A1 road

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A1 road

Direction	North - South
Start	City of London
Primary destinations	Alnwick Berwick-upon-Tweed Gateshead Grantham Morpeth Newcastle upon Tyne Newark-on-Trent Peterborough Pontefract Scotch Corner Stamford Wetherby
End	Edinburgh
Roads joined	M25 motorway A14 road A16 road A17 road A19 road A40 road A41 road A43 road A46 road A47 road A406 road A421 road A428 road A52 road A57 road A61 road A63 road A64 road A66 road A69 road A606 road A702 road
Euroroute(s)	E 15

The A1 is the longest numbered road in the UK at 409 miles (658 km) long. It connects London, the capital city of the United Kingdom and of England, with Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. For much of its path it follows the historic Great North Road. The modern course of the A1 diverges somewhat, particularly where it passed through a town or village that has subsequently been bypassed, or where new motorway standard road has been constructed on a more direct route. Between its junctions with the M25 (near London) and A696 (near Newcastle upon Tyne) the road forms part of the unsigned Euroroute E15 which runs from Inverness to Algeciras.

Contents 1 Origins and History 2 Route 3 Improvements underway 4 Future improvements 5 Expressway 6 A1(M) 6.1 Barton to Newcastle 6.1.1 Junctions 6.2 Wetherby to Dishforth 6.2.1 Junctions 6.3 M62 to Wetherby 6.3.1 Junctions 6.4 Doncaster Bypass 6.4.1 Junctions 6.5 Alconbury to Peterborough 6.5.1 Junctions 6.6 M25 to Baldock 6.6.1 Junctions 6.7 Unfulfilled plans 6.8 Future plans 7 Trivia 7.1 Road signs 7.2 Other 8 See also 9 References 10 External links

[edit] Origins and History

For the numbering rationale see: Great Britain road numbering scheme

The original A1 route was designated by the Ministry of Transport in 1921, mostly following the course of the ancient Great North Road. This ran from Smithfield in Central London, up St John Street to the Angel Islington, where it merges with the present A1, which follows a parallel route from St Pauls up Aldersgate Street and Goswell Road to the Angel, Islington. The route then follows Upper Street and Holloway Road through Barnet, Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, to Alconbury, where it joined the route of a Roman road, Ermine Street, as far as Colsterworth, where it is joined by the A151. The route was modified in 1927 when bypasses were built around Barnet and Hatfield, the latter being rebuilt in a tunnel during the 1980s. In 1960 Stamford was bypassed, as was Retford in 1961 and St Neots in 1971.

The Great North Road includes stretches of Roman Road including Dere Street, and is mentioned in much English literature, for example Pickwick Papers by Charles Dickens.

The legendary highwayman Dick Turpin's rapid flight from London to York, in less than 15 hours, on his faithful mare Black Bess, is perhaps the most famous legend of the Great North Road. Various inns that still stand along the A1 claim that Turpin ate his lunch there that night, or stopped off there for a brief respite for his horse. Harrison Ainsworth, in his famous 1834 romance Rookwood, immortalised this with a spirited account of this wonderful ride by Dick Turpin on his mare, and it is in this connection that Turpin's name has been generally remembered.

However, historians have frequently argued that Turpin never actually made this speedy journey, and that, as far as Turpin is concerned, the incident is pure fiction. They argue that such a ride was really made by John Nevison, known as "Swift Nick," born and raised at Wortley village near Sheffield and a well-known highwayman in the time of Charles II some 50 years before Turpin, who to establish an alibi rode from Gad's Hill (near Rochester, Kent) to York (some 190 miles) in about 15 hours.

[edit] Route

The A1 runs from the heart of the City of London at St. Paul's Cathedral to the centre of Scotland's capital, Edinburgh.

