Bridge cures bottleneck blues

THE new

?¬9.8 million Ratoath Road Bridge in Cabra opened to traffic last week, finally putting an end to one of the Northside’s most notorious bottlenecks.

Reilly’s Crossing was one of the busiest manually operated rail level crossings on the Iarnród Ã?ireann network and the new bridge will be welcomed by local motorists and pedestrians alike.

Work started on the new bridge in June 2013 and has been completed to schedule.

The project links the Ratoath Road from a point approximately 300 metres south of the existing level crossing to the Ballyboggan Road junction to the north.

Works included the construction of 500 metres of road, a bridge over the railway and canal and a junction with the Ballyboggan Road.

The bridge will immediately eliminate major road congestion at the crossing, which has 107 trains passing through each day, including up to 55 services at peak times, that caused constant, frustrating traffic queues while the gates were closed

It’ll also help with traffic flow on the Ratoath Road, which provides a very widely used north-south connection from the North Inner City and Cabra to Finglas.

“This is a project which will be of benefit for all modes of transport,

? said David Franks, Iarnród Ã?ireann Chief Executive.

“Trains will travel in a safer environment, road traffic will not be delayed by congestion at manually-operated gates, and cyclists and pedestrians will have greatly improved facilities also.

“It will also link with future planned re-signalling of the Maynooth line, and elimination of other level crossings, to allow the number of trains which operate on the rail line to increase.

?

Mr Franks thanked local residents and businesses for their assistance and co-operation during the construction period.

“A project like this impacts significantly in a small local area, and we appreciate the patience of the community over the past 18 months,

? he said.

“We hope, together with Dublin City Council, that the completed bridge will improve the quality of life in the area.

?

Dublin Chamber of Commerce welcomed the opening of the new Bridge.

The Dublin Chamber of Commerce said the new bridge was an example of a project that maximises the potential of existing infrastructure.

“Journey times are the chief concern for commuters, particularly at peak hours,

? she said.

“Around half of all cars travelling into Dublin city centre each day enter from points north of the Royal Canal. The new bridge is close to an area zoned for residential development. Infrastructure investments such as this are vital to help meet the needs of future population and employment growth in the Greater Dublin Area.

?

The new bridge weighs 320 tonnes, has a total length of 70m and is 15m in width.

It spans the whole of the busy Dublin to Maynooth-Sligo Railway line, the Royal Canal and the canal towpath.