N22 - Macroom to Ballyvourney (Macroom Bypass) [open to traffic]

marno21 · 12-10-2022 2:48am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119728972#Comment_119728972

Indeed, while this may have played a part, the fact that these schemes were only funded for planning and design meant that it was easier to put in schemes en masse as they were being built well into the future. Added to that, 2 other fairly major schemes in Cork were omitted (the North Ring Road and the Midleton to Youghal scheme encompassing bypasses of Castlemartyr and Killeagh). It's also a fair point to make that Cork has the highest proportion of national roads in the State and has had a downturn in proportional funding since the turn of the century

Whilst I don't want to turn it into council bashing, I will wholly agree with your point on Cork County Council's approach to national roads. At the end of every year, peeking through TII's allocations for the following year, you can see that from major schemes all the way down to small realignments, particular counties seem to have their ducks in a row more than others when it comes to getting a well stocked pipeline of small and major schemes sorted. This is completely separate from the blatant interference that has seen some major projects prioritised in recent years such as the N5 rush since 2011. In particular, Kerry, Mayo and Donegal seem to have a much greater proportion of minor and major schemes lined up for funding when it comes available. Contrast this with Cork who across the entire county have only 2 N73 schemes and a 2km realignment of the N71 outside Rosscarbery which have been inching through planning with many years (one N73 scheme finally got underway recently).

Fair enough about the objections, it's natural at this stage.

https://www.irishtimes.com/news/bypass-plans-will-not-harm-lee-valley-1.1083855

I assume the main objections were to the routes through the Lee Valley itself on page 8 of this pdf? The yellow one, running alongside the existing N22, was the final route chosen.

https://www.corkrdo.ie/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/N22-Baile-Bhuirne-to-Macroom_EIS_Volume-3-Part1-Pages-1-6-Fig-1-4.pdf

m1763 · 12-10-2022 9:32pm

They were supposed to temporarily fill up to the height of the main road to install a temporary roundabout out on to the main road

niloc1951 · 15-10-2022 4:30pm

Carrigphooca looks like an easy temporary tie-in the new and old roads are only a few meters apart, similar to what was done for the N8/M8 temporary tie-in just south of Cullahill

KrisW1001 · 16-10-2022 10:22am

It's not an easy tie-in, because the heights are very different (the mainline is coming from an overbridge at this point) and there's very little space. I can't help thinking that this is pressure from local politicians to get a good-news story just as the new cabinet starts work in December. The road can open to Millstreet Rd with no risk or fuss - Carrigaphuca seems like a lot of extra cost and trouble just to bypass an extra 5km of road that is never busy anyway.

marno21 · 16-10-2022 12:02pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119750792#Comment_119750792

There is strong opposition locally to opening it as far as Millstreet Road also - it will make that stretch of road much busier while it’s operating as a temporary tie in. (I’m aware that post opening it’ll also be busy with traffic from the western side of the town trying to access the new road).

I would imagine they will end up opening to Carrigaphooca - but it’ll be open to the eastern Ballyvourney junction in April anyway so it won’t be used for long.

KrisW1001 · 16-10-2022 12:10pm

The key word is "temporary". It's looking like it'll be less than six months.

Changing the layout at Carrigaphuca will delay the final opening of the project and increase the cost.

Prospectors · 17-10-2022 8:05pm

Given the rumours locally that the macroom section would open by end of October, surely if that was still a possibility, there would be an official announcement by now?

EnzoScifo · 18-10-2022 1:43am

They might wait a few weeks and give the Taoiseach a send off before the changeover.

niloc1951 · 18-10-2022 4:16pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119750792#Comment_119750792

Looks easy, a temporary roundabout should work, particularly if physical measures (rumble strips and speed bumps) were included to slow traffic right down. A slip lane could be used to keep westbound traffic off the roundabout.

https://www.google.ie/maps/@51.9110507,-9.0289301,3a,39.1y,236.65h,88.57t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sx1d_drQttGCUxgNGOvfb1A!2e0!7i16384!8i8192?hl=en

embraer170 · 18-10-2022 5:26pm

Bit of a height difference there.

yerwanthere123 · 20-10-2022 3:17pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119615296#Comment_119615296

Road markings were put down here today, plus the road barriers have went up inside the last couple of days. Surely we're getting close now, eagerly awaiting an announcement.

