Sir, - I am reliably informed that the long awaited Northern Cross section of the M50 Motorway is scheduled to open on December 6th (over 12 months behind schedule). As a daily user of the Parkway section of this motorway from the Naas Road (Junction 9) to the Blessington Road/Tallaght Road (Junction 11), where the motorway terminates, I have found that the buildup of traffic between the hours of 3.30 pm and 7.30 pm results in a tailback of cars for over a mile, as two lanes funnel down to one, despite the fact that drivers, sensibly, still use the one lane and hard shoulder to make two lanes up to the traffic lights.
At present, the M50 only carries traffic from the Navan Road (N3), the Lucan Road (N4) and the Naas Road (N7), yet the tailbacks at the southern end are over one mile every day. As and from December 6th, traffic will surely double on the M50, with access to the motorway available from the Belfast Road/Dublin Airport (M1) and the Ashbourne/ Derry Road (N2).
I expected, as the date neared for the completion of the Northern Cross section, that some effort would be made by the county council to improve the traffic flow at the southern end. However, to date nothing has happened and when the extension opens the traffic chaos will, no doubt, come as a complete surprise to the council.
A simple, short term solution would be to restore immediately the motorway at this point to two lanes (with overhead gantries warning of end of motorway and reducing speed limits) and add a third left filter lane on to the Blessington road (heading towards Templeogue). There is plenty of room to carry out this work, as the junction will eventually become a flyover when, if ever, the Southern Cross section is added. The left filter lane could run for a few hundred yards, joining the main road (N81) opposite the Texaco Spawell service station.
The concept, design and layout of the orbital motorway are all excellent and to be welcomed. However it will not be effective until the entire loop is completed; this piecemeal development gives rise to congestion and requires attention. So I urge the county council road planners to deal or gently with the matter, before it becomes a major problem front December 6th onwards. Yours, etc..
Ailesbury Grove,
Dundrum,
Dublin 16.