The new trafic mess on the Quay.

Cabaal

Sully wrote: »

I see that people are ignoring the advanced warning signs and road markings when you're coming from the bridge into Waterford. Left lane is for left only into the car park and the right lane is for straight on. .

Yep, they certainly are

Out of 4 cars infront of me the other night only ONE used the correct lane.
I'd say its annoying as hell during the day when its really busy and they'll be a few people getting hit from the side from idiots using the left lane to go straight on.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YxiKBqGdThs

The signs are very clear so there's no reason for it other then poor driving standards

Trick of the Tail

Sully wrote: »

I see that people are ignoring the advanced warning signs and road markings when you're coming from the bridge into Waterford. Left lane is for left only into the car park and the right lane is for straight on. Seeing as people can't grasp that on a lot of roads around Waterford (such as the roundabout at Slieverue for New Ross or the Ballindud roundabout on the Tramore Road), I really don't know what you are going to do to educate drivers to open their eyes!

The trouble here is that a large number of drivers don't know the correct way to navigate a roundabout.

It doesn't help if the council decide to alter the usual rules as and when they feel like it by marking the lanes so people are supposed to deviate from the norm.

The usual, standard rules for roundabouts work just fine, when the roundabout is designed properly and sited appropriately.

Which is often not the case in Waterford.

looksee

There are cases where changing the lanes improves flow - the Ballindud roundabout is one example. BUT the road markings need to be maintained so they can be seen, and the marking needs to be much further back from the roundabout so that you can see it when you start to queue, not as you are 2 cars away from the junction.

cgcsb

It'd be Nice if the parking on the quays was removed and replaced with a Nice pedestrian plaza.

Shane07

I think the next step now should be to take down the motorway style street lights on Rice Bridge and replace them with a more modern lamp, it would improve the bridge so much!

Jamie2k9

So the works are done couple of questions/view

1 - Bus lane by bus station (heading towards bridge) should of being made were the cars are currently and move them into the inside lane. Buses would use it then, buses truing into the bus station can't use it at all as crossing back out takes to long.

2 - Enforcement of the lanes, don't see much signs about hours etc

3 - Is it me or have a lot of retail units being done up and to let/sale sings out up in the windows recently.

wmpdd3

They might be waiting for by laws to be passed for the bus lanes, that was the reason the one down by Kellys wasnt in use for so long.

I have to say the quay does look better...but I just never go down there anymore, straight across the bridge and up Bridge st for me.

So you could say the council's plan has worked, traffic has probably reduced....but I also haven't shopped in town for the longest time ever.

The Bowling Alley

The traffic, especially coming from Ferrybank, has greatly reduced in the last fortnight.

katydid

Cabaal wrote: »

Yep, they certainly are

Out of 4 cars infront of me the other night only ONE used the correct lane.
I'd say its annoying as hell during the day when its really busy and they'll be a few people getting hit from the side from idiots using the left lane to go straight on.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YxiKBqGdThs

The signs are very clear so there's no reason for it other then poor driving standards

Maybe the reason is people ignoring stupid road layouts...

Max Powers

Think the new quay looks great and hasnt been significant impact on traffic, great if it forces trucks off city streets too. I agree though that the bit by bus station, coming from bridge where people dont use correct lane is very frustrating, drivers are pig ignorant, maybe extending it exclusivley for bus might be option or just policing by Gardai, they have better things to be doing in fairness so will see how it works out.

Wanderer78

Max Powers wrote: »

Think the new quay looks great and hasnt been significant impact on traffic, great if it forces trucks off city streets too. I agree though that the bit by bus station, coming from bridge where people dont use correct lane is very frustrating, drivers are pig ignorant, maybe extending it exclusivley for bus might be option or just policing by Gardai, they have better things to be doing in fairness so will see how it works out.

agree but that fecken toll is fecken it all up. 6 euro for a truck, that adds up for a company

kayaksurfbum

Wanderer78 wrote: »

agree but that fecken toll is fecken it all up. 6 euro for a truck, that adds up for a company

How much does 1hr for a truck cost? truck drivers trying to save €6 taking the long route are only fooling themselves.

But I think that's starting to sink in now. I use the toll bridge a good bit and iv seen a big increase in traffic.

Wanderer78

kayaksurfbum wrote: »

How much does 1hr for a truck cost? truck drivers trying to save €6 taking the long route are only fooling themselves.

