Upgrade ‘good value for money’

The National Roads Authority (NRA) says a proposed €90m upgrade of the Dunkettle/Jack Lynch Tunnel interchange represented “good value for money” as it would speed up traffic and benefit the economy.

However, NRA officials told a Bord Pleanála oral hearing yesterday it was extremely unlikely construction would begin before 2016.

The project will take two years to complete and the scale of construction will necessitate “extensive traffic management, including lane closures, diversions, and contra-flows”.

Scheme project manager Alan McGinley told An Bord Pleanála inspector Jane Dennehy bottlenecks were common as the interchange was operating above capacity at peak times. More than 90,000 vehicles use the junction each day.

At morning rush hour, queues average 600m on the northern side of the tunnel (M8) and 250m on its eastern approach (N25).

Mr McGinley said do nothing was not an option as the situation would continue to deteriorate.

The new plan was conceived after traffic surveys conducted in 2010 and 2011 were fed into a computer which simulated movement on five different route options, one of which was later chosen as the best free-flow model.

Mr McGinley said the removal of traffic lights at the northern side of the tunnel would speed up journey times. The addition of new roads around the junction, some of which would be built on elevated embankments, would help to separate local and regional traffic and speed up vehicle movements.

For example, a new slip road to be built off the M8, slightly to the north of the tunnel, would direct traffic away from the main junction, bringing it straight on to the Midleton-bound (N25) road. It would also connect with a new junction and flyover 600m east of the tunnel. The flyover would provide a new access point into Little Island.

In addition, a slip road would be built just east of the Dunkettle roundabout, which would enable vehicles to directly access the northbound lane of the M8.

A total of 53 hectares of land, some of it subject to compulsory purchase orders, has been set aside for the upgrade, which would include space for a park-and-ride commuter rail station near the former Ibis Hotel.

The hearing at the Moran Silver Springs Hotel was also told the NRA would provide “dedicated pedestrian and cycle connectivity through the junction area”.

Experts on behalf of the NRA said mitigating measures would be taken to ensure noise was kept to a minimum during construction. They also said measures would be taken to ensure no pollution run-off during construction and that flora and fauna would be protected.

Even though it will be at least four years before any construction starts, the NRA said it was putting the scheme before An Bord Pleanála now.