The Comber Bypass is one of the longest-running road schemes in Northern Ireland, phase 1 having been completed in the 1960s. The first phase followed the route of the old railway line from the Belfast Road at the north west side of the town round to the Killinchy Road in the south. Promises to build stage 2 were made repeatedly throughout the 1990s but it was not until 2002 that work began.

This scheme finally saw the road completed by extending it round to join the A21 Newtownards Road on the eastern edge of the town. The scheme was centred on a new roundabout known as "Copelands Link Roundabout" which formed the focus of the scheme. Approximately 1km of the bypass is single-carriageway and is situated to the west of this roundabout. On the other side, the A21 dual-carriageway was extended to meet the new roundabout. A new road link approximately 150 metres long called Copeland Link links the roundabout back to the former Newtownards Road, which is now a local road.

The most challenging piece of the project was Marsh Bridge which takes the bypass over the Enler River. The land here is so soft and waterlogged that engineers had to drive 800 piles to make the foundations for the bridge and its approach embankments. Extensive tree planting has taken place along the south side of the new road which will make it very attractive when they mature.

Since its opening, the road has been praised by Comber residents who had to cope with chronic traffic jams of through traffic. However, the bypass has been bad news for Newtownards – so many more vehicles can get through Comber that traffic jams on the Comber Road in Newtownards have substantially worsened since its opening. This is a recurring theme with new road schemes, and one that needs to be taken seriously.

Photos

Construction underway on the approach to the Marsh Bridge, seen looking west. [Picture from Roads Service web site www.roadsni.gov.uk]

Same location as above, but looking east towards the new Copelands Link Roundabout under construction. Comber town is to the left of this shot. [Picture from Roads Service web site www.roadsni.gov.uk]