicultural and filled with struggles just to keep our heads above water and as long as one person accepts these low conditions then we all must accept them; we are all the same now, existing in the same market.
Our old green land has been sold for profit and for the first time nothing stands behind us.
More people is what we should fear because it will bring more of this, more of what we now have and less of what we once had. This will hold true. I believe that.
So the question that must be asked is this;
Can we really expect solutions to problems when we refuse to factor in the causes?

I followed this whole thing. The fact it was being done was on the list of reasons for my move to Cavan. I had to listen to idiots going on about its wrong with this and that. In fact I think more people will visit Tara because well at least now they can get there without the hours of traffic people had to put up with. I drive to Dublin in the evenings and the q's of people in Kells, Navan, Dunshaghlin is mad, something had to be done.

I've listen to so called famous actors going on the Late Late Show to give out about it. Like these people are even using the road :rolleyes:

When i started commuting to Dublin I had to leave at 7am to get there for 9am. As time went on this went to having to leave at 5.30am to get there for the same time. It was mental. I used the back roads into Ratoath. It was like a mini motorway. The amount of dangerous driving was amazing. Then they start building more and more housing estates there and you could see the faces on the people trying to pull out of their new estate think "Ok, the estate agent never told me about this", the M3 will take all this away. It will give folks there towns back. This can not be a bad thing.

I am happy to see it open.

baalthor wrote: »

What's the "quicklane" ?

Ah, someone got to this..

Kaiser2000 wrote: »

I know that a lot of people pay no heed to the current 100 km/h limit - hell most of the people I meet on this road in particular (never seen it as bad anywhere else!) can't do anything about 80 km/h anyway, so a reduced limit will make no difference to them! :rolleyes:

However, I'm sure the Gardai, will be all over the "old" road (for the first few weeks anyway) catching people who dare to exceed the now ridiculous 80 km/h limit it'll now carry.

Well, I doubt the Guards will be about on it. I've drivin 800km in the last few days and seen nothing. In fact most Bank Holidays I'm all over the country and I've seen very few if no speed traps on the roads. Sure most of the time there hidden on the Navan road in places where the limit is 100km!

Well, I'll be driving from Carlow to Cavan via the new road tonight. Much better than doing the Portloaise, Tullamore, Mullingar route.

I was on the new Limerick motorway yesterday. Finally roads are being opened. More the better.

unclebill98

baalthor wrote: »

What's the "quicklane" ?

Actually, what i meant was the lane on a toll thats not covered by a teller. Its normally the right hand lane. Its normally for cars but most vans can fit.

Seeing that this is a brand new toll its likely that the height restricter is new and will be for cars only. Which s a shame, cause new tolls read the tag and charge you correctly regardless if its a van or a car.

misslily

does anyone know if there will now be express buses that go from cavan to dublin via the new road by bus eireann?

i commute from virginia to dublin monday to friday and travelling home on friday on my 5.30 bus was fantastic. bus aras to virginia town in 1hr 35mins on a friday of the june bank holiday was unbelievable thanks the new road taking all the traffic.

unclebill98

Well, I finally got to use it last night and I have to say I was like a child.....

Was great to figure out how it all went and where you were at compared to the old road.

Over all it took 15mins off the drive according to the satnav. So when i take into consideration traffic and traffic lights its easily taking 30-40 mins of the overall journey.

There was some issue with the Tag Readers, so they manual typed in the number. Very friendly staff on the booths too.

The Express lane has a height of 2.2m, so larger vans do fit which is great news too.

So, Carlow to Cavan was 2hrs. Newlands Cross to home, 1hr 10mins. Fantastic!

Only strange thing was after Kells its only a dual carriage way and the 2nd toll is smaller. I'm assuming they've thought it through and it does not warrent it being anything else.

I do agree a express service to Dublin would be a great idea.

Steak

misslily wrote: »

does anyone know if there will now be express buses that go from cavan to dublin via the new road by bus eireann?

I overheard a bus driver on the 109 the other day saying that Bus Éireann need to get licenses to allow their buses on the M3 and once they have them there will be an express bus. I'd say we could be waiting a while but if we do get an express service it'll be well appreciated.

shannon82

i asked a bus driver and he said it will proberbly be 2/3 wks to get the licence.

taffy1973

travel daily along the M3/N3 in my van and have travelled both routes since opening of the motorway and have done a few tests and calculations. from virginia to dunboyne only has a time saving of 15-20 mins ( keeping to speed limit of course) for a cost of 4 euros toll (2 euro per toll) at 120kph but also loosing 5 miles per gallon on fuel economy, yet at 80kph on old road with no traffic i am gaining approx 8 miles per gallon and saving the toll of 4 euro each way. lot of people are not factoring in the extra fuel cost at the higher speed, great road tho which is good for the one off journeys but expensive for a regular commute from the far side of kells.