Ambush Rebel 2010 · 24-10-2022 11:09pm

Latest Video from Dronehawk:

https://youtu.be/w4yOix4fZ6c

KrisW1001 · 25-10-2022 9:17am

No sign of any "temporary roundabout". If they do end up opening it to here, then I think the arrangement I posted earlier (see post below) is what they'll end up doing... they've put a better surface on the site-access road since the earlier picture.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119705431#Comment_119705431

Or, from the latest video, and looking back toward Macroom:

cargo · 25-10-2022 10:46am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119790121#Comment_119790121

That looks workable although slow at the joining point. Road seems fully prepped up to that point and comes to an abrupt stop in the video so it does look like the temporary tie in point and the video also suggests KrisW1001's solution is what they voted for :-)

The Millstreet Road tie in just wouldn't work at the Macroom end for artics trying to turn back on themselves at the junction. One or two will always get through slowly but no flow on that junction so I'd say it would cause big issues in at that junction.

marno21 · 25-10-2022 10:54am

To expand on Kris’ idea, you’d imagine they’ll put a mini roundabout of some sort on the old N22 at the end of that site access road. Otherwise you’d have Killarney-> bypass traffic having to turn right across the old N22 and causing tailbacks onto the roundabout. Otherwise it looks like that could be ready to go quite soon

KrisW1001 · 25-10-2022 11:19am

@marno21 : yes, they’ll need to do that, or lights, because the turn is quite blind for anyone coming from Killarney, under the new road.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119790410#Comment_119790410

I don’t think the articulated truck argument holds water: the Millstreet Road junction is in its final form today - there’s no more work to be done. If there are problems with its use as a temporary tie-in, there will be problems with its use in service. But the way the Millstreet road meets the Killarney Road (N22) currently, the turn is actually easier for HGVs turning left back toward Macroom than it is for any trying to head west along the old N22, who would need to make an acute right turn here. ( see: R582 - Google Maps )

I hope there’s some kind of plan for this junction that can be started once the bypass opens. Right now, there’s no way you could do any kind of roadworks here without total chaos, but once it’s not the main Cork-Killarney road anymore, it’ll be easier..

cargo · 25-10-2022 1:13pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119790534#Comment_119790534

I think we are on the same side of the circle 😄 I was referring to the turn from the Old N22 in Macroom onto the Milstreet Road (to take you out to join the new Mway). I wasn't referring to the actual junction onto the mway.

dubbrin · 25-10-2022 2:20pm

Has anyone given any thought to them using both the Milltreet Rd junction and the Carrigaphuca temp junction? (Maybe I've missed it...) Say traffic from Kerry joins at Millstreet Rd junction onto the new road and onwards to Coolcower. Traffic from Cork joins at coolcower and exits at Carrigaphuca junction, under the new road, and onto the existing slip westwards. Rights of way, etc could be changed to suit the major traffic flow at each junction.

AugustusMinimus · 25-10-2022 3:06pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119791341#Comment_119791341

This would be a left exit and entrance for both sets of traffic. Would make a lot of sense.

KrisW1001 · 25-10-2022 4:33pm

The Millstreet Road junction is going to open fully, no matter what is done at Carraigaphuca. It was never an either/or decision: the choice was between opening just the Millstreet Road junction, or both it and a temporary tie-in at Carraigaphuca further west.

Restricting movement at Carraigaphuca wouldn’t make much sense. It’s not as busy there as at the Millstreet Road/Killarney Road T-junction.

