IRL: M50 updates

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odlum
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Re: IRL: M50 updates

Post by odlum »




EDIT: Meant to put this on N7 thread. Oh well.
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Re: IRL: M50 updates

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Re: IRL: M50 updates

Post by odlum »

Bump.

Variable speed limits and other things currently being constructed. Not sure when it will all go live. Can't be too long.
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Re: IRL: M50 updates

Post by Chris_533976 »

Given how poor the driving and the speed limit compliance is on the M50 at the moment, unless they litter the route with speed cameras, this will make absolutely no difference.

You could put the speed limit at 50kmh and everyone would ignore it.
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Bryn666
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Re: IRL: M50 updates

Post by Bryn666 »

I don't want to sound belittling but it's great that Dublin has a motorway bypass that you'd expect for a city of its size. Come quite some way from the original Western Parkway hasn't it?
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Chris Bertram
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Re: IRL: M50 updates

Post by Chris Bertram »

Chris_533976 wrote: Sat May 26, 2018 12:19 You could put the speed limit at 50kmh and everyone would ignore it.
You could indeed, and pretty much guarantee close to 0% compliance, in the absence of oppressive enforcement measures. Fosseway has said more or less the same about Swedish speed limits, which are often way too low, and I can report that India tries the same trick, very low limits on high quality roads, and no-one takes a blind bit of notice. Mind you, in India the concept of lane discipline has yet to catch on ...
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odlum
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Re: IRL: M50 updates

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Bryn666 wrote: Sat May 26, 2018 12:41 I don't want to sound belittling but it's great that Dublin has a motorway bypass that you'd expect for a city of its size. Come quite some way from the original Western Parkway hasn't it?

The western parkway section you could say does not really exist anymore as it's been totally built over.

It's a great road though. All that's missing is the VSLs. That's being put in place but not sure when it will be active. Probably by year end.

Most of this was not even in existence when the western parkway first opened in 1990!



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Re: IRL: M50 updates

Post by wallmeerkat »

Remember when the first section opened beyond Phoenix Park, and it was briefly called the westlink (pairing with the existing eastlink)?

There was a swimmer won gold at one of the 90s olympics, at the toll booths they were giving away Cadbury Wispa Gold bars.
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Re: IRL: M50 updates

Post by odlum »

wallmeerkat wrote: Tue May 29, 2018 15:59 Remember when the first section opened beyond Phoenix Park, and it was briefly called the westlink (pairing with the existing eastlink)?

There was a swimmer won gold at one of the 90s olympics, at the toll booths they were giving away Cadbury Wispa Gold bars.
Aye. Michele Smith, she won three golds and one silver (?), can't remember.

Wispa Gold though :twisted:
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Re: IRL: M50 updates

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The tender has been issued for ITS upgrade. Presumably it will be awarded in August/September. Interestingly new legislation will have to be passed first to make it legal.
M50 Traffic Flow Optimisation (MTFO) ITS Equipment Deployment
The MTFO ITS Deployment Contract will consist of the supply, installation and maintenance of, but may not be limited, to the following equipment:
• Advance Motorway Indicators (AMIs);
• Variable Message Signs;
• Controllers for Variable Message Signs and AMIs;
• Slip Road Signals (AMIs);
• Accident Incident Detection System;
• Enforcement System;
• Gantry mounted and roadside enclosures for digital enforcement;
• CCTV, PTZ units and termination/interface unit;
• Traffic monitoring devices;
• New emerging technologies and equipment.
It is envisaged that the project will include a five year period of support and maintenance services relating to the Contractor supplied equipment.
https://irl.eu-supply.com/ctm/Supplier/ ... ice/204708
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Re: IRL: M50 updates

Post by odlum »

m50_south_access.jpg
Indicative early image of M50 bridge option in Dublin port (eastern section after port tunnel). Funding has been provided to progress this scheme at least to the southern side of Dublin port and more detailed plans are due soon (though it's likely to be a long planning process whatever option is taken).

The head of the port says it is now likely the bridge option will be pursued on this section.

A tunnel is still preferred under Sandymount strand though for obvious environmental reasons. The bridge would be built before progressing that section though.

So we could end up with port tunnel - bridge - tunnel.
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Re: IRL: M50 updates

Post by nirs »

Interesting. I had thought that the recession at put paid to the plan to extend the M50 to a complete ring. When you say funding has been allocated - is that for planning, or is funding in place for construction as well? I'd imagine land would be a considerable expense in this area.
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Re: IRL: M50 updates

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The recession stalled many schemes around the country but a lot of these have been reactivated now and are going through various stages of planning. Some are starting construction already. You'll see in the next few months as these plans are released the sense that things are starting to move again because it's been a bit of a drought in recent years.

