Westlink (road)
Westlink | ||||
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E01 and E18 | ||||
Length | 2 mi (3.2 km) | |||
Existed | 1981–present | |||
History | Constructed 1981–1983 | |||
Major junctions | ||||
North end | M2 Junction 1a M3 | |||
South end | M1 Junction 1 | |||
Location | ||||
Country | United Kingdom | |||
Constituent country | Northern Ireland | |||
Road network | ||||
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The Westlink road in
History
Originally planned in 1964 as the Belfast Urban Motorway,[1] the route was to have been fully grade-separated and would have completely encircled the city centre. Due to lack of money and public opposition only the western portion was completed and this was originally not fully grade-separated.
The entire road was built to dual two-lane standard. The southbound section from Grosvenor Road to Broadway was widened to three lanes in 2002. Major upgrade work completed in 2009 extended the third lane to the newly completed Broadway underpass, where the road now seamlessly merges into the M1 Motorway.
The underpass opened on Friday 4 July 2008.[2] On Saturday 16 August 2008 it completely filled with water due to several hours of torrential rainfall.[3] This earned it the nickname 'The Wetlink'.
The Westlink was built in two phases. Phase 1, connecting the M1 at Broadway to Grosvenor Road opened in February 1981.
Criticism / Future plans
The Westlink has garnered much negative publicity over the years, owing to rush-hour traffic bottlenecks at its major intersections. The major renovation work from 2006 to 2009
Detractors of this scheme point out that it will merely cause additional bottlenecks at the entry/exit point at York Street. However, plans to upgrade this junction to a fully
References
- ^ .Northern Ireland Roads Site - Belfast Urban Motorway URL accessed 17 July 2006
- ^ "Roads Minister Conor Murphy has announced that Broadway underpass will be opened to traffic on Friday 4 July, some 13 months ahead of schedule". Northern Ireland Executive. 1 July 2008. Archived from the original on 20 May 2011.
- ^ "Clear-up continues as waters fall". 18 August 2008.
- ^ .Northern Ireland Roads Site - Westlink URL accessed 17 July 2006
- ^ .Northern Ireland Roads Site - Westlink Upgrade URL accessed 17 July 2006
- ^ £130m York Street, Belfast, traffic scheme out to tender Accessed 17 March 2016
- ^ Assembly Questions - York Street Interchange: Update Accessed 2 February 2016