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TII Motorway Service Areas (MSA) Progress Thread

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  • Registered Users Posts: 19,369 ✭✭✭✭road_high


    marno21 wrote: »
    Wide 2 lane is WS2, 5 meter lanes and 2.5 meter hard shoulders. Monstrously wide road but still 2 lanes. From 2008 on WS2 was replaced with 2+2

    Sorry I see your original post said “standard 2 lane” between Paulstown and Waterford- so that meant effectively it didn’t “need” to be wide S2.

    I remember (and I was really only following these things as a child!) there plans to to completely replace/bypass the old N9 around Mullinavat with new road with climbing lanes etc. Kilkenny county council had an ad notice in the paper about it


  • Registered Users Posts: 19,369 ✭✭✭✭road_high


    flazio wrote: »
    Applegreen never seemed that busy to me anytime I've been through it. Both themselves and Kilmartins (Texaco) depended a lot on passing traffic to B&Q and Woodies respectively.
    Kilmartins looks to be doing just fine, Applegreen on the other hand looks tired and unorganised. Most other places have combinations of Chopstix, Burger King, Subway and a coffee chain. Nothing of note there and I believe the takeaway beside them has had trouble with hygiene checkers.

    Jones oil in Athlone were doing diesel €1.20 per liter last week. I’d say a lot of locals go there and don’t bother with the service stations


  • Registered Users Posts: 178 ✭✭emfifty


    Went up to look at the Circle K/McD near Athlone. Impressive facility. It seems a little smaller than Gorey M11 equivalent.
    Nice to see dedicated parking for motorcycles with allocated signage. That's a first.
    Also, another first? Quite a high mounted McDonald's sign visible close to the motorway (westbound) similar to those on the continent. Perhaps a new precedent from a planning point of view.
    I'm expecting Kilcullen MSA to be another carbon copy of this one.


  • Registered Users Posts: 178 ✭✭emfifty


    On a related note; further up the road, M4 services eastbound (Applegreen) has gone downhill badly. There were only 15 cars parked up in the main carpark. (Perhaps the Circle K and Kinnegad Plaza have added to this)


  • Registered Users Posts: 3,358 ✭✭✭JohnC.


    emfifty wrote: »
    Went up to look at the Circle K/McD near Athlone. Impressive facility. It seems a little smaller than Gorey M11 equivalent.
    Nice to see dedicated parking for motorcycles with allocated signage. That's a first.
    Also, another first? Quite a high mounted McDonald's sign visible close to the motorway (westbound) similar to those on the continent. Perhaps a new precedent from a planning point of view.
    I'm expecting Kilcullen MSA to be another carbon copy of this one.

    Does Gorey not have bike parking? I was only there once and I thought there were narrow bike spots at the end near the chargers?


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  • Registered Users Posts: 19,369 ✭✭✭✭road_high


    emfifty wrote: »
    On a related note; further up the road, M4 services eastbound (Applegreen) has gone downhill badly. There were only 15 cars parked up in the main carpark. (Perhaps the Circle K and Kinnegad Plaza have added to this)

    You’ll see that more and more I think-as the network becomes increasingly saturated with services some will suffer. Especially that one as it’s primarily for motorway traffic with no local business


  • Registered Users Posts: 19,369 ✭✭✭✭road_high


    emfifty wrote: »
    Went up to look at the Circle K/McD near Athlone. Impressive facility. It seems a little smaller than Gorey M11 equivalent.
    Nice to see dedicated parking for motorcycles with allocated signage. That's a first.
    Also, another first? Quite a high mounted McDonald's sign visible close to the motorway (westbound) similar to those on the continent. Perhaps a new precedent from a planning point of view.
    I'm expecting Kilcullen MSA to be another carbon copy of this one.

    Anyone confirm what tenants will be at Kilcullen? Surely not another McDonalds as there’s one 20mins down the road at J5 Carlow


  • Registered Users Posts: 12,752 ✭✭✭✭flazio


    road_high wrote: »
    Anyone confirm what tenants will be at Kilcullen? Surely not another McDonalds as there’s one 20mins down the road at J5 Carlow

    There's another McDonald's 5 minutes down the road from the new one on the outskirts of Athlone in Kilmartins. Doesn't mean a thing.


  • Registered Users Posts: 965 ✭✭✭radharc


    road_high wrote: »
    Anyone confirm what tenants will be at Kilcullen? Surely not another McDonalds as there’s one 20mins down the road at J5 Carlow

    If it’s Circle K it means McDonald’s


  • Registered Users Posts: 178 ✭✭emfifty


    JohnC. wrote: »
    Does Gorey not have bike parking? I was only there once and I thought there were narrow bike spots at the end near the chargers?

