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M6 - Kilbeggan to Athlone

thegoth

Hi,

I was talking to some friends in Athlone and they said that the M6 would be complete to Athlone by Christmas this year. The same thing is also stated here
http://www.athlonetowncentrehotel.com/location.htm

I often drive the Dublin to Athlone road and I see the progress on the motorway. I find it hard to believe it will be ready for Xmas. Has anyone anymore news regarding this ?

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[Deleted User]

Victor wrote: »

To benefit Offaly voters.

& Dublin commuters.

It highlights just how important Athlone is as a regional centre.

edit: It's also easy to forget just how awfull that old road between Kinnegad and Tyrollspass actually was*!

*narrow, windy, no real overtaking places & 80kmh speed limit!

veryangryman

Check out the wikipedia page about the N6. They stupidly have put junction numbers incorrectly

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N6_road#Junctions

What is wrong is the Athlone sections numbers. Athlone numbers (in reality) go from 1-6 from Junction 1 for Monksland up to Junction 6 for Birr/Kilmartins.

Unless there is a solid plan to upgrade the DC in Athlone. Which last i checked there isnt.

[Deleted User]

veryangryman wrote: »

Check out the wikipedia page about the N6. They stupidly have put junction numbers incorrectly

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N6_road#Junctions

What is wrong is the Athlone sections numbers. Athlone numbers (in reality) go from 1-6 from Junction 1 for Monksland up to Junction 6 for Birr/Kilmartins.

Unless there is a solid plan to upgrade the DC in Athlone. Which last i checked there isnt.

It's much better to have one numbering scheme for the entire N/M6 Dublin - Galway, rather than switching between schemes.

It could confuse the hell out of visitors etc.

veryangryman

As opposed to having conflicting information with whats on the signs at the moment?

Yeah they need to update the signs etc, but no point puttign numbers on wiki that dont exist. I hate it when maps/directions dont reflect the roadsigns and vice versa

Another example...Does anyone ever travel Athlone-Naas via Tullamore? Silly AA tells you to travel to Emo before getting onto the M7 as opposed to going to Monasterevin and then getting on saving countless miles

Yes im going well off topic... But im in a rebellious mood today! :pac::D

[Deleted User]

veryangryman wrote: »

As opposed to having conflicting information with whats on the signs at the moment?

On the subject of signs, I noticed that the "M6" starts just before the kilmartins junction eastbound.
If strictly policed, prohibited traffic would have to use the hard shoulder for the last 100metres or so :rolleyes:

[Deleted User]

Journey timings before & after opening the new road

Before @06:10 18.7 miles 20 minutes
After @06:20 17.9 miles 15 minutes

It's only five minutes at that time of the morning (no traffic!), but so much easier to drive.

I'm sure some people have saves almost an hour during busy times.

Irish and Proud

Deleted User wrote: »

On the subject of signs, I noticed that the "M6" starts just before the kilmartins junction eastbound.
If strictly policed, prohibited traffic would have to use the hard shoulder for the last 100metres or so :rolleyes:

I wonder if they're going to place the first part of the Athlone By-pass (to the first original interchange from the Dublin direction) under motorway regulations?

Will just have to wait and see!

Regards!

kaizersoze

Deleted User wrote: »

On the subject of signs, I noticed that the "M6" starts just before the kilmartins junction eastbound.
If strictly policed, prohibited traffic would have to use the hard shoulder for the last 100metres or so :rolleyes:

All road signs are positioned 100m before what they are indicating, aren't they?
Meaning if the sign is 100m before the junction then the motorway starts at the junction?

[Deleted User]

Irish and Proud wrote: »

I wonder if they're going to place the first part of the Athlone By-pass (to the first original interchange from the Dublin direction) under motorway regulations?

Will just have to wait and see!

Regards!

I would say no, because there is local access to farm land off the roundabout.

[Deleted User]

kaizersoze wrote: »

All road signs are positioned 100m before what they are indicating, aren't they?
Meaning if the sign is 100m before the junction then the motorway starts at the junction?

Where this sign is positioned it could also indicate that the slip road is also part of the motorway, it's a cockup!

Irish and Proud

Deleted User wrote: »

Where this sign is positioned it could also indicate that the slip road is also part of the motorway, it's a cockup!

Good Point Mate!

The motorway entry signs are usually placed where the motorway regulations start. AFAIK, the signs displaying the rules are usually placed in advance.

...so yeah, I guess someone did cock up!

Regards!

whyulittle

Drove out the old N6 during the weekend under the crazy 80km/h speed limit. Turned off onto a narrow, bendy country road, which also had a 80 km/h limit. :rolleyes:

[Deleted User]

whyulittle wrote: »

Drove out the old N6 during the weekend under the crazy 80km/h speed limit. Turned off onto a narrow, bendy country road, which also had a 80 km/h limit. :rolleyes:

Give it a few years of minimun maintenance, it'll be only fit for 80kmh :rolleyes:

Irish and Proud

whyulittle wrote: »

Drove out the old N6 during the weekend under the crazy 80km/h speed limit. Turned off onto a narrow, bendy country road, which also had a 80 km/h limit. :rolleyes:

Yeah, it's complete nonsense, especially when (AFAIK) the council has to power to impose a 100k (special) speed limit on regional roads where suitable.

In any case, it might be a good idea to bring in a new designation system - take the old N6 for example, it would become the A6 (Alternative National Route), so the N6 would legally comprise of two routes, M6 and A6 where the NRA would have to take responsibility for both. Alternative Primaries from Dublin would include the:

A1 to Dundalk and Border (from Whitehall);
A2 to Ashbourne (from Coldwinters exit);
A3 to Kells (from Clonee);
A4 to Kinnegead (from Celbridge Exit);
A6 to Galway (from Kinnegead - Athlone By-pass would remain N6);
A7 to Limerick (from Naas);
A8 to Cork (from Portlaoise);
A9 to Waterford (from Naas);
A25 through Waterford; and
A50 Dublin Outer Ring and Green Route.