The A1 shares its London terminus with the A40, in the City area of Central London. It then runs out of London through Islington (where Upper Street forms part of its route), up Holloway Road, through Barnet, Potters Bar, Hatfield, Welwyn, Stevenage, Baldock, Biggleswade, Sandy, St Neots and Peterborough. Continuing north, the A1 runs on modern bypasses around Grantham, Newark-on-Trent, Retford, Bawtry, Doncaster, Knottingley, Garforth, Wetherby, Knaresborough, Boroughbridge, Scotch Corner, Darlington, Durham, Chester-le-Street, past the Angel of the North sculpture in Gateshead, around Newcastle upon Tyne, Morpeth, Alnwick, Berwick-upon-Tweed, into Scotland, past Dunbar, Haddington and Musselburgh before finally arriving in Edinburgh at the East End of Princes Street near Waverley Station at the junction of the A7, A8 and A900 roads.

[edit] Improvements underway

An upgrade of the Black Cat Roundabout at the junction with the A421 (Bedford Road) is now complete with the Great Barford A421 bypass also finished. 2006.^[1]

Work has started in August 2006 to replace the six roundabouts (Blyth (A614), Apleyhead (A614/A57), Markham Moor (A57), Gonerby Moor (B1174), Colsterworth (A151) and the junction of A1/B6403, and Carpenters Lodge (Stamford) (B1081)) on the A1 between Blyth and the A1(M) section to Alconbury with grade separated junctions. Once complete this will provide a fully grade separated route between the Buckden roundabout (just north of St Neots and approximately 4 miles north of the Black Cat roundabout) and just north of Morpeth.^[2]

[edit] Future improvements

There is a proposal to link with the main section of the A14 at Brampton Hut roundabout with a planned A14 southerly bypass of Huntingdon.^[3]

Improvements to the road north of Newcastle upon Tyne were planned where the road consists mostly of single carriageway sections as opposed to a combination of dual carriageway and motorway to the south. Plans to dual the road between Morpeth and Felton and between Adderstone and Belford were shelved in 2006 as they were not considered a regional priority^[4] by central government. There are no current plans to dual the whole of the A1 route between Newcastle and Edinburgh, despite fierce campaigns in the past to make this so.

[edit] Expressway

In Scotland a section of the road has been upgraded to motorway standard and classified as a Special Road, but is not designated as the A1(M). This runs from the east of Edinburgh to Dunbar.

[edit] A1(M)

Some sections of the A1 have been upgraded to motorway standard. These are known as the A1(M). These include:

• A stretch between the M25 at South Mimms to just north of Baldock;
• The four lane Peterborough section from the Alconbury junction near Huntingdon to Orton Southgate near Peterborough; this stretch starts just north of the A14 junction proper and receives traffic from the A14 eastbound from the M6 and westbound from the A14 spur and M11.
• The Doncaster bypass, which intersects the M18 (this was the first section of motorway on the A1 and one of the earliest sections of motorway built in the United Kingdom);
• The new Hook Moor section, from Darrington, intersects with the M62 adjacent to Ferrybridge power station and is joined by the end of the M1 at Aberford.
• A relatively new (1993) section which now runs from Wetherby to Dishforth, past Harrogate, Ripon and Boroughbridge. The southern stretch to the River Wharfe bridge opened in August 2005. This was separated from the existing Hook Moor section by only around 6.5 miles of dual carriageway. The majority of this was replaced in 2006 by a new section taking the A1(M) east of Wetherby, joining the old dual carriageway section for only a mile at Wetherby racecourse, before it opens out again to the three lanes and on to Darrington.
• The final stretch of A1(M) from Scotch Corner in North Yorkshire to Washington in Tyne and Wear through County Durham.

---

[edit] Barton to Newcastle

A1(M) motorway
Length	30 miles 48 km
Direction	North - South
Start	Barton
Primary destinations	Chester-le-Street Darlington Durham Scotch Corner
End	Washington
Construction dates	1999 - 2006
Motorways joined	57 - A66(M) motorway 65 - A194(M) motorway
Euroroute(s)	E 15

This section in stages:

• Junctions 56 to 59 opened in 1965
• Junctions 59 to 63 opened in 1969
• Junctions 63 to 65 opened in 1970

