This is the point where the M2 motorway meets the A57, a major road connecting Larne (via the A8) to Belfast International Airport and which meets the commuter towns of Templepatrick and Ballyclare on its way. The point where it crosses the M2 is a major interchange for traffic. This is the point where traffic heading from Derry to Larne diverges from the M2. It's also the point where airport traffic from Belfast leaves the M2. And lots of commuter traffic joins the M2 here too.

When the M2 opened here in 1975 it was quieter than it is now (you can see a picture of how it looked on this page - second image down). Hence it was felt that a partial cloverleaf design was sufficient, where two pairs of looped sliproads meet the main road at a pair of priority T-junctions. There are only two of these in Northern Ireland (the other being M1 junction 13 at Verner's Corner). To improve safety between these two T-junctions a short length of dual-carriageway was built on the A57 as it passes through (the A57 otherwise being a single-carriageway). As traffic levels increased over the years, the turning movements became more common and during 2013/14 a 50mph speed limit was applied to improve safety.

Bear with me as we turn our attention to the park-and-ride. There has been talk of a park-and-ride site on the M2 at junction 5 (known locally as Ballymartin) for many years partly because of its proximity to the M2 where it would attract a lot of commuters going into Belfast, but also because of its proximity to the main Belfast-Londonderry railway line. In the end the site was approved for construction in 2014 but as a bus-based park-and-ride facility, with no rail halt to be built, presumably for cost and/or operational reasons. However the design of the site does seem to set aside a strip of land adjacent to the railway line which may be intended to keep the possibility of a railway halt open for a future date.

The construction of a park-and-ride facility adjacent to a main railway line leading into the city, but without a railway station, is surely one of the strangest infrastructure decisions in Northern Ireland currently. However Translink has promised a fast and frequent bus service into Belfast from the site and predicts that it will be popular. It will also have a secure fence and CCTV cameras. You can see a more detailed map of the proposed facility here.

Progress

14 Sep 2015: Well, Ballymartin Park-and-Ride opened to the public as anticipated on 1 September, the car boot sale on 29 August apparently being a success. Full details are now available on the Translink web site (although this being a roads site, I feel compelled to comment that their map shows the OLD layout of the junction, not the upgraded junction featuring the roundabout). I have now marked the scheme as completed - a good job by the contractor, Whitemountain Quarries.

18 Aug 2015: According to a Translink press release, Ballymartin Park-and-Ride will open to travelers on 1 September. This will be preceded by a charity car boot sale on Saturday 29 August, an event presumably designed to raise awareness of the site as well as benefit the charity involved. Translink have also published the timetables for the service, which will allow drivers to park at the site all day and continue into the city centre by bus, which looks to me to be served as early as 6.45am on week days.

8 May 2015: I visited the scheme today, and there has been excellent progress. I took a few photos, after which a contractor approached me to politely inquire as to my purposes! He went on to explain a bit about what they were doing. Not only are they building the park-and-ride and associated roundabout, but also closing up right turns onto the countrybound onslip, ie when coming from Templepatrick on the A57 you are no longer able to turn right onto the countrybound M2. Instead, vehicles must continue to the roundabout and carry out a u-turn. This plus the roundabout will eliminate 3 of the 4 right turn movements at this junction, significantly reducing the potential for crashes. I noticed too that there will be a free-flow "jet lane" bypassing the roundabout for vehicles turning left from the eastbound A57 onto the citybound M2 onslip. The signage at the site is suggesting opening of the park-and-ride in "summer" 2015, rather than late spring as was being said in January (see previous update). Since I created this page a couple of railway folks have been in touch to explain that the lack of a railway halt is because the line here is single-track and a station would result in stationary trains which would significantly disrupt rail services between Belfast and the north/west. So there would have to be an upgrade of the line before a station could be considered.

Pic 1: Signage at the site on 8 May 2015 advertising the park-and-ride in advance, and giving a completion date of Summer 2015. [Wesley Johnston]

Pic 2: View north-west across the new roundabout on 8 May 2015, looking towards the citybound onslip. The roundabout island is largely completed, but there is still some kerbing and surfacing work evident around it. [Wesley Johnston]

Pic 3: Same location as the previous shot but turning 90° to the right. This is the entrance to the new park-and-ride itself. In the distance you can see the car park with its surface down and posts for lighting in place. 8 May 2015. [Wesley Johnston]

Pic 4: Looking north-east along the A57 towards the new roundabout on 8 May 2015. Although not yet open, there is a free-flow "jet lane" for left turning vehicles to bypass the roundabout. The two square signs are presumably to display messages such as lane closures if there is maintenance on the motorway. [Wesley Johnston]

Pic 5: View south from the bridge over the M2 and looking towards the entrance to the countrybound onslip on 8 May 2015. Right turns into this onslip are now banned by expanding the central reservation, although right turns out of the offslip (what the bus is on) will still be possible. [Wesley Johnston]

8 Mar 2015: Work seems to have begun on site by or before September 2014 although the award of the construction tender seems to have only just been published. The Minister visited the site at the end of January. The press release says that "To date, the project team have successfully installed temporary traffic management arrangements, completed 80% of site drainage, formed water retention ponds, installed car park ‘sub bases’, constructed 50% of the new roundabout and continue to make significant progress on site fencing, main carriageway widening and new bus access road construction." The press release goes on to say that the scheme is due for completion in "late spring", which I guess means around May.