These are signs, tokens

As I wrote last week, a visible indicator of the ever-nearing completion of the S7 extension (Stretch A, 6.7km from the airport junction to Lesznowola), is the appearance of road signs. And quite odd they are too...

Imagine – you are driving north up the S7 (European route E77); you pass Węzeł Zamienie (junction 66); the next one to the north is coming up soon – junction 65 for the S2 is but a kilometre away. But what's this? You do a double take at 90km/h. 

Siedlin? 

Where' the fuck's Siedlin? MORE TO THE POINT – WHERE'S WARSAW? AND WARSAW AIRPORT MUST BE AROUND HERE SOMEWHERE! HAVE I TAKEN A WRONG TURN?

Siedlin, it turns out, is a "village in the administrative district of Gmina Płońsk, within Płońsk County, Masovian Voivodship. Population (2011): 369. It lies around 5km south-east of Płońsk and 59km (37 mi) north-west of Warsaw" (Wikipedia). Only if equipped with that arcane piece of information can you surmise that you're still some 21km south of  Warsaw at this point.

But what a daft place-name to put on a road sign! It turns out (for those who really know their Polish trunk-road geography) that Siedlin sits on the junction of the S7, the DK50 (Warsaw's de facto and incomplete ring-road) and the DK10, the road to Szczecin. So now you know.

More confusing signs. The ones for Raszyn from Węzeł Zamienie are downright misleading. In both cases, if driving from the south, you'd be much better placed to carry on north to the next junction for Raszyn, then take the S2 eastbound one junction to Aleja Krakowska, then turn south. Avoiding the villages of Dawidy Bankowe, Dawidy, Jaworowa and Rybie. Dual carriageway all the way. Not narrow rural roads.

Below: a few years ago, standing in this spot, the view would have been entirely unrecognisable. Above all, you'd be in the backyard of a farm, just fields ahead. My local landscape, utterly changed.

How it looked in the summer of 2018, click here.

Below: this sign is for drivers approaching the S7 junction from Dawidy. At least Warsaw is mentioned on this one. But don't even think of taking your horse and cart that way. Raszyn? Carry on for Warsaw, one junction north, then turn west, and come off after one junction. Faster, avoiding four villages.

Meanwhile, a misleading sign for anyone heading to Zgorzała from Warsaw. The southbound slip road shows the turning right to Zgorzała along with Zamienie and Raszyn... it is not! You'll end up on the western roundabout having to backtrack, assuming you realise you need to return from where you came.

This, below, is the real turn for Zgorzała – on the other side of the viaduct, the slip-road leads to a spiral ramp, up and over the S7 on the viaduct, around the roundabout two photos up, and on to Zgorzała that way. A saving of half a kilometre of pointless driving.

Another misleading sign is at the top end of Zgorzała, for Mokotów, herding local traffic down ulica Karczunkowska towards ul. Puławska. This is madness. From here, to get to, say, Galeria Mokotów down Karczunkowska, then Puławska, then Rzymowskiego is 10.4km, passing 16 sets of traffic lights. If instead you go to Galeria Mokotów along the S7 and its continuation, the S79 turning onto ul. Marynarska, it's only 9.4 km. The first and last lights are on Rondo Unii Europejskiej and that's it. So why is the suggested route longer, more congested and far slower?

Below: Mokotów is straight on, actually, unless you like sitting in traffic jams.

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Further S7 extension progress

Getting tantalisingly close to the finish, two years and four months since the first scraping away of the topsoil, the S7 extension, there's talk about opening at least the northern section by next month. I'll believe it when I hear the traffic's roar. In the meantime, some final strolls around the site and its environs...

Below: "S79, I'd like you to meet the S7 extension"... South Warsaw's equivalent of Promontory, Utah, where the two ends of the transcontinental railroad met. To the left, the S79 takes you into Warsaw; take the right-hand exit for Belarus and Russia, or turn left and carry on along the S2 for Berlin and Lisbon, or swing north around Warsaw for Gdańsk and Scandinavia. To the right, straight through to Kraków, Slovakia and the Balkans beyond.

Below: at the junction of the western service road, which connects Dawidy Bankowe with Dawidy, work is almost complete. Fencing separates the S7 from surrounding land, yellow posts mark out the boundary of the land for the road ('pas drogowy'); the final asphalt has been laid. Some pavement still needs to be finished, but the end is in sight. 

The service road that runs parallel to the S7 on the eastern side is also nearly ready. Again, the pavement hasn't yet been laid end to end, but the asphalt is down - and to my surprise - the signposts are up! Below: from where the eastern service road meets ul. Baletowa, it's six kilometres to Raszyn ('Fool's Raszyn/Where angels fear to tread')... Raszyn, the Staines of the East

...and from Baletowa, via the new asphalt of the eastern service road, it's three kilometres to Zgorzała. Note the roadsign for gated level crossing - this is at W-wa Dawidy station. While the new road sign encourages curious drivers to take a look, the road is still closed; barriers remain in place.