[edit] Junctions

A1(M) Motorway
Northbound exits	Junction	Southbound exits
Road continues as A1 to Newcastle	J65	Washington A1231 Non motorway traffic
South Shields, Tyne Tunnel A194(M)		Start of Motorway
Washington Services
Washington A195	J64	Washington A195
Chester-le-Street A167 Stanley A693	J63	Chester-le-Street A167 Stanley A693
Durham, Sunderland A690	J62	Durham A690
Spennymoor A688 Durham A177	J61	Bishop Auckland, Spennymoor A688
Hartlepool, Ferryhill A689	J60	Newton Aycliffe, Hartlepool A689
Newton Aycliffe A167	J59	Darlington, Stockton A167
Shildon, Bishop Auckland A68	J58	Darlington A68
Darlington, Stockton A66(M)	J57	No exit
Start of Motorway	J56	Melsonby, Barton B6275
Melsonby, Barton B6275 Non motorway traffic		Road continues as A1 towards Wetherby

---

[edit] Wetherby to Dishforth

A1(M) motorway
Length	17 miles 27 km
Direction	North - South
Start	Wetherby
Primary destinations
End	Dishforth
Construction dates	1995 - 2005
Motorways joined	none
Euroroute(s)	E 15

This section opened in stages:

• Junctions 46 to 47 opened in 2005
• Junctions 47 to 49 opened in 1995

[edit] Junctions

A1(M) Motorway
Northbound exits	Junction	Southbound exits
Road continues as A1 to Durham	J49	Thirsk, Middlesbrough A168 (A19) Non motorway traffic
Thirsk, Middlesbrough A168 (A19)		Start of Motorway
Ripon, Boroughbridge A168	J48	Boroughbridge A168 Knaresborough A6055
Knaresborough, Harrogate A59	J47	York, Knaresborough A59
Start of Motorway	J46	Kirk Deighton, Wetherby A168
Kirk Deighton, Wetherby A168 Non motorway traffic		Road continues as A1 to Doncaster

---

[edit] M62 to Wetherby

A1(M) motorway
Length	miles km
Direction	North - South
Start	Darrington
Primary destinations	Wetherby
End	Bramham
Construction dates	1999 - 2006
Motorways joined	41 - M62 motorway 43 - M1 motorway
Euroroute(s)	E 15

This section opened in sections:

• Junctions 43 to 44 opened in 1999

When this section opened it ended at a temporary terminus south of the M1. There was no exit at the southern end for non-motorway traffic, which left non-permitted traffic no where to go.

• Junctions 40 to 43 opened in 2005 & 2006

This is the most recent upgrade of the road, which upgraded the previous two-lane dual carriageway, much of which was on a substandard alignment to a dual 3-lane motorway. The northern section of the upgrade, bypassing Fairburn village opened to traffic in April 2005 with a temporary connection with the existing A1 between Fairburn and Brotherton. The southern section, with a free-flow interchange with the M62 motorway opened to traffic on 13 January 2006.

[edit] Junctions

A1(M) Motorway
Northbound exits	Junction	Southbound exits
Road continues as A1 to Durham	J44	Leeds, York A64 Non motorway traffic
Leeds, York A64		Start of Motorway
No exit	J43	The SOUTH, Leeds M1
Leeds, Selby A63	J42	Selby A63
Hull, Goole, Manchester, Pontefract, Leeds M62	J41	Hull, Goole, Manchester, Pontefract, Leeds M62
Start of Motorway	J40	No exit
Knottingley A162 Non motorway traffic		Road continues as A1 to Doncaster

---

[edit] Doncaster Bypass

A1(M) motorway
Length	15.0 miles 24.1 km
Direction	North - South
Start	Blyth
Primary destinations
End	Carcroft
Construction dates	1961 - complete route
Motorways joined	35 - M18 motorway
Euroroute(s)	E 15

This section opened in 1961.

