M1 New Section of D3 (three lanes) at Swords

cargo

nordydan wrote: »

6 lanes to Dundalk are not required, and there is scope for future widening for nearly all of the M1 (ROI). 6 lanes to Balbriggan (J7) are required however

I'll be happy if they can just get the 6 lanes to Jct 4 open for a start!!

Chris_5339762

Very hard to justify upgrading what was an S2 going through towns to a D3 motorway.

serfboard

Chris_5339762 wrote: »

Very hard to justify upgrading what was an S2 going through towns to a D3 motorway.

Balbriggan South's AADT is 50K. Anywhere north of that is 33K or less. AFAIK that doesn't justify D3?

Jayuu

Chris_5339762 wrote: »

Very hard to justify upgrading what was an S2 going through towns to a D3 motorway.

3 lanes as far as Junction 4 will help traffic flow in the short term but realistically it should go as far as Junction 7 in the longer term. While I haven't driven the road recently I used to drive to Belfast quite a lot and traffic is really always quite heavy until you pass Balbriggan at which point it tails off significantly.

sgarvan

Has work stopped on the motor way?
Seems to have come to a complete standstill work wise (and traffic wise this morning)

Irish and Proud

sgarvan wrote: »

Has work stopped on the motor way?
Seems to have come to a complete standstill work wise (and traffic wise this morning)

Going by >>this<< image (DCC #112)...



...there appears to be a lane shift in progress Northbound!

sk8board

lot of work happened at the weekend at the J4 roundabout. The new swords slip exiting NB off the M1 is fully opened and is freeing up the usual evening jam completely! I came up to the junct this evening at 5.50 and stopped a few cars from the lights. 2 weeks ago you'd be 300 yards back, almost on the m1

also, as you come NB on the M1 you now drive on the new rightmost lane all the way from the airport to the eastury bridge before J4, which is helping the flow as theres not a lane shift to the left halfway between the airport and J4.

sgarvan

sk8board wrote: »

lot of work happened at the weekend at the J4 roundabout. The new swords slip exiting NB off the M1 is fully opened and is freeing up the usual evening jam completely! I came up to the junct this evening at 5.50 and stopped a few cars from the lights. 2 weeks ago you'd be 300 yards back, almost on the m1

also, as you come NB on the M1 you now drive on the new rightmost lane all the way from the airport to the eastury bridge before J4, which is helping the flow as theres not a lane shift to the left halfway between the airport and J4.

So the most recent work must be around the junction. As I rarely go near the junction I wouldn't notice the work there.

The lane shift is indeed helping indeed. Only noticed that this evening, after I posted the above post.

Carawaystick

I think the green time fro the M1N -> R132 has been extended and this is improving the traffic flow from the M1; There was a time only about 8 cars would make it through the lights.

sk8board

Carawaystick wrote: »

I think the green time fro the M1N -> R132 has been extended and this is improving the traffic flow from the M1; There was a time only about 8 cars would make it through the lights.

you're definitely right - I came off the M1N this evening at rush hour as usual and the lights at the top were green, I never thought for a second I'd get all the way up and through before they changed so I wasn't rushing, but i did.

I guess they'd prefer to have people queing towards swords on the R132 rather than down on to the M1.

isn't this all scheduled for completion in 8 weeks? bar the J4 roundabout, it all looks very close to being finished.

sgarvan

The scheduled finishing date for the M1 widening contract is late March early April 2013.

This is in an email I got from Fingal Co Co

cargo

They have rough hardcore down in the final mainline section right to the end. The compacting machines were on it last night so a few more layers of fine material to go down and then a lick of tar (simples). They also have a load of the fine material they cap the central median with dropped adjacent to the median waiting to be put onto the median.

I imagine the christmas break will come a bit early though to get the mainline lanes open right to the end. Shortly afterwards though. (unless the keep it at 2 lanes while completing other works such as the services in the hard shoulders)

They also still have to finish off laying the kerbing along the estuary bridge crossing. (looks like one day on and 6 off for this at the minute!!!)

cargo

mmmh looks like they have started digging in the hard shoulders again..... the traffic cameras are down!!!! :-)

Chris_5339762

Wonder if they'll get the northbound D3 open by Christmas, regardless of the junction?

Bluetonic

Chris_5339762 wrote: »

Wonder if they'll get the northbound D3 open by Christmas, regardless of the junction?

Very unlikely - there is still hard should and lane 1 work going on.