Honestly, the idea is bad already; attempts to “improve” it won’t make a lot of difference. I think the whole Carrigaphuca thing is nothing more than a political stunt, and from what I’ve heard the contractor is really pee’d off about having to go along with it

niloc1951 · 25-10-2022 5:39pm

Temporary tie-ins are nothing new and Carraigaphuca looks like a prime candidate for one, in one shape or another.

When building what is now the M8, apart from the grade-separated junction connections, there were temporary at-grade tie-ins at Glanmire North, Watergrasshill, and Cullohill as the new bits were connected to the existing N8 along the way. I'm sure there must be other examples on routes I'm not familiar with too.

KrisW1001 · 25-10-2022 6:25pm

The difference is that those openings were planned from the outset of those projects. Tying in N22 at Carraigaphuca was not part of the original plan.

kub · 25-10-2022 9:29pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119792046#Comment_119792046

While I can understand the annoyance of the contractor, I am sure they will be suitably compensated for it.

Chris_5339762 · 26-10-2022 2:20pm

The best one was still at the interface between the M18 Crusheen - Gort and M18 Gort - Athenry scheme. As both had planning permission, they built the entire Gort junction as part of the first scheme, and about 200m of additional motorway too. The result was the most seamless tie-in weve had in Ireland, utterly uncharacteristic of what we usually do.

Carrigphooca is still the obvious choice, but I don't get why this wasn't planned from day 1. It seems to be political point scoring for now. But I do quite like the idea of a split opening described by dubbrin. That, on the outside anyway, would placate everyone.

serfboard · 26-10-2022 2:40pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119795583#Comment_119795583

To me, the reason this wasn't planned from day one was that there was no need for it. Some of us here are only asking for it now, because there is talk of a partial opening and if you're doing a partial opening, Carraigaphopca is the obvious choice and the new road looks ready as far as there, even if the (temporary) junction isn't.

When the overall road is finished, long-distance drivers wishing to divert into Macroom will be able to do so via the Millstreet Road junction.

munchkin_utd · 26-10-2022 3:59pm

if they just do Millstreet it would still make a massive difference. If they could do that by the weekend it'd be even better !!

AugustusMinimus · 27-10-2022 6:34am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119796079#Comment_119796079

It’ll likely cause chaos where the Millstreet Road ends in the town. Killarney bound traffic will be queuing to do a right turn.

munchkin_utd · 27-10-2022 7:19am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119798519#Comment_119798519

I was thinking about that and obviously the through traffic from the millstreet junction to Killarney would need to be temporarily given priority and the junction temporarily altered so that Cork-Killarney traffic was kept flowing and town traffic temporarily demoted.

Seeing as its a temporary solution you probably would need temporary lights there just to reinforce the fact that the layout has changed - temporarily

KrisW1001 · 27-10-2022 7:56am

There won’t be a need for temporary right-of-way changes. Think about it: why is it difficult to turn right at Millstreet Road onto the current N22? Because you’re fighting against Cork-Kerry through traffic. The amount of traffic that’s actually people who started their journey in Macroom, or joined at the bridge is miniscule.

Once the eastern section of the new N22 opens, all of that traffic won’t be coming out of Macroom anymore, so a right-turn will be pretty easy to make here.

AugustusMinimus · 27-10-2022 9:21am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119798602#Comment_119798602

I thought of this at the time. However it won’t take much to hold up traffic from turning right at the end of the Millstreet junction. They will be fighting with traffic going in both directions on the mainline even if a lot of the traffic from the west will be going up the Millstreet Road.

Youd also be amazed at how little drivers will indicate and how other drivers will not move (rightly in a lot of cases) when they see drivers indicating which should mean it is safe to proceed. I wouldn’t pull out until I’m certain a driver is turning off, indicator showing or not.

N22 - Macroom to Ballyvourney (Macroom Bypass) [open to traffic]

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