    You're spot on. However, there were no Motorcycle parking signs so people didn't know what they were for. There were no motorbikes parked in them, that's for sure. While signage generally seems to be improving at service stations it's still not being applied consistently.
    Let's see if M9 Kilcullen get it right!


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  • Registered Users Posts: 5,201 ✭✭✭ongarboy


    flazio wrote: »
    road_high wrote: »
    Anyone confirm what tenants will be at Kilcullen? Surely not another McDonalds as there’s one 20mins down the road at J5 Carlow

    There's another McDonald's 5 minutes down the road from the new one on the outskirts of Athlone in Kilmartins. Doesn't mean a thing.

    Indeed. The original MSAs in Enfield, Lusk and Castlebellingham have had 2 Burger Kings across from each other and are trading successfully for a decade. I don't see two McD's almost 40kms from each other as over saturation.


  • Moderators, Social & Fun Moderators Posts: 12,469 Mod ✭✭✭✭JupiterKid


    Good news to hear of the M6 Athlone East MSA opening and the Kilcullen MSA on the way. :)

    Is it just me or does anyone else think the Applegreen MSA in Enfield has gone a bit downhill in the past year or so in terms of maintenance, cleanliness etc?


  • Registered Users Posts: 11,434 ✭✭✭✭For Forks Sake


    JupiterKid wrote: »
    Good news to hear of the M6 Athlone East MSA opening and the Kilcullen MSA on the way. :)

    Is it just me or does anyone else think the Applegreen MSA in Enfield has gone a bit downhill in the past year or so in terms of maintenance, cleanliness etc?

    Those Applegreens E&W are nearly my second home at this stage, but you're right standards have dipped noticeably over the past year.

    From Athlone to Enfield now you have a good scatter of competition between incumbent and new areas : Applegreen Arcadia - Kilmartins - Circle K MSA - M6 Kilbeggan - Kinnegad Plaza - Applegreen MSA Enfield.


  • Registered Users Posts: 178 ✭✭emfifty


    JupiterKid wrote: »
    Good news to hear of the M6 Athlone East MSA opening and the Kilcullen MSA on the way. :)

    Is it just me or does anyone else think the Applegreen MSA in Enfield has gone a bit downhill in the past year or so in terms of maintenance, cleanliness etc?

    I'm on to it. Sent an email to 'Applegreen Feedback' with my complaint over the weekend and the on-site person responded back first thing this morning. He is none too happy with the situation at Enfield East and agreed with all of the points I raised. He's been highlighting some of the issues re maintenance, etc with his superiors and getting nowhere it seems. TII were also copied (as it's an online MSA) on the email so we'll see what happens.


  • Registered Users Posts: 5,201 ✭✭✭ongarboy


    https://www.irishmirror.ie/news/irish-news/circle-k-mcdonalds-create-100-20075192

    Decent aerial shot of the new Athlone MSA in article.


  • Registered Users Posts: 12,752 ✭✭✭✭flazio


    I noticed as I was leaving the car park that there was a road heading left from the truck parking towards a McDonald's sign. That's hardly a link to the local road, is it?


  • Moderators, Regional South Moderators Posts: 5,710 Mod ✭✭✭✭Quackster


    flazio wrote: »
    I noticed as I was leaving the car park that there was a road heading left from the truck parking towards a McDonald's sign. That's hardly a link to the local road, is it?

    Most likely emergency/staff access from a local road.


  • Registered Users Posts: 377 ✭✭NedNew2


    Kilcullen MSA Opening

    The Circle K M9 Kilcullen (between Junctions 2 and 3) will open to customers on Thursday, 24th October, it has been confirmed.

    A ‘Grand Opening’ event will take place on Friday 25th October, with a host of special offers available both in store, and on the forecourt, on the day.

    (KildareNow)


  • Registered Users Posts: 667 ✭✭✭BelfastVanMan


    I was on the ROI M1 today and was in the Lusk Applegreen Service Station. It is OK, but it's very dull, commercial if you like, just functional and open-spaced. You go in, there's a big seating area with the food outlet counters on the same level.

    I was later on the NI M2 and went into the Templepatrick Applegreen Service Station and it was lovely. The food outlets on the ground floor as well as some seats, but a nice quiet upstairs coffee lounge with a TV, quiet, nice and relaxing after a long drive with good finishes.

    Why are the NI service stations nice and refined whereas ROI service stations are boring and drab?

    The NI ones seem a little smaller.


  • Registered Users Posts: 5,811 ✭✭✭Chris_5339762


    I was on the ROI M1 today and was in the Lusk Applegreen Service Station. It is OK, but it's very dull, commercial if you like, just functional and open-spaced. You go in, there's a big seating area with the food outlet counters on the same level.