But I think that's starting to sink in now. I use the toll bridge a good bit and iv seen a big increase in traffic.

ah you d be surprised, a few passes a day would add up. new road network and bridge looks great though. im sure the bridge doesnt suit some drivers as they may not being going in that direction

thats good to hear. know others that use it regularly as well. god sent so they say.

wmpdd3

Taken from Facebook. What other option does an ambulance have?

wmpdd3

Taken from Facebook. What other option does an ambulance have?

hardybuck

The surface and finish are particularly uneven for a new section of road also.

O Riain

wmpdd3 wrote: »

Taken from Facebook. What other option does an ambulance have?

You didn't post a video but I'm assuming your showing the one with the two ambulances that is doing the rounds.

Three observations on this -
1. The ambulances are held up in traffic for 15 seconds in a city centre, play it back and count - 15 seconds.
2. The only reason the ambulances were held up at all was because one driver didn't drive up on the curb, if the driver had of done what the other drivers did then the ambulance would not have been held up.
3. If the quay is soooooo bad why don't the ambulances take the bypass? Or go up bridge street? Or Thomas Street? (Probably cause its not that bad)

Potential-Monke

O Riain wrote: »

You didn't post a video but I'm assuming your showing the one with the two ambulances that is doing the rounds.

Three observations on this -
1. The ambulances are held up in traffic for 15 seconds in a city centre, play it back and count - 15 seconds.
2. The only reason the ambulances were held up at all was because one driver didn't drive up on the curb, if the driver had of done what the other drivers did then the ambulance would not have been held up.
3. If the quay is soooooo bad why don't the ambulances take the bypass? Or go up bridge street? Or Thomas Street? (Probably cause its not that bad)

1: 15 seconds can made the difference between life and death, especially as these seemed to be heading back to the hospital, and if they're using lights and sirens to get back to the hospital, it's usually something serious.
2: That one driver is multiplied by at least 3 on every new road. People panic when they hear the sirens, and they have no training as to how to react (should be part of the test). Lots of people won't mount any kerb as it could cause damage to their car. And they shouldn't be expected to.
3: The bypass adds time, even with traffic. Once they're passed the Quay, it's nearly plain sailing. Not worth the chance, again seeing as they were in a rush to get back asap. Bridge Street is a no go, as it's completely out of the way having to deal with numerous pedestrian heavy areas (more so than the Quay). Same with Thomas St.

O Riain

Potential-Monke wrote: »

1: 15 seconds can made the difference between life and death, especially as these seemed to be heading back to the hospital, and if they're using lights and sirens to get back to the hospital, it's usually something serious.
2: That one driver is multiplied by at least 3 on every new road. People panic when they hear the sirens, and they have no training as to how to react (should be part of the test). Lots of people won't mount any kerb as it could cause damage to their car. And they shouldn't be expected to.
3: The bypass adds time, even with traffic. Once they're passed the Quay, it's nearly plain sailing. Not worth the chance, again seeing as they were in a rush to get back asap. Bridge Street is a no go, as it's completely out of the way having to deal with numerous pedestrian heavy areas (more so than the Quay). Same with Thomas St.

Look, I understand the need to get patients to the hospital as soon as possible but when you are dealing with driving through a city centre then a 15 second delay is miniscule in comparison to what other ambluances have to deal with in other cities.

The statement about the ring road and other streets was just to highlight that, if it was as bad as everyone makes out, ambulances would avoid the quay. Which they're not.

I actually cannot get my head around people saying its a disaster. The old way was a total shambles.
4 lanes of traffic going through a city centre with two lanes permenantly occupied by parked cars with hazard lights on, how can people prefer that.

katydid

O Riain wrote: »

Look, I understand the need to get patients to the hospital as soon as possible but when you are dealing with driving through a city centre then a 15 second delay is miniscule in comparison to what other ambluances have to deal with in other cities.

The statement about the ring road and other streets was just to highlight that, if it was as bad as everyone makes out, ambulances would avoid the quay. Which they're not.

I actually cannot get my head around people saying its a disaster. The old way was a total shambles.
4 lanes of traffic going through a city centre with two lanes permenantly occupied by parked cars with hazard lights on, how can people prefer that.

I don't prefer that. The parked cars could have been dealt with - a crackdown by the traffic cops for a week or so every now and then and you'd have seen the end of that codology. Then you would have had a free flow along the Quay. There was no need to go to the extreme they've gone to.

allthedoyles

I was driving along the quay last night towards the bridge and pulled in to let a fire-engine with flashing lights zoom past ( it was in a hurry )

When it arrived at the bridge it had to drive forward and reverse to take the exit for Bridge St.