The general speed limit for these would be 100kph.

At the very least, the above proposal should be implemented where toll motorways are involved.

Regards!

[Deleted User]

It would be easier just to call it the N6 as the M6 now runs parallel to it! after all it's still a primary (non-motorway) route.

What Vision?

It would have been easier just to have kept the R100 numbers for the old national numbers,

So the N1 -> R101
N2 -> R102

etc.

But in the NRA view the M6 is the N6, and they have improved it to motorway standard. legally the motorways are just national routes.

marmurr1916

Deleted User wrote: »

It would be easier just to call it the N6 as the M6 now runs parallel to it! after all it's still a primary (non-motorway) route.

Unfortunately, it's not a primary route anymore - it's now just a regional route.

The same will happen to all sections of national routes that are replaced by new sections of motorway.

Parts of the former N8 that have been replaced by new sections of the M8 have been downgraded to the R639.

I don't see a problem with this, although it would be nice if these roads were to automatically retain their 100 km/h speed limit unless road conditions make this unsafe.

Amtmann

marmurr1916 wrote: »

Unfortunately, it's not a primary route anymore - it's now just a regional route.

The same will happen to all sections of national routes that are replaced by new sections of motorway.

Parts of the former N8 that have been replaced by new sections of the M8 have been downgraded to the R639.

I don't see a problem with this, although it would be nice if these roads were to automatically retain their 100 km/h speed limit unless road conditions make this unsafe.

The R639 between Cashel and Mitchelstown has retained its 100km/h limit.

marmurr1916

Hopefully that's a long-term speed limit, and not just the county councils being slow to change signs.

I'd say the odds of being caught speeding on that road are a lot lower too since the gardai seem to be concentrating their efforts on the M8 (at least as long as it keeps the 100 km/h limit).

Maybe the Cahir to Mitchelstown stretch of the R639 will be quicker than the motorway for boy racers!

icdg

What Vision? wrote: »

It would have been easier just to have kept the R100 numbers for the old national numbers,

So the N1 -> R101
N2 -> R102

etc.

But in the NRA view the M6 is the N6, and they have improved it to motorway standard. legally the motorways are just national routes.

That would have been a good idea, although there is a rough rule scheme for numbering regional roads which it would have broken (nothing as elaborate as the GB numbering scheme, although nothing as random as the NI numbering scheme, where the numbers are seemingly allocated at random...)

Basically, the R-roads are numbered on a regional basis, for example, R-roads starting in Dublin tend to all start with the number "1", in Kildare they start with "4", etc.

It's wrong to say that motorways are legally "just" national routes. Certainly they form part of national routes, but legally speaking a motorway and an all purpose road are two different things. There are certain traffic prohibited from using a motorway (hence the "NO" signs), you may not stop on a motorway except at traffic lights, when requested to do so by a member of An Garda Siochana, or when traffic is moving in queues, you may only drive straight ahead (no U-turns or reversing), there is a procedure to follow if your car is broken down, etc - none of which applies to all-purpose national routes.

veryangryman

Anyone notice the "Clara/Moate exit" Westbound 2km sign mentioning the wrong road?!

The R420 instead of the R446. The subsequent 1KM and 500M signs are right though.

R446 is the old N6. R420 is the road between Tullamore and the Hazel Hotel (Monasterevin)

Off topic, but how much sh1t does that Hotel have to host before they bomb it. "Stop the world and let me in...>"

plodder

<Old thread alert.>

I pass this spot regularly and have been wondering why there is a junction here which isn't connected to any local road network.

https://www.google.ie/maps/place/Athlone,+Co.+Westmeath/@53.3995714,-7.8328092,849m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x485c49013e648c9f:0xdaf91a8d46bde380!8m2!3d53.4239331!4d-7.9406898

It looks designed to provide access to the field above it - a full motorway junction

Anyone know what the story was there?

bennyineire

plodder wrote: »

<Old thread alert.>

I pass this spot regularly and have been wondering why there is a junction here which isn't connected to any local road network.

https://www.google.ie/maps/place/Athlone,+Co.+Westmeath/@53.3995714,-7.8328092,849m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x485c49013e648c9f:0xdaf91a8d46bde380!8m2!3d53.4239331!4d-7.9406898

It looks designed to provide access to the field above it - a full motorway junction Anyone know what the story was there?

Yep it's the site for a new service area, tender was awarded to Apple Green (I think) but it is been challenged in court by one of the failed bidders

L1011

bennyineire wrote: »

Yep it's the site for a new service area, tender was awarded to Apple Green (I think) but it is been challenged in court by one of the failed bidders

Other way round, awarded to Topaz and challenged by Applegreen. Court action is over now I think but Topaz haven't made any moves on any of the sites yet.

The Gorey one is basically complete as it was built at the same time as the Arklow-Rathnew section of the M11

plodder

Ah right. There are offline services at the first junction for Athlone, but are often pretty congested. A single facility here with access to both sides of the motorway makes a lot of sense.

bennyineire

L1011 wrote: »

Other way round, awarded to Topaz and challenged by Applegreen. Court action is over now I think but Topaz haven't made any moves on any of the sites yet.

The Gorey one is basically complete as it was built at the same time as the Arklow-Rathnew section of the M11

Topaz have been acquired by Circle K in the mean time whilst all this was going on so I can only assume they have put a hold status on these while they were completing the integration