Roads

A reminder to drivers and cyclists to share the road…

Soapbox on March 16, 2021, 8:00 am | Readers 790

Philip O’Neill is a Civil Servant from Belfast and a keen amateur cyclist. Spring has sprung early and is most welcome following a very challenging winter for us all. Along with daffodils, lambs and brighter nights, we now see middle-aged men oiling their chains, pumping their tyres, checking their brakes and seeing if the lycra still fits. As someone who cycles it has to be recognised that there are significant health benefits, not just physical health but getting out into …

Video: Discussion with Mark Hackett and Wesley Johnston about the proposals for the York Street Interchange…

Brian O'Neill on May 15, 2020, 6:54 pm | Readers 2613

In our first Slugger podcast we talk with Architect and Urban Designer Mark Hackett about his alternative proposal for the York Street Interchange project in Belfast. Roads expert Wesley Johnston gives his view on Mark’s ideas. We also have a general discussion about the road network after Covid-19. As Mark did a presentation to explain his ideas we have released this one as a video, but future episodes will likely to be audio. The idea for the York St Interchange was …

Would you prefer faster roads or faster broadband?

Brian O'Neill on May 7, 2020, 11:29 am | Readers 856

How are you getting on with the great work from home experiment? I have worked from home for most of my career so it is nothing new for me but I realise it will be a novelty for most of you. Your experience will vary greatly depending on if you have young kids or not. With our 4-year-old, I find it is next to impossible to get any work done while homeschooling and childminding. Whatever teachers get paid they should …

Coronavirus: A chance to reshape our roads for the future…

Soapbox on April 25, 2020, 10:33 am | Readers 1672

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Jonathan Hobbs is a cycling campaigner from Belfast The coronavirus pandemic has affected life in Northern Ireland in unprecedented ways. Thousands have becoming infected and hundreds have died, devastating families and communities. Lockdown has changed how go about daily business in ways that we would have thought unbelievable at the start of 2020. One of the very few positives to emerge has been the general outdoor environment, especially in my city Belfast. Vehicle traffic is almost non-existent compared to normal. …

The £400m for Infrastructure in the Conservative-DUP agreement will only exacerbate Northern Ireland’s east-west divide

Steve Bradley on June 28, 2017, 4:32 pm | Readers 47433

Northern Ireland’s infrastructure has drawn the prize ticket from the £1bn of new money in the Conservative-DUP deal – securing £400m, or 40% of the entire fund. This has been greeted with criticism elsewhere in the UK, but can be justified on two grounds. Firstly – Northern Ireland arguably has the worst infrastructure of any region in the UK. Only significant external funding will reverse the decades-long under-investment that has caused that. Secondly – the situation is worse still within …

So what can we do with £400million for infrastructure projects?

Andy Boal on June 26, 2017, 11:39 pm | Readers 2182

With thanks to my good friend Wesley Johnston, whose inestimable website is the source for any intelligible figure I can find to help me write this article… I was at the official opening of the A26 two weeks ago, and I think that there is definitely an appetite to get York Street Interchange sorted out – but the next scheme to hit the ground was always going to be the sole decision of the Minister and the Executive rather than …

All I want for Christmas is a better road to Belfast

Daithi McKay on December 28, 2016, 10:31 pm | Readers 2450

As a Saffron now living west of the Bann all I really want for Christmas is the upgrading of the A6. Which Christmas though? Being a heavy commuter of some years I know how hours spent in a car with just coffee and bad podcasts can affect quality of life, time spent with family and general health and wellbeing. Public transport with WiFi helps but any time that can be knocked off bus or car journey times would be a …

SF to call on authorities to introduce metric traffic signage #sfaf16

Alan Meban (Alan in Belfast) on April 23, 2016, 11:57 am | Readers 2302

METRIC SPEED LIMITS – As of this morning it’s now Sinn Féin policy to introduce the metric system for all road signage and to create an all-Ireland body to standardise speed limits and road traffic signs.

“Fresh Start” shows that ‘deals’ can be painful, yes. But impossible, certainly not.