Vital seconds lost and it didn't look right .

Wanderer78

im in favour of the changes on the quay but theres obviously a problem for emergency vehicles. this needs to be dealt with asap.

Sully

I genuinely don't know of any city that has easy access routes purposely built or adjusted for emergency services. The Quay improvements made it tighter but it was never easy and vital seconds were always lost in the old way for our emergency services. Lives were put at risk on the old layout too.

What's the solution?

katydid

Sully wrote: »

I genuinely don't know of any city that has easy access routes purposely built or adjusted for emergency services. The Quay improvements made it tighter but it was never easy and vital seconds were always lost in the old way for our emergency services. Lives were put at risk on the old layout too.

What's the solution?

Well, you can't put the genie back in the bottle now. What's done is done. But better management on the Quay to start with, such as clamping down on all the illegal parking, would have sorted the problem out much more cheaply.

Wanderer78

Sully wrote: »

What's the solution?

cant think of a solution myself yet but urban planning wouldnt be my strongest of talents.

katydid wrote: »

Well, you can't put the genie back in the bottle now. What's done is done. But better management on the Quay to start with, such as clamping down on all the illegal parking, would have sorted the problem out much more cheaply.

ah the changes are a good idea. we just have to try figure out this emergency vehicle problem. just some more changes required for that

Potential-Monke

O Riain wrote: »

Look, I understand the need to get patients to the hospital as soon as possible but when you are dealing with driving through a city centre then a 15 second delay is miniscule in comparison to what other ambluances have to deal with in other cities.

The statement about the ring road and other streets was just to highlight that, if it was as bad as everyone makes out, ambulances would avoid the quay. Which they're not.

I actually cannot get my head around people saying its a disaster. The old way was a total shambles.
4 lanes of traffic going through a city centre with two lanes permenantly occupied by parked cars with hazard lights on, how can people prefer that.

I take your points, and i'm not arguing for the sake of arguing, just trying to give another view on it. Other cities do have their problems, but it's like comparing apples and oranges, similar but completely different.

And even using the other streets, the Quay is still the quickest route from the bridge to the Dunmore Road.

The old way was better, completely, it allowed traffic to make room inbetween the 2 lanes (if people were clued in). It was just ruined by idiot drivers parking wherever they liked, and pedestrians not using pedestrian crossings. But that's just from an emergency vehicles point of view. When redoing the quay, they should have either left a lane specifically for emergency service vehicles (straight down the middle - caters for 2 way), or have a bus lane running the length of the Quay, not just in sections. Waterford is a fairly busy city for emergency vehicles, it should have been considered.

Sully wrote: »

What's the solution?

Another bridge from the port over to the Dunmore Road.

Burning Bridges

Potential-Monke wrote: »

1: 15 seconds can made the difference between life and death, especially as these seemed to be heading back to the hospital, and if they're using lights and sirens to get back to the hospital, it's usually something serious.
2: That one driver is multiplied by at least 3 on every new road. People panic when they hear the sirens, and they have no training as to how to react (should be part of the test). Lots of people won't mount any kerb as it could cause damage to their car. And they shouldn't be expected to.
3: The bypass adds time, even with traffic. Once they're passed the Quay, it's nearly plain sailing. Not worth the chance, again seeing as they were in a rush to get back asap. Bridge Street is a no go, as it's completely out of the way having to deal with numerous pedestrian heavy areas (more so than the Quay). Same with Thomas St.

I don't believe that 15 sec rubbish, they just added 2 hours to journey times to Roscommon emergencies.

mire

Can't believe this is still being discussed. Get over it, ambulances have to negotiate urban environments. They do it every day, everywhere.

wmpdd3

Sorry had to take video down, it wasn't appropriate to have that particular video up.

If an investigation follows then maybe we'll know if the new layout is having an effect.

It's true there is no other viable route.

Wanderer78

Potential-Monke wrote: »

Another bridge from the port over to the Dunmore Road.

i really like the emergency vehicles lane idea amongst other ideas you ve mentioned

and make the damn bridge free!

Burning Bridges wrote: »

I don't believe that 15 sec rubbish, they just added 2 hours to journey times to Roscommon emergencies.

truly disgraceful decision.

mire wrote: »

Can't believe this is still being discussed. Get over it, ambulances have to negotiate urban environments. They do it every day, everywhere.

please dont ever become a politician or a person that makes decisions that directly affects emergency personnel and their vehicles. this is a very serious matter and should be dealt with accordingly.