In relation to the M50 - the section to be built will be over land owned by Dublin Port which they will provide (they have reserved alignments) but this will only go to the southern side of the port on a bridge. It's called the "M50 south access route". Funding has been allocated for planning so far.

The plans for this are expected within months. Given it's port land I don't anticipate a lot of objections here as it's out of the way.

And then the next phase is the tunnel under Dublin Bay essentially - this is the really challenging part from a planning point of view and complaints. But we don't have to worry about that for a while! Get the bridge built first.
Last edited by odlum on Mon Aug 27, 2018 22:59, edited 3 times in total.
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Johnathan404
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Re: IRL: M50 updates

Post by Johnathan404 »

Is the alignment at Sandyford still being held in reserve? I can never remember which part it was.

As for the battle to win approval from D4, I'd be surprised if it had any home. While I'd have concerns if the scheme wasn't designed well, it has to be remembered that between Merrion Gates and Dun Laoghaire the waterfront isn't natural anyway.
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Re: IRL: M50 updates

Post by dantheman »

Johnathan404 wrote: Mon Aug 27, 2018 23:03 Is the alignment at Sandyford still being held in reserve? I can never remember which part it was.

As for the battle to win approval from D4, I'd be surprised if it had any home. While I'd have concerns if the scheme wasn't designed well, it has to be remembered that between Merrion Gates and Dun Laoghaire the waterfront isn't natural anyway.
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Re: IRL: M50 updates

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I think an eastern bypass would be wrong. It's the wrong strategy. Actually the port itself should be relocated in stages out of Dublin city to open up the living city to the sea. Countless cities have done this, eg Copenhagen, Stockholm, Sydney and the benefits for the city are immense. If Brexit is hard, develop Rosslare for better connectivity direct to the continent, if it's soft, go back to the proposal to relocate the port to Bremore rather than spend vast sums on a high level bridge and motorway extension to reach the southern quays from the port tunnel.
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Re: IRL: M50 updates

Post by nowster »

How about a swing bridge?
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Re: IRL: M50 updates

Post by Enceladus »

murphaph wrote: Wed Aug 29, 2018 16:41 I think an eastern bypass would be wrong. It's the wrong strategy. Actually the port itself should be relocated in stages out of Dublin city to open up the living city to the sea. Countless cities have done this, eg Copenhagen, Stockholm, Sydney and the benefits for the city are immense. If Brexit is hard, develop Rosslare for better connectivity direct to the continent, if it's soft, go back to the proposal to relocate the port to Bremore rather than spend vast sums on a high level bridge and motorway extension to reach the southern quays from the port tunnel.
I agree completely. The port should be moved out of Dublin. The city has a severe housing affordability and supply crisis and the existing port area could be redeveloped for housing and office space in the medium to long term - IF the port was relocated.
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c2R
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Re: IRL: M50 updates

Post by c2R »

Moving the port is a terrible idea - Dublin isn't like Stockholm or Copenhagen which are comparitively extremely sheltered; the Irish Sea is very rough, and the river mouth coupled with the enormous sea walls provides a sheltered harbour. There isn't anywhere nearby on the coast that is at all suitable; and even constructing anything would require large amounts of land take to cover in concrete for freight movements and other dockyard activities while the water itself would need dredging in any artificial port to allow large freight vessels and some of the largest roro ferries in the world (like Ulysees) to be able to dock at low tides. Coupled with the fact that new infrastructure would be needed and the port tunnel would be a white elephant with no port and no M50 extension.

Also, even if money were no object what location would you have in mind that's sufficiently close to Dublin and with sufficient available farmland to play pour the concrete to start again from scratch....?

The port does need better rail links to encourage public transport use - a friend of mine came over without a car, and got to Holyhead with ease, but found connections from Dublin lacking at best. It also needs an internal layout redesign to prevent internal queueuing.

I'm also not convinced that redevelopment of a dockside area would give anyone affordable housing, unless it was purposely rent controlled with no ability to purchase property, as it would probably become a very desirable place to live very quickly.

It would be better to redevelop some of the existing soul-less estates at a medium density if affordability is what is required; although I appreciate that taking peoples homes away for redeveloping areas (as is being attempted in Cambridge at the moment) is very unpopular. Or look at what is being built in the M4 and M7 corridors and switch these to a higher density design. Or build some new towns with new direct rail links into Dublin further out with an outer ring motorway.
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Re: IRL: M50 updates

Post by murphaph »

There's a long standing proposal to relocate the port to Bremore, north of Dublin city.

http://www.droghedaport.ie/cms/publish/ ... info.shtml

The port tunnel will never be a white elephant. If the entire port was relocated and the lands developed into office space and housing, the tunnel would provide a direct connection to the airport from this massive new population centre. It could even be repurposed to a rail tunnel if we ever get the finger out and start building the long proposed metro.

The port is prime land in state control which could provide much greater amenity to the citizenry if redeveloped. But each to their own of course.
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