Mick Fealty on November 18, 2015, 12:47 pm | Readers 1265

BEYOND BUNKUM: Small changes over time can shift the future a very long way. The trouble is that it takes courage, vision and enormous patience to effect even such small changes. FRESH START was a long time coming. But for now, just agreeing to set a budget may be small change enough.

Martin McGuinness will not sign off on the next Programme of Government, unless…

Mick Fealty on October 2, 2015, 5:09 pm | Readers 1463

A5 PLANNING ULTIMATUM: The deputy First Minister was giving it large on the critical position of the enlargement of the A5, such that if it wasn’t approved then he would not be passing a new programme of government after the next Assembly elections. All this, and hardly a grumpy unionist anywhere to be seen.

What would it take to get a motorway to Derry/Londonderry? – Guest post by Wesley Johnston

Soapbox on February 10, 2015, 5:26 pm | Readers 4175

Back in 1964 William Craig, the Minister of Home Affairs for Northern Ireland, announced an ambitious plan to build a network of motorways around the province. In terms of the North West, the core of the plan was a motorway from Belfast to Coleraine – the M2. From this would come two spurs. The M22 would diverge at Antrim and go to Castledawson, serving Mid Ulster. The M23 would diverge north of Ballymena and go to Londonderry, via Limavady. At …

Northern Ireland’s roads remain safe: possibly not at 111mph

Turgon on January 5, 2012, 10:46 am | Readers 219

Some good news was published by both the BBC and News Letter yesterday. There were 59 deaths on the roads in Northern Ireland last year, a rise from 55 the year before, but still vastly lower than in the past. Prior to 2010 the lowest number of deaths was in 2008 at 107. As the News Letter notes it is sometimes seen as distasteful to celebrate a reduction in deaths when people are still being killed but the reality is …

UK road deaths

Turgon on December 5, 2011, 1:11 pm | Readers 23

The BBC has a fascinating feature at the moment on is web site covering every death on the UK’s roads (it says GB but we are included too – please do not side track this one). A number of interesting things come too light from looking at Northern Ireland’s fatal accidents. Our motorways are extremely safe. Considering that the M1 and M2 are amongst the most heavily used roads in Northern Ireland there are remarkably few deaths. This of course …

Closing hospitals and the ‘ungovernability’ of Roscommon…

Mick Fealty on July 8, 2011, 9:00 am | Readers 15

The people of Roscommon are a formidably independent bunch. They are under no illusions why they send TDs to Dublin. It is to defend the parish from the cutehoors and Jackeens of Dublin: no more; no less. No one puts the least store in the county council, since Jack Lynch had their teeth removed back in 1977. Sure there are concerns about the state of nation and the knock on effects that has for the local economy, but their TDs …

Edwin Poots’ proposals on driving

Turgon on March 15, 2011, 10:35 pm | Readers 14

The BBC are covering Edwin Poots consultation paper on driving and changes especially to the rules for younger drivers: the department’s press release is here. The proposals are wide ranging and there is much of significant merit in it: however, it is also something of a curate’s egg and there are potential problems in some of the proposals which might produce further problems by the laws of unintended consequences. Looking at some of the proposals in the consultation: Raising the …

Bullshit, and joined-up government…

Pete Baker on January 14, 2011, 3:04 pm | Readers 6

Some four weeks after the departmental allocations were agreed and all Northern Ireland Executive departments have, to a greater or lesser extent, finally published their spending plans. Don’t worry, though. There’ll be an extra week of that public consultation… Meanwhile, the Northern Ireland Finance Minister, the DUP’s Sammy Wilson, is complaining that the UK Treasury has “swiped” £300million of NI departments’ yearly underspend – rather than allowing it to be drawn down in the subsequent year. The NIO has issued a statement …

Terror in Tyrone – White Elephant Alert.

Drumlins Rock on June 3, 2010, 12:00 am | Readers 46

Recently there have reports of a large white elephant surveying the landscape across a large swathe of the centre of Tyrone, it is believed the creature has strong intentions of making its presence a permanent feature of this region. It is accepted that some of the local residents would openly welcome such a prestigious neighbour and others, who have escaped any direct contact to date, seemed little concerned by its presence. However an increasing number have been dismayed by the …