M2 motorway (Northern Ireland)

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Northern Ireland Northern Ireland

The M2 motorway (English for, motorway M2 ' ) is a highway in Northern Ireland, which begins in the center of Belfast, in a northwesterly direction should the original plan is that run up to the Irish north coast after Coleraine. However, to date only two sections of the planned route were completed. The highway is zehnstreifig, expanded in the area of ​​Belfast's city center, between junctions 1A and 2 in the further course of four lanes.

History

After the first plans of 1956, the M2 should first run nearly straight from north Belfast in a northwesterly direction to Ballymena. Construction on the highway began in 1963 south of Newtownabbey. When building work had already started, it was decided, however, in the short term, not in a straight line to continue the route to Ballymena, but to take a detour over Antrim in buying because the site of the original route is very steep and the construction would thus become very costly. The first 5.6 km long section between junctions 2 and 4 to the south west of Newtownabbey was opened to traffic in October 1966. A ready-made section of the original route west of Newtownabbey was designated as a motorway- A8 (M).

As early as 1964 came to plans that have provided for a further expansion of M2. Thus, the M2 Ballymena, it should be extended as far as Coleraine. In Antrim, the new M22 should continue the western course of the M2 to Magherafelt. Finally, avoid north of Ballymena branch off the M23, which should lead to Derry. Instead of the already completed section southwest of Newtownabbey continue building, but it was decided initially in the larger towns to build sections to relieve the city traffic. Thus began in 1966 the construction of a 7.2 km long section east of Ballymena, which was opened in April 1969.

1968, work began on the M2 north-east of Antrim. To complete the ring road of Antrim, initially the first section of the M22 was built. At the transition from M2 to M22 arrangements have been made to connect the M2 Ballymena coming here later. The 17.1 kilometer section north of Antrim ( unmarked 6.7 km as M22 ​​) has been gradually passed from east to west until January 1973 the traffic. Only four months later, also a 4.0 km long extension of the M2 in the Belfast city was completed. The last was opened in the 9.4 km long gap closure between the parts of Newtownabbey and Antrim in September 1975, creating a continuous route from Belfast to Antrim was born.

The next phase of construction was closing the gap between Antrim and Ballymena should be done. Through the Northern Ireland conflict mid-70s were suspended by the British side, almost all highway projects indefinitely.

Expansion plans

In the area of Newtownabbey M2 is currently being expanded between junctions 2 and 4 from four to six lanes to meet the growing traffic congestion in the Greater Belfast justice. With a completion is expected in 2009. In addition to the area of ​​Belfast city associated with the expansion of the A12 (also known as West Link ), a direct connection point are created for M2.

Meanwhile, the existing A26 was expanded into a four-lane expressway for the much needed gap closure between Antrim and Ballymena as cost-effective solution. It is therefore even in the long run as unlikely that the M2 at some point parallel to the A26 closes the gap. Until around 2010, however, the connections of the A26 to be optimized transport links to the two sections of the M2. In addition, the A26 is to be extended north of Ballymena at about seven kilometers to the highway in the long term. It therefore applies here as unlikely that the M2 is the further built on the planned route.

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