[edit] Junctions

A1(M) Motorway
Northbound exits	Junction	Southbound exits
Road continues as A1 to Wetherby	J38	South Elmsall, Ackworth, Wakefield A638 Non motorway traffic
South Elmsall, Ackworth, Wakefield A638		Start of Motorway
Barnsley, Thurnscoe A635	J37	Barnsley, Thurnscoe A635
Doncaster, Doncaster Railport, Conisbrough A630	J36	Doncaster, Doncaster Railport, Conisbrough A630
Sheffield, Rotherham Hull, Scunthorpe, Humberside Airport M18	J35	Sheffield, Rotherham Hull, Scunthorpe, Humberside Airport M18
Start of motorway	J34 Terminus	The SOUTH, Newark A1 Bawtry A614 Blyth B6045

---

[edit] Alconbury to Peterborough

A1(M) motorway
Length	14.0 miles 22.5 km
Direction	North - South
Start	Alconbury
Primary destinations
End	Peterborough
Construction dates	1998 - Complete Route
Motorways joined	none
Euroroute(s)	E 15

This section opened in 1998.

[edit] Junctions

A1(M) Motorway
Northbound exits	Junction	Southbound exits
Road continues as A1 to Newark	J17	Peterborough A1139 Peterborough Services Non motorway traffic
Peterborough A1139 Peterborough Services		Start of Motorway
Yaxley, Stilton A15	J16	Yaxley, Stilton A15
Sawtry B1043	J15	Sawtry B1043
No exit	J14	Alconbury, Huntingdon, Cambridge, Felixstowe A14 (M11)
Start of Motorway	J14	No exit
Alconbury Non motorway traffic		Road continues as A1 to Sandy

---

[edit] M25 to Baldock

A1(M) motorway
Length	23 miles 37 km
Direction	North - South
Start	South Mimms
Primary destinations	Hatfield Welwyn Garden City Stevenage
End	Baldock
Construction dates	1962 - 1986
Motorways joined	1 - M25 motorway
Euroroute(s)	E 15

This section opened in stages:

• Junctions 1 to 2 opened in 1979
• Junctions 2 to 4 opened in 1986
• Junctions 4 to 6 opened in 1973
• Junctions 6 to 8 opened in 1962
• Junctions 8 to 10 opened in 1967

[edit] Junctions

A1(M) Motorway
Northbound exits	Junction	Southbound exits
Road continues as A1 to Sandy	J10	Stotfold, Henlow A507 Baldock services Non motorway traffic
Stotfold, Henlow A507 Baldock Services		Start of Motorway
Letchworth, Baldock A6141	J9	Letchworth, Baldock, Hitchin A6141
Hitchin, Stevenage A602	J8	Stevenage A602
Stevenage, Ware A602	J7	Stevenage, Ware A602
Welwyn, Welwyn Garden City A1000	J6	Welwyn, Welwyn Garden City A1000
No exit	J5	No exit
Welwyn Garden City, Hertford A414	J4	Welwyn Garden City, Hertford A414
Hatfield Tunnel
St Albans A414	J3	St Albans A414 Potters Bar A1001
Hatfield A1001	J2	No exit
Start of Motorway	J1	Dartford (M11, M20) Heathrow (M1, M40 , M4) M25 Barnet A1081 South Mimms services
Dartford (M11, M20) Heathrow (M1, M40 , M4) M25 Barnet A1081 South Mimms Services Non motorway traffic		Road continues as A1 to Central London

[edit] Unfulfilled plans

A proposal to replace the road with a parallel motorway between Baldock and Alconbury thus giving a continuous motorway to Peterborough, was dropped as too expensive, despite the very poor alignment and accident record on this section. The same decision dropped the proposed conversion to motorway north of Peterborough to Grantham.^[5]

[edit] Future plans

Further sections of motorway upgrades are planned, which would ultimately create a single motorway running from Doncaster to Gateshead.

The next two sections of motorway likely to be built are from Bramham (the A1(M)/A64 junction) to Wetherby, and from Dishforth (A1(M)/A168 to Barton (end of northernmost section of A1(M)). The Bramham to Wetherby scheme public inquiry began on 18th October 2006.^[6] Designed by James Poyner, construction of the Dishforth to Barton scheme is scheduled to start in April 2008.

Once these two schemes are complete, which is currently scheduled for 2011, then the Newcastle upon Tyne area will be connected to the rest of the national motorway network. There will be a short section of normal dual-carriageway remaining on the A1 between Doncaster and the M62 motorway.

[edit] Trivia

[edit] Road signs

The A1 is the closest thing Britain has to a cult road, and so some of its road signs achieved some sort of mythical status.

