N8/N25/N40 - Dunkettle Interchange [open to traffic]

The feeds on https://www.dunkettletraffic.ie/ are in real-time only. AFAIK, they can't be saved or replayed, I would expect the captured video can be replayed by those in officialdom with access to the system.

I didn't realise this was happening. It seems to me that they're making a mostly pointless detour, I struggle to see how it could be faster for them, because the N25 side is so bad.

Another thing I've seen a lot of is N25 traffic arriving at the south of the dumbell, then rejoin the N25, in an effort to skip the queues below. Both moves are are causing that dumbell to fail to function on a regular basis.

This morning for the first time I saw the Little Island traffic block the Dublin-Cork traffic too. This was my "worst case scenario" I kept harping on about a few years ago. The M8-N25 railway overbridge was stopped, basically.

All I can say is the same as before, that we need a new route into the North-East of the city from the M8. We need more people out of cars too, but that goes without saying.

I don't think any more money should be spent on cars through Dunkettle though at this stage. By all means, an N40 North or a better down-river crossing towards Ringaskiddy, but no more cars through Dunkettle, it's pointless while the tunnel is at capacity.

The speed limit on Link K is 60km/h and from the end of Link K onwards through the tunnel is 80km/h, speeds which are easily within the capability of any car using the route.

However, it appears that not many drivers are capable of driving any faster than 30-40km/h through the curve at the end of link K and 50-60km/h through the tunnel.

Such slower-than-necessary progress aggravates the length of the queues during peak time traffic.

When I took my driving test one of the fail reasons was 'failing to make reasonable progress', perhaps like not being required to demonstrate an ability to reverse around a corner, failing to maintain reasonable progress has also been dropped from the test.

Complete and utter chaos this morning 😞

Broken down car in the left lane of the tunnel at 7am, followed by a pile up on the weaving section between J10 Mahon and J9 Ringaskiddy.

Oddly enough this weaving section seems to be causing more problems recently. Usually its the J9 merge that causes hell, but more and more crashes now on that weaving section. People just don't look.

There's surely a good bit of "tweaking" that can be done to the existing roads , to improve flow into and through the tunnel , coming from the n25 slip ,

I don't mean everyone driving like maniacs , but surely ending the little island merge lane a long way back from the tunnel, and possibly moving the lane of traffic to the right to allow a better sight line into the tunnel , and hopefully better flow into the tunnel ,

Also a few small bollards or a large rumble strip on the median line just before the tunnel , but just after the " emergency/ overheight" lane , just to deter lane changing ,

Possibly more overhead LED "80 kph "signs in the tunnel itself , just to encourage traffic in the tunnel to speed up a little ,

I was being tong-in-cheek about the maintaining reasonable progress bit, but reversing around a corner is definitely gone for a good few years, on health and safety grounds I believe 🙄

I've had it quoted to me more than once in the last few weeks, with no reference to the show: "it lasted for two years"

Are they a death metal band?

Definitely back to normal-service-resumed this week.

Tuesday: 1x crash at Ringaskiddy backing things up well past Dunkettle in the AM. 1x crash at Mahon in the PM blocking things up eastbound. And another car broke down in the slip lane.

Thursday: 10 cars involved in 3 seperate crashes blocking up the N40 westbound right to the N25 on Harpers Island. Awful driving yet again causing this.

The only short term thinking I can see is a 60kmh speed limit through the Ringaskiddy junction on the N40, backed up by fixed speed cameras.

Garda presence might help…… - they seem to be more rare than sabre tooth tigers atm!

I hope you stay exiled with that N25 sugggestion.

Your last line is 100% true. It’s the reason why variable speed limits improve traffic flow on busy roads.

On multi-lane roads, weaving and braking by drivers creates delays behind them. If you've got 5% of drivers trying to do 100 km/h on a road where traffic only permits 80 km/h, then they will cause enough disruption to lower that average traffic speed further. In extreme cases, one ill-judged lane change can cause a “braking cascade” that stops the flow of traffic in that lane completely.

On multi-lane roads, people treat the number on a speed-limit sign as a target, so if you lower that speed to a point where traffic will flow smoothly, and enforce that lower limit, the road carries more vehicles, and everyone makes progress.

Sounds like Wednesday last was great fun. Cynthia Ní Murchú now calling for traffic enforcement cameras to try and improve driver behaviour.