[COM] M2 Northern Connector | 15.5km | $867m

[Norman]

And I meant a test section not open to the public, just a small stretch, 50m even, to trial painted lines.
Lets think about this for a moment in hindsight...light grey concrete, white line markings...
There's people paid big dollars to design these pieces of infrastructure.

They have concrete highways in New South Wales, one example being on the Hume Highway between Yass and Goulburn.

https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-34.813 ... 384!8i8192

As you can see, they use white lines there, so they probably just applied the same methods here. Not sure why the experience is different here in terms of reflection and so on, maybe the materials they used for the concrete are different?

[SBD]

And I meant a test section not open to the public, just a small stretch, 50m even, to trial painted lines.
Lets think about this for a moment in hindsight...light grey concrete, white line markings...
There's people paid big dollars to design these pieces of infrastructure.

They have concrete highways in New South Wales, one example being on the Hume Highway between Yass and Goulburn.

https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-34.813 ... 384!8i8192

As you can see, they use white lines there, so they probably just applied the same methods here. Not sure why the experience is different here in terms of reflection and so on, maybe the materials they used for the concrete are different?

That concrete does not look as light as the Northern Connector. Not sure if this is just a problem with new concrete and it will age darker, or if the SA concrete has lighter rubble and sparkly quartz in it.

I imagine that a reasonable stretch of road is needed to get a valid visibility test. The tests would need to include a range of vehicles, travelling at the intended speeds. The subjective visibility of lane markings in adverse weather might be very different in a low sportscar than in a road train with the driver's eyes quite a bit higher than the headlights (so reflecting exactly back where the light came from misses the driver).

[NTRabbit]

I can't see any lines on any road when driving at night in the rain no matter how good the overhead street lighting, I do feel that we should be moving towards powered catseyes now that we're in the 21st century, especially on high speed roads or large intersections.

[RetroGamer87]

How about reflective catseyes?

[Spotto]

How about reflective catseyes?

Your reply is about a year too late mate

[RetroGamer87]

Yeah I'm the thread necromancer

[1NEEDS2POST]

They've taken the glass beads out of the paint for some reason. It's happened on other roads that have been repainted.

[Furyan]

Line marking night works to be undertaken on Northern Connector

Audio tactile line marking is being installed on the Northern Connector, between Wingfield and Waterloo Corner, to improve safety and lane visibility for motorists.

Audio tactile line marking is a combination of line marking and raised profile thermoplastic 'bumps' that make a noise when driven over, providing additional visibility and safety in low light and wet weather conditions.

The night works are scheduled to commence from 8pm on Monday, 12 December 2022, and will be completed by 6am on Friday, 16 December 2022 (weather permitting). Works will be undertaken each night between 8pm and 6am.

To safely undertake these works, the following traffic arrangements will be in place:

Northbound carriageway (all lanes) of the Northern Connector will be closed from 8pm to 6am on Monday, 12 December and Tuesday, 13 December 2022. During these night closures, traffic will detour via Salisbury Highway, Port Wakefield Road and Heaslip Road.
Southbound carriageway (all lanes) of the Northern Connector will be closed from 8pm to 6am on Wednesday, 14 December and Thursday, 15 December 2022. During these night closures, traffic will detour via Port Wakefield Road and Salisbury Highway.
The road will be re-opened each morning in time for peak traffic flows.
The Department previously trialled various line marking options on the Northern Connector to determine the most effective option for the concrete road. Following community feedback it was determined that white line marking, along with audio tactile line marking on the two centre lanes, would be the most effective long-term line marking solution for both carriageways of the motorway.

for more info
https://dit.sa.gov.au/news-media/news/m ... -connector

[MT269]

I'm sure that plenty of existing country roads have this installed. Why on earth wasn't it installed during the construction phase though? And is it present on the Southern expressway?

[SBD]

I'm sure that plenty of existing country roads have this installed. Why on earth wasn't it installed during the construction phase though? And is it present on the Southern expressway?

The issue is in finding and following the centre lane. There aren't many country roads with three lanes going in one direction. The Northern Connector has walls that enable tracking on the first and third lanes, but there had only been paint between the lanes and they are even harder to see in the wet than the lines on black roads in 60 zones.

The Southern Expressway and SEF between Glen Osmond and Crafers are valid comparisons as three lanes of higher speed limit, but they are bitumen not concrete.

[Patrick_27]

Further to SBD’s comment, the lack of lighting outside of the interchanges on the N. Connector would likely be a factor too, unlike the Southern Expressway which is mostly under light. I’ve found even myself that my eyes get weary driving along the Connector at night.

[Norman]

Further to SBD’s comment, the lack of lighting outside of the interchanges on the N. Connector would likely be a factor too, unlike the Southern Expressway which is mostly under light. I’ve found even myself that my eyes get weary driving along the Connector at night.

The Southern Expressway is definitely not lit for most of its route. There is only lighting at the interchanges.

[[Shuz]]

You would think they would have some sort of plan in place to light up the entire North South Corridor... it does get dark in places and is unsafe.

[SBD]

You would think they would have some sort of plan in place to light up the entire North South Corridor... it does get dark in places and is unsafe.

One issue with a lit ribbon of road is that it makes it much harder to see anything not in the light - such as a kangaroo either grazing next to the road or about to cross over it.

There's no particular reason I can think of that the sections between interchanges north of the Port River Expressway should be lit more than the Port Wakefield Road and Sturt Highway.

Even the bikeway next to the Northern Expressway only has (soft blue) lights near the access points.

[RetroGamer87]

Audio tactile line marking is a combination of line marking and raised profile thermoplastic 'bumps' that make a noise when driven over, providing additional visibilityand safety in low light and wet weather conditions.

Why limit them to just making a noise? They could modulate the bumps so that your car produces a recognisable sound when driven over, like a gramophone record. Imagine veering out of your lane and hearing a loud voice exclaim "Get back in ya lane ya drongo!!" /JK