• Near the southern end are signs saying "Hatfield and the North". These signs gave their name to 70s rock band Hatfield and the North.
• At the Northern end, signs used to say "London and the South". The signs in Edinburgh have now been changed to just say "Berwick A1".
• Leeds is exactly 198 miles on the A1 from both capital cities.
• At the northern end of the Doncaster bypass is a clearway sign with attached plate prohibiting stopping for 62 miles, which technically (2006) is no longer valid with the introduction of the new motorway sections from Darrington north, however it seems to have been overlooked and still remains.

[edit] Other

The A1(M) is mentioned in the song Gabadon by Sheffield band Haze. Scotch Corner is mentioned by Jethro Tull.

• The East Coast Main Line runs with a few miles of the A1 for most of its length, and passes through most of the same principal towns as the road passes near.
• During construction of a Motorway section of the A1 near to Welwyn Garden City, Roman baths were discovered on the course of the road. These have been preserved in a cavern underneath the road, and it is possible to visit them: see Welwyn Roman Baths
• "Smoky" Nagata, founder of the legendary Japanese tuning shop Top Secret, was arrested for going 130mph on a top speed trial run in his Toyota Supra on the A1(M). In actuality, he had driven 314kph (194mph) on a previous run just prior to his arrest, as corroborated by videotape evidence later discovered. He was fined and banned from driving in the UK for 28 days.

[edit] See also

• Brampton Hut junction
• British road numbering scheme
• List of motorways in the United Kingdom

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• CBRD Motorway Database - A1(M)
• BiffVernon: A1-The Great North Road
• Society for All British Road Enthusiasts entry for the A1
• Road to Nowhere
  • A1: Alconbury to Stotfold
  • A1: Blyth to Peterborough
  • A1: Aberford to Darrington
  • A1: Barnham to Wetherby
  • A1: Dishforth to Barton
  • A1: Fair Moor to Birtley
  • A1: Brunstaine to Innerwick
• The Motorway Archive (A1(M))
  • Junctions 1 to 10 & 13 to 17
  • Junctions 34 to 38
  • Junctions 47 to 49
  • Junctions 56 to 59
  • Junctions 59 to 63
  • Junctions 63 to 65

	Motorways in the United Kingdom
Great Britain: M1 • M2 • M3 • M4 • M5 • M6 • M6 Toll • M8 • M9 • M10 • M11 • M18 • M20 • M23 • M25 • M26 • M27 • M32 • M40 • M42 • M45 • M48 • M49 • M50 • M53 • M54 • M55 • M56 • M57 • M58 • M60 • M61 • M62 • M65 • M66 • M67 • M69 • M73 • M74 • M77 • M80 • M90 • M180 • M181 • M271 • M275 • M602 • M606 • M621 • M876 • M898
A1(M) • A3(M) • A38(M) • A48(M) • A57(M) • A58(M) • A64(M) • A66(M) • A74(M) • A167(M) • A194(M) • A308(M) • A329(M) • A404(M) • A601(M) • A627(M) • A823(M)
	Northern Ireland: M1 • M2 • M3 • M5 • M12 • M22 • A8(M)	edit
Past: M16 • M41 • M63 • A18(M) • A40(M) • A41(M) • A102(M) • A6144(M)    Unbuilt: M12 • M13 • M15 • M31 • M64    Future: M4 Toll

	A roads in Zone 1 of the Great Britain road numbering scheme	edit
A1
	A10 - A11 - A12 - A13 - A14 - A15 - A16 - A17 - A18 - A19
	A100 - A101 - A102 - A105 - A109 - A118 - A120 - A124 - A127 - A129
	A135 - A140 - A143 - A146 - A149 - A151 - A157 - A159 - A160 - A165 - A167
	A170 - A171 - A179 - A180 - A182 - A183 - A189 - A194
	A1000 - A1018 - A1058 - A1066 - A1068 - A1079
	A1081 - A1086 - A1101 - A1107 - A1156 - A1198
	A1200 - A1202 - A1205 - A1231 - A1303 - A1309
	List of A roads in Zone 1