M18 - Dangerous Junctions

Doom

I travel this road a lot, I'm amazed that there are not more crashes at certain junctions, like where the Limerick city/ ennis road joins the road from the tunnel, its design is crazy.
The cars on the tunnel road come around a blind sweeping left hand bend to merging city traffic who can barely see what's coming as they merge.

The northern junctions outside Ennis, 13 and 14 I think, the run in lanes are only about 100m long.

Bad driving habits have a lot to do with near misses/ crashes on these junctions, but they are relatively new roads...why were they allowed built/ design them like this?

Cookiemunster

Doom wrote: »

I travel this road a lot, I'm amazed that there are not more crashes at certain junctions, like where the Limerick city/ ennis road joins the road from the tunnel, its design is crazy.
The cars on the tunnel road come around a blind sweeping left hand bend to merging city traffic who can barely see what's coming as they merge.

I drive this every morning and I've never had an issue seeing the merging traffic, nor have I had an issue any time I've had to merge. The length of the merge lane is perfectly adequate. How is it worse than traffic coming down a slip road from an over bridge? You definitely can't see that traffic as its coming from above you.

JupiterKid

I know that the M18 Ennis bypass did have one or two very tight, poorly designed GSJs that resulted in a fatal collision due to someone entering the motorway in the wrong direction but I had thought this had since been remedied?

Doom

I met a person entering the motorway from J 14 one morning, they either didn't know how tight it was or a bad driver, but they ended up coming right across to the overtaking lane. Only for me and the other cars been on the ball it would have been a pile up.

Cleahaigh

Doom wrote: »

I met a person entering the motorway from J 14 one morning, they either didn't know how tight it was or a bad driver, but they ended up coming right across to the overtaking lane. Only for me and the other cars been on the ball it would have been a pile up.

Your grammar is worse than that junction.

phatmanwc

Cleahaigh wrote: »

Your grammar is worse than that junction.

No need for that now.

Doom

Cleahaigh wrote: »

Your grammar is worse than that junction.

Have nothing interesting to say? Cannot get laid? Have no friends?
Join a forum and become a keyboard warrior, correct grammar and spellings all day long.:p

Victor

Cleahaigh wrote: »

Your grammar is worse than that junction.

Behave.

Moderator

corktina

What's his Grandma got to do with it?

Sounds like bad driving to me rather than bad junctions.

Totofan99

Exits 14 and 15 (Crusheen and Barefield) on the M18 are horrific! The run-in lanes are way to short. And I've seen cars joining the motorway being forced into the hard shoulder because cars on the motorway won't/can't move in to the overtaking lane. Very dangerous!

68thedriver

Hello Totofan, I'm doing a project at the moment and was wondering would you be able to get me please an image of the Yellow and Black warning sign for that dangerous junction on the M18 near the Ennis exit , heading southbound. would be grateful.

prunudo

68thedriver wrote: »

Hello Totofan, I'm doing a project at the moment and was wondering would you be able to get me please an image of the Yellow and Black warning sign for that dangerous junction on the M18 near the Ennis exit , heading southbound. would be grateful.

It might be possible to get a screen grab from google street view. Certainly be safer than getting somebody to stop on a motorway slip to take a picture of a sign.

68thedriver

Thanks for your reply, I was hoping you may have a dash-cam and take a still from the video. Anyway , Thanks for the idea but Google street view was a few years prior to that sign been put up. Regards.68

munchkin_utd

68thedriver wrote: »

Hello Totofan, I'm doing a project at the moment and was wondering would you be able to get me please an image of the Yellow and Black warning sign for that dangerous junction on the M18 near the Ennis exit , heading southbound. would be grateful.

is the sign like this? :

If it is, a high quality version can be found here : http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/78/W033_-_Loop_-_Warning_Sign_Ireland.png

and its use is described in the road sign manual page 6, sign W 033
http://www.transport.ie/upload/general/12971-TSM_CHAPTER_6-8.PDF

Irish_rat

Doom wrote: »

I travel this road a lot, I'm amazed that there are not more crashes at certain junctions, like where the Limerick city/ ennis road joins the road from the tunnel, its design is crazy.
The cars on the tunnel road come around a blind sweeping left hand bend to merging city traffic who can barely see what's coming as they merge.

The northern junctions outside Ennis, 13 and 14 I think, the run in lanes are only about 100m long.

Bad driving habits have a lot to do with near misses/ crashes on these junctions, but they are relatively new roads...why were they allowed built/ design them like this?

LILO's like that all over the world. Plenty of signage on the M18 to warn of a sharp exit ahead. It's more to do with Irish drivers, motorways are relatively a new thing for a lot of the population and driving test needs to include it.

csd

68thedriver wrote: »

Hello Totofan, I'm doing a project at the moment and was wondering would you be able to get me please an image of the Yellow and Black warning sign for that dangerous junction on the M18 near the Ennis exit , heading southbound. would be grateful.

You mean this sign?


Junction warning

Zoney

Irish_rat wrote: »

LILO's like that all over the world. Plenty of signage on the M18 to warn of a sharp exit ahead. It's more to do with Irish drivers, motorways are relatively a new thing for a lot of the population and driving test needs to include it.

I don't know about motorways around the world in general, but compared to turn in/out junctions I've seen on the Autobahn's in Germany, the ones here (M7 Tipp/M18 Clare) are completely mickey mouse and absurd.

There simply isn't a long enough lane for deceleration/acceleration off the mainline, and the turn is far too severe at the motorway itself, one should be able to do 45 km/h or so, not need to come to practically a dead stop or start from nearly stopped.

They're about as sensible and safe as the "rest areas"! It's like someone had a vague idea in their head what motorways are supposed to be like. They probably get fat paychecks and pensions for these magical ideas.