The big news at the other end is that the pedestrian and cycle viaduct is now officially open. Below: looking west up the newly constructed ramp that meets the bridge structure. Behind me Zgorzała, ahead of me, across the S7, Zamienie. No stairs, just a long, gently sloped ramp at either end. Wide enough for cyclists to safely pass each other. The the left, the eastern service road that takes traffic down to Nowa Wola, bypassing the village of Zgorzała, which will feel massive relief when the S7 opens.

Below: from the top, looking south towards Lesznowola. The sign, translated literally, says: TEMPORARY CROSSING. WE ASK FOR CAUTION. DO NOT LEAN OVER ACROSS THE BARRIERS!! Presumably leaning over the barriers will be OK once the crossing becomes permanent. 

UPDATE 28 May 2022: Road signs are up on the S7 - a big development. Grójec - Radom - Kielce - Kraków, this sign would have been visible on the photo above, just before the curve in the distance.

And now, some bonus shots of planes landing on RWY 29, rarely used unless the much-longer RWY 33 is being repaired or, as happened yesterday, there are particularly strong winds from the west. This creates the opportunity of catching the planes against a backdrop of skyscrapers.

Below: a LOT Polish Airlines Embraer ERJ 175 flies in front of the Warsaw Hub and Spire buildings. In the foreground, W-wa Jeziorki station, a southbound train approaching. Photo taken from the viaduct over the tracks.

Left: LOT Polish Airlines Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner in livery commemorating the centenary of Poland's independence, which occurred three and half years ago. Taken at ground level from the S7's western service road north of ul. Baletowa, with the same cluster of skyscrapers as in the photo above. Beyond the treeline, Węzeł Lotnisko, where the S2 meets the S7/S79.

Below: a Finnair Embraer ERJ 190 coming in to land, flying in front of Varso tower. Taken from south of Baletowa, so from a greater distance. 

Below: A Wizz Air Airbus A321neo - something of a Supermarionation vibe here!

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Pictures in the winter sun

Sun in winter is special; it behoves one to make the most of every ray. Time for a long walk. 

Below: hints of New Mexico, Jeziorki. Ulica Baletowa looking towards W-wa Dawidy station and the S7 extension carried over the tunnel in the distance. Evergreens look good against blue skies any time of year.

Below: the reverse shot - the tunnel carrying the S7 (under construction) over ul. Baletowa. In the distance, through the tunnel, the level crossing by W-wa Dawidy station.

Below: classic Jeziorki winter, by the southern pond. Note the broken silver pines - toppled over by last week's strong winds.

A man strides onto the ice, without hesitation. In his hand, an axe. He squats down and starts hacking at the ice. Looks like he's making a fishing hole.

Two hours later, I'm walking back the same way and step out to look at the hole. Although it's not that cold (-2C), the water at the surface has frozen over. I go to get a stick; it takes several blows to break the ice that's formed during this short time. With the stick, I gauge that the pond is covered by a sheet of ice some 20cm (eight inches) thick. Plenty of footprints and ice-skate tracks suggest that the ice is absolutely safe.

Below: over the years since the ponds have been deepened and the park built around it, the reeds have grown back. I can now walk over the ice and see the far side of the pond - it's not good. What was open water is now so overgrown to be almost impenetrable.

Below: between rail and road - a southbound Koleje Mazowieckie double-decker train passing a northbound Inter City Dart train on its way from Kraków to Olsztyn via Warsaw.

Below: there's still ten metres of concrete and asphalt needed to connect the end of the S79 (where I stand to take this photo) to the beginning of the S7 extension that will run down to Tarczyn and Grójec.

Below: under the railway lines, over the expressway. Above me to the left, the electrified Warsaw-Radom main line; above to the right is the un-electrified coal train line from Okęcie sidings to Siekierki power station. Underneath passes the S2 as it crosses southern Warsaw.

Below: the interstices, where few wander. Some lines of W.B. Yeats' verse sprayed onto the concrete underneath the railway bridge. Quite unexpected!

Below: it's winter, so the coal train runs more often than in summer. Siekierki is not just a power station - it's a heating plant, the hot water generated gets pumped around as district heating for local housing estates.

Left: not a householder keeping warm by burning crap - this is steam, not smoke - and it's coming out of the chimney stack at Siekierki power station, 10km to the north-east. In the foreground, the railway line.

Below: A LOT Polish Airlines Bombardier Dash 8 Q400 coming into land. It's so low as it crosses the S79 that I can catch this shot with the kit zoom lens on my Nikon D5600 extended to 55mm.

Below: bonus shot from town - a Nysa 522 minibus, used for nostalgia-themed tourist trips around Warsaw. It stands, minus registration plate, outside the Palace of Culture. Only contemporary posters give a clue as to the date of this photo.

