BOB LIVERMORE wrote on 11th August 2001:
My least favourite road is the A1, a pathetic 2 lane 50s arterial masquerading as a motorway. All those roundabouts and the dangerous crossings and right turns but the worst thing of all is the jousting juggernauts where two macho truckies try to out speed each other at 55 mph for miles and miles of 2 lane agony.
Give me the M1 any day.
PAUL MARTIN wrote on 7th August 2001:
Did you know that the existing arrangement of M62 disappearing into the M60 from Eccles to Simister is the result of a botched plan? In the late 1980s the government made compulsory purchase orders of the land to the north of the present M60 in Whitefield. Its intention was to build a bypass running alongside the M60, which would take the long distance through traffic from the M62. This new bypass would start just to the west of the M60/M62 Eccles interchange, and finish just to the east of the M60/M62/M66 Simister interchange, and would have no other junctions (maybe with the M61, but I'm not sure of that). It would have been 3 lanes each way, as would that section of the present M60. The M60 would have been purely for local traffic.
Then came the freeze on road spending in the early part of the 90s, and the project was shelved. The housing that was bought was rented out cheaply, and resulted in that part of Whitefield becoming a sink estate. The official line on this now is that future motorway development in the M60/M62 shared route will be "within existing boundaries" whatever that means. Perhaps they'll try your double-decker idea.
Note also that the junction numbers for that stretch are cunningly identical (with some adjustments) to what they would be if that section was still the M62. Incidentally, there were proposals for a motorway starting at a junction with the M62 in the bottom of the Irwell valley, with this motorway proceeding into Manchester centre. I only ever saw this on an Esso "motorway plan" flip map.
The A6144(M) appeared when the M63 (as was) was converted from 2 lanes (with intermittent hard shoulder) to 3/4 lanes in the early 90s. It replaced a restricted access junction with a B road, signed Urmston.
RUPERT CANDY wrote on 22nd July 2001:
Top marks for your site - keep up the good work. How does one become a member? You might even tempt me into writing reviews of various southern interesting roads...
BILL STEWART wrote on 10th July 2001:
Brad
You sound slightly mad.....but it's a fine madness, keep up the good work. My absolute favourite is the A1. Born of much hitch hiking between London and Yorkshire in the '60's. Great nostalgia for all those long lost trucker stops eg at Baldock, and Tony's etc. I'd like to know if anyone has plotted the original route of this road before it was mucked about, or if there are any decent books on its history.
Regards
Bill