    I was later on the NI M2 and went into the Templepatrick Applegreen Service Station and it was lovely. The food outlets on the ground floor as well as some seats, but a nice quiet upstairs coffee lounge with a TV, quiet, nice and relaxing after a long drive with good finishes.

    Why are the NI service stations nice and refined whereas ROI service stations are boring and drab?


    The coffee lounges upstairs in the NI ones are remarkably nice I have to say.


    Perhaps the ROI ones (certainly the M1 ones, anyway) were designed years before the NI ones so maybe they've learnt?


    The worst thing about the ROI ones is the play area is inside the service station so the noise can be deafening. The NI ones put up a barrier and kind of had it half in an adjacent room to keep the quiet down. If I had my way it'd be on the other side of the carpark but I guess thats why I'm not in charge :pac:


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  • Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 4,917 Mod ✭✭✭✭spacetweek


    Yes but they have two floors and are generally mor comfortable. They may be smaller but they are definitely nicer than the ones in the south. Why is this? They're owned by the same company so why are the differing?

    Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.


  • Registered Users Posts: 19,369 ✭✭✭✭road_high


    +1.

    I despise those play areas in the ROI ones, the NI setup is so different.

    We're better at NI when it comes to roads but the service stations up there are to die for, metaphorically speaking. The coffee lounges are so relaxed up there, you can read the paper, have a coffee and a meal and just take a few minutes break, whereas here you get a lot of Traveller kids making all sorts of noise whilst messing in the play area and there are so many people walking past there is just no privacy or a moments peace.

    Realistically how many services do they need for about 100 km of motorway built in the 1960s? The south has a fairly reaching actual network with different kinds of services of varying standards.


  • Registered Users Posts: 5,201 ✭✭✭ongarboy


    Someone from NI visits one MSA visit in the Republic once and makes an absolute comparison based on a single visit? Secondly, does anyone seriously expect an MSA to be a an oasis or sanctuary of peace and harmony to linger and dwell for hours ?

    Most motorists want a clean, efficient stop off place where they can refuel, grab and go rather than hang out in a health spa environment. Granted, some MSAs down south have become victims of their own success as locals use it for their daily feed of carvery/Whopper/Big Mac, tables left dirty, queues etc.

    Birdhill Applegreen is my favorite for spaciousness, least crowds and cleanliness and Obama my least favorite for the exact opposite reasons


  • Posts: 7,712 ✭✭✭[Deleted User]


    ongarboy wrote: »
    Someone from NI visits one MSA visit in the Republic once and makes an absolute comparison based on a single visit? Secondly, does anyone seriously expect an MSA to be a an oasis or sanctuary of peace and harmony to linger and dwell for hours ?

    Most motorists want a clean, efficient stop off place where they can refuel, grab and go rather than hang out in a health spa environment. Granted, some MSAs down south have become victims of their own success as locals use it for their daily feed of carvery/Whopper/Big Mac, tables left dirty, queues etc.

    Birdhill Applegreen is my favorite for spaciousness, least crowds and cleanliness and Obama my least favorite for the exact opposite reasons

    Has something changed in Birdhill? It’s the only one I regularly can’t get a single parking space in. I’d rather have Paulstown a million miles over it.


  • Moderators, Regional South Moderators Posts: 5,710 Mod ✭✭✭✭Quackster


    Yes but they have two floors and are generally mor comfortable. They may be smaller but they are definitely nicer than the ones in the south. Why is this? They're owned by the same company so why are the differing?

    Applegreen don't own them, they're just the operator, and had no input into their design.

    Two different public quangos in two different jurisdictions were responsible for their design/construction.


  • Moderators, Regional South Moderators Posts: 5,710 Mod ✭✭✭✭Quackster


    Who owns them then?

    ROI and NI governments respectively.


  • Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 11,749 Mod ✭✭✭✭Cookiemunster


    Who owns them then?


    As the thread title says they're TII MSAs, so owned by TII.


  • Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 11,749 Mod ✭✭✭✭Cookiemunster


    But they are both Applegreen?


    That just means that Applegreen won the contract to run both sites.


  • Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 11,749 Mod ✭✭✭✭Cookiemunster


    Who built the sites?


    The same people who own them. The government bodies in the respective juristictions. TII in the South and whoever their counterpart is in NI.


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  • Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 19,257 Mod ✭✭✭✭Sam Russell


    The Department for Infrastructure in NI.

    Why aren't Applegreen given the contract for all islandwide MSAs considering they are probably the best option?

    Also, why are the NI MSAs superior in terms of comfort and quality?

    NI get a £10 billion a year donation from Westmister.


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