(Happy birthday, Mon!)

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Snow, sun, Jeziorki joy

Bright, joyous day; minus three Celsius, a gentle overnight fall of snow. The perfect day with which to start astronomical winter 2021-22. Below: ulica Dumki and footpath alongside the ponds.

Below: the northernmost pond, lightly frozen (nowhere near enough to walk on yet!), sprinkled with snow, under a perfectly cloudless sky.

Below: the corner of ul. Kórnicka and ul. Baletowa - and a reminder that there are still working farms in Jeziorki. Last week's works on the level crossing were finished a day early; traffic was back to normal on Sunday.

Below: looking west along an unasphalted stretch of ul. Sporna, one of Warsaw's more unusual thoroughfares, just before it gets cut once again, this time by the railway line.

Below: clouds are drawing in from the west, bringing with them more light snow. Looking from ul. Sporna towards the distribution centre on ul. Baletowa and W-wa Dawidy station.

Below: empty coal wagons heading back towards the coalfields, hauled by a DB Cargo Polska Siemens Vectron electric locomotive.

Left: drainage ditch perpendicular to ul. Kórnicka that runs under it and into the northernmost pond. The ditch also crosses under the railway line, draining excess water from the fields beyond. The low sun catches the dry scrubby foliage; in the distance a fully laden diesel-hauled coal train heading for Siekierki power station. The sky is beautiful - I am catching that 1950s USA vibe powerfully standing here.

Below: more views of the park, looking towards the middle pond.

Below: looking towards the southern pond, increasingly overgrown with reeds.

Below: making its turn before final approach to Okęcie airport, a PZL W-3S Sokół VIP transport helicopter. The first helicopter to be designed and built in Poland.

Below: bonus shot - I saw on Twitter that an Airbus Beluga was flying into Okęcie. I've never seen one in my life; it is carrying a helicopter to Japan. By sheer luck, it is back-lit by a moon shining through thin cloud.

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Frustration for the local wozidupek* community

Sunday morning - I am checking Skyscraper City for the latest news of local infrastructure developments. The level crossing on ulica Baletowa (modernised just over four years ago) is being closed for a remont. This sign appeared on ul. Puławska. Traffic is being rerouted along ul. Karczunkowska and over the viaduct. This is a three-kilometre detour.

"We gave you fair warn". Several signs along the road right up to the crossing (which was closed on and off for over a year between May 2016 and August 2017 as part of the modernisation of the Warsaw-Radom line).

 Sunday afternoon, the crossing is still open - how many drivers noticed the sign?

Now it's closed. Diggers have dug right across the roadway, parallel to the rails; I suspect that drainage is being improved as flooding has occurred several times on the junction between ul Hołubcowa (the unasphalted track coming off ul. Baletowa. 

Motorists will try it on. Despite the signage, every now and then some doubting Tomasz will check whether the crossing really is closed, and will drive 500m from the junction at ul. Kórnicka as far as the railway and drive 500m back having ascertained that it is closed. 

* Wozidupek - short-distance, one-per-car commuter, who is too important for public transport. A major contributor to global warming.

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Nocturnal monochrome

Darkness falls earlier than at any other time of year. Work is pressing - it cannot be put off for the evening for delivery the next working day. So today and yesterday, my walk had to be done in darkness. In place of the standard kit lens (18-55mm f/3.5-4.5 zoom) I took a fixed focal-length 24mm f/2 old-school Nikkor, a lovely piece of metal and glass. All photos hand-held or with camera balanced on a post or wall, 3,200 ISO, 1/10 to 1/2 second, between f/2 and f/5.6.

Below: the corner of ulica Trombity and ul. Kórnicka. Nice starburst from the street lights.

Below: the far end of ul. Dawidowska on the Jeziorki side of the tracks. Will this quiet footpath be turned into a busy four-lane thoroughfare linking Zamienie via a new railway viaduct with ul. Puławska?

Below: ul. Dawidowska between ul. Buszycka and ul. Nawłocka. It would be a great shame to lose the rural charm of this corner of Jeziorki.

Below: the view from the far end of our garden.

Below: looking north-east from ul. Hołubcowa across the fields.

Below: a quiet moment on ul. Baletowa - the level-crossing gates are down a few hundred metres along the road.

Below: looking south across ul. Sporna towards ul. Baletowa in Dawidy.

Below: the S7 extension climbs to cross the tunnel over ul. Baletowa, the upright posts await the acoustic screens to be put in place.

Below: the S7/S7/S79 junction, Węzeł Lotnisko, looking east. Note the low-mounted lighting under the flight-path.

One colour photo - this is the southern end of the S79 - for the past eight years this stump, south of the S2 junction, has stood here, unused, terminating in a cabbage field. Every night since the rest of the S79 opened to traffic, this stump of road has been illuminated by these lights - how much electricity has been wasted?

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