Anyway there is no rush.

sk8board

theres a new lane layout for the past week on the M1 SB for the M50 flyover lanes.
Previously everyone moved into the inside lane and then it widened to 2 lanes closer to the flyover, but now its 2 lanes all the way from the airport to M50 flyover.

it works far better and cuts out the need for guys to go down the N32 off-ramp and cut in at the last second

ardmacha

it works far better and cuts out the need for guys to go down the N32 off-ramp and cut in at the last second

I think you mean that it cuts out the need temptation for guys gurriers to go down the N32 off-ramp and cut in at the last second.

sk8board

ardmacha wrote: »

I think you mean that it cuts out the need temptation for guys gurriers to go down the N32 off-ramp and cut in at the last second.

well, I wouldn't call myself a gurrier!

cargo

>>Link<<



Looks like they have shifted traffic over onto the new strip at the SB on-ramp at Junction 4. Still looks messy at the end of the sliproad though.

Also still a bit of digging to be done in the central area. Some hardcore down on the last 2 strips at the end of the tie-in but there's still a section closer to the bridge that they are still diggin/putting in drainage on.

MoeJay

A noticeable step has developed SB about halfway along where the slip road begins to merge with the M1 SB as a result of whatever digging is going in the middle...that would want to be sorted too!

cargo

MoeJay wrote: »

A noticeable step has developed SB about halfway along where the slip road begins to merge with the M1 SB as a result of whatever digging is going in the middle...that would want to be sorted too!

Yeah noticed that too. I would imagine it will be sorted when they are finished the digging in the centre.

Good to see the machines are back out on-site today.

celticbest

I know it a miserable day out but feck all work seems to have been done since the Xmas break, I wonder if the works are still on schedule for the revised completion date of March?

Traffic Cameras

LFCFan

I hope the contractor is getting fined for being so bloody slow. It's beyond a joke at this stage how long this is taking

celticbest

LFCFan wrote: »

I hope the contractor is getting fined for being so bloody slow. It's beyond a joke at this stage how long this is taking

+1

cargo

celticbest wrote: »

I know it a miserable day out but feck all work seems to have been done since the Xmas break, I wonder if the works are still on schedule for the revised completion date of March?

All the machinery was taken off-site (I presume they were taken off the mainline back to the compound for security) for an extended Christmas break. They only came back on-site this week.

However I can see where they seem to have extended the stone layers back from the Northern end of the works towards that large hole they dug in the median. This big hole seems to be holding up everything. I would imagine it's something to do with the drainage and once it's filled in / completed they can get on with the last of the mainline works.

Have a look at cam 113 on the large photo in my post up a bit above yours, they even have a noticeable bit of work done since yesterday. NB looks as if it is now completely hardcore from the Estuary bridge to the end. Up to yesterday there was a gap near the large drainage / hole works.

Of course there's still hardshoulder services to complete as well....

Jayuu

Was on this road yesterday and they seemed to be working away quite busily at the bridge over the estuary and the ramps at Junction 4 despite the miserable weather.

Noticed the alteration of the road layout on the way back in. New signage has been errected as well. I notice that it takes note of the detrunking on the N32 to Malahide which has been reclassifed as the R139. The road markings have also been repainted.

However if you do take this route up to the roundabout the old N32 signage remains which is a little silly. Surely it wouldn't have been too hard to change this at the same time and standardise all the signage on the roundabout which has been a mess since the freeflow option was introduced.

Haven't come to the rounadabout from the M50 for a few days so I don't know if the singage on this approach has also been changed for the N32. Might have a look tomorrow.

Scipio76

LFCFan wrote: »

I hope the contractor is getting fined for being so bloody slow. It's beyond a joke at this stage how long this is taking

Unlike the vast majority of projects these days this is a client designed scheme as opposed to a design/build project. It's a throwback to the way things were done 10 years ago.

From what I hear there has been numerous design changes over the course of the project and extensions of the time for completion have been granted to take account of them. If this were a design/build project (and I have no idea why they didn't choose to go with that form of contract) the contractor would be carrying the risk for design problems and you wouldn't see any of these delays.

The blame lies on the side of the procuring agency.

sgarvan

Travelled SB yesterday and they had one lane closed off across the estuary bridge and were laying tar. Possible lane change coming

Bluetonic

sgarvan wrote: »

Travelled SB yesterday and they had one lane closed off across the estuary bridge and were laying tar. Possible lane change coming

Sb after estuary bridge is now on the new lane and old lane 2.

Old lane 1 blocked off.

spacetweek

Jayuu wrote: »

I notice that it takes note of the detrunking on the N32 to Malahide which has been reclassifed as the R139.

What's this - I wasn't aware the N32 had been detrunked? Doesn't seem to be on OSM.