Shocking road conditions Dublin city

jon1981

I cycle through Dublin city every morning and one area that boils my blood as I pass through is around by college green from Pearse st to the front of Trinity college. The road is a shambles! They have made an absolute dogs dinner of it, full of cracks, bumps, different levels every 10meters... the wheels will be buckled by the end of the year.

Anyone know if this is a temporary thing with the intention to fix it up?

Feel free to air any other road condition grievances!

sullivlo

I guess that's to do with the cross city Luas works that are ongoing - they'll probably wait and resurface the road when they're done with all of their digging.

jon1981

sullivlo wrote: »

I guess that's to do with the cross city Luas works that are ongoing - they'll probably wait and resurface the road when they're done with all of their digging.

Is the Luas coming around by there? Makes sense so! looks like I'll have to endure it for a good year or more!

Tordelback

Yeah, the temporary patching is from the Luas utilities contract (ongoing). Due to finish early this Summer, then handed over to Sisk for the actual track laying/building stops etc. So its very unlikely the road (and pavement) surfaces will be redone until all that is done, some time in 2016, at which time we'll have tram racks to avoid instead!

jon1981

Tordelback wrote: »

Yeah, the temporary patching is from the Luas utilities contract (ongoing). Due to finish early this Summer, then handed over to Sisk for the actual track laying/building stops etc. So its very unlikely the road (and pavement) surfaces will be redone until all that is done, some time in 2016, at which time we'll have tram racks to avoid instead!

Will cars still be allowed through that area when the Luas is up and running?

Rogue-Trooper

sullivlo wrote: »

I guess that's to do with the cross city Luas works that are ongoing - they'll probably wait and resurface the road when they're done with all of their digging.

............and then a week after that Bord Gais will come along and dig up a strip of the new bit of tarmac and the vicious cycle (pun intended) will continue..........

There's no joined-up thinking when it comes to our nations roads.

While we are at it, one that bugs me is this newer breed of mini-roadsweepers:



I watched one in action last week in the on-road cycle lane near my house. What it effectively does is moves the dirt, debris & broken glass from the gutter (where you don't cycle) to between the two brushes and leaves a lovely line of crap down the centre of the cycle lane where you are more likely to cycle (it's actually not a bad cycle lane as these things go). I thought road sweepers were supposed to suck up the dirt, not just move it around!

eeeee

Completely agree re mini sweeper, the canal is a state after it. I have to cycle out at the edge/beyond the cycle lane to avoid the strip of crap brought up by them. Lost a brand new front tyre on its third outing on the way to training last month :mad:

Dawson street is in absolute shyte with the pre luas works. Has been for ages.

Tordelback

Rogue-Trooper wrote: »

............and then a week after that Bord Gais will come along and dig up a strip of the new bit of tarmac and the vicious cycle (pun intended) will continue..........

There's no joined-up thinking when it comes to our nations roads.

Hopefully (and I do mean hopefully) that won't be the case this time. All the major services within the new Luas corridor have been upgraded to modern spec with tons of redundant ducting and large access boxes for future-proofing: Bord Gais, Eircom, the ESB, the Council traffic lights and public lighting, even some of the water and sewers. That's why it's taking so bloody long, imagine getting senior engineers from all those bodies to inspect, agree, approve and take responsibility for everything while a single hole stands open in the middle of the road.

So fingers crossed there won't be much need for digging up the road again for a while at least.

Yeah, I'll believe it when I see it too.

Micilin Muc

It's not just Dublin, or Ireland, that has road surfaces of such a poor quality in the capital city.

Have a look at the streets in New York. The avenues are mostly fine, but the streets are awful, if not worse, than Dublin's.

Rewind

Dorset Street is shocking. All the way down as far as North Circular Road is full of very dangerous potholes and gaping crevices.

lennymc

the r132 a few KMs south of Balrothery, just past the applegreen roundabout is shocking.

MJohnston

Micilin Muc wrote: »

It's not just Dublin, or Ireland, that has road surfaces of such a poor quality in the capital city.

Have a look at the streets in New York. The avenues are mostly fine, but the streets are awful, if not worse, than Dublin's.

I don't think anywhere in the first world can compare to New York for absolutely awful road surfaces. US infrastructure in general is terrible actually.