L1011

Zoney wrote: »

They're about as sensible and safe as the "rest areas"! It's like someone had a vague idea in their head what motorways are supposed to be like. They probably get fat paychecks and pensions for these magical ideas.

Neither the rest areas nor the 90 degree lethal junctions were designed for motorways - all are from pre-redesignation. The rest areas can be easily barriered off and should be ASAP but the junctions are a much dearer job, depending on how close the overbridge is.

Victor

Irish_rat wrote: »

LILO's like that all over the world. Plenty of signage on the M18 to warn of a sharp exit ahead. It's more to do with Irish drivers, motorways are relatively a new thing for a lot of the population and driving test needs to include it.

In fairness, this junction is a bit too mean. At a minimum, the exit lane should have rumble strips (but note proximity of houses) and a reduced / advisory speed limit.

https://maps.google.ie/maps?q=Ennis&hl=en&ll=52.889998,-8.941026&spn=0.002686,0.007639&sll=53.32432,-6.251695&sspn=0.1702,0.488892&oq=enn&hnear=Ennis,+County+Clare&t=m&z=17&layer=c&cbll=52.889811,-8.94119&panoid=s5EcM12kCptTYjddItiplQ&cbp=12,60.04,,0,-0.91

http://maps.osi.ie/publicviewer/#V1,536676,682526,7,3

I also dislike the way that there is no barrier between the slip road and the main line here: https://maps.google.ie/maps?q=Ennis&hl=en&ll=52.884657,-8.945317&spn=0.001224,0.007639&sll=53.32432,-6.251695&sspn=0.1702,0.488892&oq=enn&hnear=Ennis,+County+Clare&t=m&z=17&layer=c&cbll=52.884654,-8.945308&panoid=NHOvBd3qWNaFStRdLBbRKA&cbp=12,83.53,,0,6.57 and in similar locations, especially the ones on the M50.

JupiterKid

Junctions 13 and 14 on the M18 and J22 and J23 on the M7 are well below the standard required for a motorway. They are too dangerous in their current layouts and will have to be rebuilt at some stage.

Sheldons Brain

JupiterKid wrote: »

Junctions 13 and 14 on the M18 and J22 and J23 on the M7 are well below the standard required for a motorway. They are too dangerous in their current layouts and will have to be rebuilt at some stage.

As a labour intensive task, not costing too much, this should be done sooner rather than later.

Middle Man

JupiterKid wrote: »

Junctions 13 and 14 on the M18 and J22 and J23 on the M7 are well below the standard required for a motorway. They are too dangerous in their current layouts and will have to be rebuilt at some stage.

Totally agree - what I really can't understand is how the design for the said M7 junctions were passed when there was a clear alternative in the superior designs used for the LILO junctions on the Gort to Crusheen motorway (built at the same time). The Ennis Bypass is older and more understandable as it opened only as a Dual Carriageway. However, as you said, these will surely have to be realigned too.

Carawaystick

Are the junctions much tighter thanthis unrestricted Autobahn?

Middle Man

Carawaystick wrote: »

Are the junctions much tighter thanthis unrestricted Autobahn?

Those are more like the compact junctions on the Gort to Crusheen scheme. The referred German ones (while not up to normal Irish or British standards) are much better than the junctions on the Ennis Bypass and M7 (near Moneygall and Roscrea) - it's a case of comparing compact slips to glorified triangular traffic islands.

Zoney

Carawaystick wrote: »

Are the junctions much tighter thanthis unrestricted Autobahn?

Yes, the ones on the Ennis bypass are, see here. If you move the German map slightly to the right, the bend radius on the Ennis junctions is similar to the German slip but where it meets the non-motorway on the right. Compare with the much more gentle radius entering/exiting the autobahn (even if tight enough for the situation).

68thedriver

Hello,
no the sign is not that. its a blank and yellow with the exit arm at an 90 angle , like on a corner sign with two straight arrows indicating the main carriageway. I know its before the junction for Ennis , don't know the number saw it back in 2012 but i live up in Cavan so cant get down there myself. do you know anyone who could get me an image.

68thedriver

Hey, That was fast. That's the ONE.Thank you very much. You have made my day.

Ascii

For people with plenty of time on their hands read TD 9, TD 41/42 and TD 22 of the DMRB. http://nrastandards.nra.ie/nra-dmrb-documents :D This deals with facts and figures. All motorways built in recent years (M18, M7) where there is GSJ have to conform to the following.

RahenyD5

Zoney wrote: »

I don't know about motorways around the world in general, but compared to turn in/out junctions I've seen on the Autobahn's in Germany, the ones here (M7 Tipp/M18 Clare) are completely mickey mouse and absurd.

There simply isn't a long enough lane for deceleration/acceleration off the mainline, and the turn is far too severe at the motorway itself, one should be able to do 45 km/h or so, not need to come to practically a dead stop or start from nearly stopped.

They're about as sensible and safe as the "rest areas"! It's like someone had a vague idea in their head what motorways are supposed to be like. They probably get fat paychecks and pensions for these magical ideas.

There's a similar inadequately designed junction on the English M50 - J3 - in Herefordshire, though it was built about 50-60 years ago and the motorway is very quiet (unlike our M50) with very low traffic levels so not a priority for urgent improvements.



So I'm a bit surprised that the recently built M18, with supposedly more modern standards than the English M50, has low quality designed junctions. This could be down to lower traffic levels, the recession and constructing on the cheap quickly to meet target dates. You'll never see this on our M50 that's for sure.

I'm guessing these junction approaches are temporary and will be improved when traffic levels increase in the future as Galway continues to be attractive for relocation & tourism and the M20 gets completed attracting more people from Cork without driving through towns at a snail's pace as one day it will be much quicker to get to Sligo from Cork.