Rojo

This time last week I would have had a right moan about the cycle lanes up to sandyford industrial estate from Goatstown but they've started laying new Tarmac down and it's a joy to cycle on now where the work has been done still a few more parts which I hope they repair... I do wonder how long it will last though!!

Tordelback

OSI wrote: »

I wouldn't hold too much hope. I've been hounding Eircom for a date for them to complete upgrades around Dublin 2 to get fibre to 2 of our offices. After a year of chasing, I was finally told not to bother holding my breath as Eircom were told they weren't allowed to touch the road while the Luas works were ongoing. So no upgrades to the eircom network in the area until after the Luas is done. Fricking mental.

Well, all I can tell you is that there are Eircom engineers on the Luas works pretty much every day and many nights. Actual cable-pulling and connecting is indeed presumably the last thing on the list, but the required ducting is largely all there now - and given the state of the existing Eircom ducts that were exposed by the works, thank feck for that.

dragratchet

Rojo wrote: »

This time last week I would have had a right moan about the cycle lanes up to sandyford industrial estate from Goatstown but they've started laying new Tarmac down and it's a joy to cycle on now where the work has been done still a few more parts which I hope they repair... I do wonder how long it will last though!!

yeah i was delighted when i turned onto the main cycle path from the beacon to goatstown to find silky smooth new tarmac. its a track i hate to ride usually, due to the massive potholes and chunks of red path churned up throughout.

Luxman

Yis are all missing the chance to train "roubaix" style ðŸ˜႒

Johnny Jukebox

I gave up riding my road bike in and out of the city years ago solely because the roads are so bad.

Lightweight full sus MTB with some tough tyres at 60 psi works really well for me now :-)

jon1981

Johnny Jukebox wrote: »

I gave up riding my road bike in and out of the city years ago solely because the roads are so bad.

Lightweight full sus MTB with some tough tyres at 60 psi works really well for me now :-)

And an extra hour of a commute each way at turtle speed :pac::pac:

Bloggsie

jon1981 wrote: »

I cycle through Dublin city every morning and one area that boils my blood as I pass through is around by college green from Pearse st to the front of Trinity college. The road is a shambles! They have made an absolute dogs dinner of it, full of cracks, bumps, different levels every 10meters... the wheels will be buckled by the end of the year.

Anyone know if this is a temporary thing with the intention to fix it up?

Feel free to air any other road condition grievances!

This thread could turn into a crap roads every city/town/village across the country! Yes road conditions are poor in some places disgraceful in others, my other half is always telling me to use cycle lanes "cos they are safer" I tend not to to because they are normally full of crap, glass and debris from any RTA that is swept off the road & the majority of them are in a poorer state than the road is!

aquinn

I complained to DCC last week and was advised to submit report. Have done this numerous times on their last portal but did it anyway to see if they'll finally fix it. I've a half cycle/path on my route that is in desperate condition and some of the potholes on Dorset Street you'd lose teeth over.

http://www.fixyourstreet.ie/reports/submit

jon1981

Bloggsie wrote: »

This thread could turn into a crap roads every city/town/village across the country! Yes road conditions are poor in some places disgraceful in others, my other half is always telling me to use cycle lanes "cos they are safer" I tend not to to because they are normally full of crap, glass and debris from any RTA that is swept off the road & the majority of them are in a poorer state than the road is!

The cycle lanes create a hazard because motorists assume you will never veer out of them and when you do to avoid some big canyon you risk ending up under a car wheel .. so I cycle outside just right of the cycle lane, probably annoys every driver who passes me but hey, they notice me!

Johnny Jukebox

jon1981 wrote: »

And an extra hour of a commute each way at turtle speed :pac::pac:

Don't you know its not about the bike jon1981 ?

tomasrojo

d

dragratchet wrote: »

yeah i was delighted when i turned onto the main cycle path from the beacon to goatstown to find silky smooth new tarmac. its a track i hate to ride usually, due to the massive potholes and chunks of red path churned up throughout.

The bit on the foothpath that leads down to the Goat pub was especially badly broken up. Couldn't cycle on it with a trailer. I assume they've resurfaced that too?

mathie

The stretch of road between the bull walls on the coast.
They ran the Giro over that?!

Carawaystick

Those lads were paid to cycle on our bad roads, whereas we pay to cycle on them.

Rojo

tomasrojo wrote: »

d
The bit on the foothpath that leads down to the Goat pub was especially badly broken up. Couldn't cycle on it with a trailer. I assume they've resurfaced that too?

The bit just at the bus stop?

Still shockingly bad!

roverrules

Carawaystick wrote: »

Those lads were paid to cycle on our bad roads, whereas we pay to cycle on them.

Have to disagree there, we pay no extra to use them than any other person in Ireland

tomasrojo

Rojo wrote: »

The bit just at the bus stop?

Still shockingly bad!

Yes, that's exactly the bit I had in mind. If the road weren't so narrow, I wouldn't be tempted to use the cycle track at all (especially as you have to give way to a side road and then look three ways before proceeding).

Maybe they'll fix it as part of this iteration. Quite hard to get the equipment in at it though, I guess.

RobertFoster

roverrules wrote: »

Have to disagree there, we pay no extra to use them than any other person in Ireland

I read it as a physical payment (pain/discomfort), rather than financial payment, though that depends on if the poor surface does any long lasting damage to rider or bike.

jon1981

Got a damn pinch flat going around by Trinity college earlier in the week. Tyres were up to 100psi, was doing about 25-28kph, didn't see one of the millions of cracks and lumps in road... boom!! I avoid that road now!

RossieMan

Ah here, have you been out to the country? Makes the roads I'm Dublin look like something youd see in a road race.

Wishbone Ash

RossieMan wrote: »

Ah here, have you been out to the country? Makes the roads I'm Dublin look like something youd see in a road race.

I cycle regularly in Dublin City Centre and in rural roads in various counties. City surfaces are much more difficult to cycle on.

jon1981

RossieMan wrote: »

Ah here, have you been out to the country? Makes the roads I'm Dublin look like something youd see in a road race.

Was out around the Naul and Ballyboughal last weekend, it was smooth as silk in comparison :pac: Sure they are redigging the Dublin roads every other day and laying temporary bumpy crap back over it.

RossieMan

I'm not talking about your lovely flowing hills of the east. Head over to the west and cycle some of the roads. everywhere is just as bad.

Wishbone Ash

RossieMan wrote: »

I'm not talking about your lovely flowing hills of the east. Head over to the west and cycle some of the roads. everywhere is just as bad.

I cycle occasionally in Co Donegal (where I suspect you may be located) and the roads are pretty good. Now if you could do something about the wind.......

RossieMan

thats typical Dublin logic there.

The username gives my location away i'm afraid, ya know, a wee county over West. Roscommon. Cycle our roads and come back to me. Perhaps its just most roads i've cycled on, but some are awful.

Wishbone Ash

RossieMan wrote: »

thats typical Dublin logic there.

The username gives my location away i'm afraid, ya know, a wee county over West. Roscommon. Cycle our roads and come back to me. Perhaps its just most roads i've cycled on, but some are awful.

Apologies - I was thinking of The Rosses! I'll admit I've never cycled in Co Roscommon so I'll take your word on it.

RossieMan

Plenty of handy KOM's if you're every looking for some. Ryan Sherlock has already taken most of the easier ones.

Carawaystick

roverrules wrote: »

Have to disagree there, we pay no extra to use them than any other person in Ireland

Doubt any of the giro lads paid any tax here, whereas we do.

Wishbone Ash

RossieMan wrote: »

Plenty of handy KOM's if you're every looking for some. Ryan Sherlock has already taken most of the easier ones.

FFS - he has Roscommon covered also? Is there anywhere he hasn't been? What hope is there for us mere mortals?

RossieMan

He has quite a few on roads I've travelled. High 40s on them. Its almost not fair trying to get near it, high 30s is a great achievement

Pinch Flat

jon1981 wrote: »

Got a damn pinch flat going around by Trinity college earlier in the week. Tyres were up to 100psi, was doing about 25-28kph, didn't see one of the millions of cracks and lumps in road... boom!! I avoid that road now!

You called? :pac:

jon1981

Pinch Flat wrote: »

You called? :pac:

Damn you to hell!!!!