Roads that should have been dual carriageway

[Richardf]

Quite a few S2s would actually be OK if all their junctions were grade separated I think.

But as well as the existing D2 sections needing to be grade separated, the A505 between Royston and Abington could do with being GS D2.

If this was Spain those S2s would have had GSJs as standard. Unfortunately we aren't too keen on such junctions in the UK!

[DB617]

Whenever I travel to Pembrokeshire I'm increasingly of the opinion that the E30 should have been minimum D2 all the way to Fishguard, or at least Haverfordwest. The local authorities are slowly banging in a mile or two of S2+1 overtaking zones on the A40 every few years, but as an important freight/people route between Ireland, West Wales, the UK and Europe, it would have seemed sensible for it to be a high quality route. As it stands the holiday traffic - many accursed caravans and people who don't like speed - mix in with Euro freight and locals. Not a great experience and leads to much frustration and dodgy overtakes.

[lefthandedspanner]

Here's one I've started noticing since joining SABRE.

The A61 is a dual carriageway from Sheffield inner ring road north through Hillsborough and Wadsley Bridge until it reaches Grenoside. It's an obvious thought that the dual carriageway might have continued. But looking more closely as you continue north, the building lines don't change when the road reverts to single carriageway, houses on the right still have a service road, houses on the left have massive front gardens ready to be CPOd for a service road, and there's a wide southbound carriageway sized grass strip on the right used only for parking talivans. Is this a sign that continuing the dual carriageway towards the M1 was not just an idea but a definite plan?

As I understand it, there were once plans (in the 1960s?) to upgrade it into the Hillsborough Expressway - i.e. a northern/western equivalent of the Parkway. This was about the same time they were planning the inner ring road as a fully grade-separated urban motorway, which would have been every bit as much of a terrifying rollercoaster ride (if not more so) than the Coventry Ringway had it been built to plan.

[M56phil]

I can think of a few....

A5 - west of Shrewsbury upto (and including) the A483 at Ruabon.

Bits of the A49 in Shropshire/Herefordshire would be useful- maybe not totally but a few 3 or 4 mile sections would help.

A51 (formerly A500) Nantwich bypass. Really is now in need of upgrading, should have been a D2 originally.

A361 - Devon. Why was this built as an S2 when extended?

A66 - from Scotch corner to Penrith I think should have been done as a D2 originally.

A46 Stratford
A47 particularly the S2 bits between Norwich and kings lynn.
A17 should have been built with some D2 bits I think.
A35 (as above)
A36 (as above)

Not saying I'm right or wrong. Just my opinion off the top of my head.

[KeithW]

A66 - from Scotch corner to Penrith I think should have been done as a D2 originally.

The A66 was originally built by the Romans so you should complain to them adding the A1, A2, A5 and A68 and to the list

[rhyds]

I can think of a few....

A5 - west of Shrewsbury upto (and including) the A483 at Ruabon.

Bits of the A49 in Shropshire/Herefordshire would be useful- maybe not totally but a few 3 or 4 mile sections would help.

The Oswestry bypass should have been D2 with provision for future GSJs in an ideal world, or at least just plain D2.

The A49 would also benefit from some D2, especially a D2 Hereford bypass or even just some S2+1 on some of the other bypasses.

[Burns]

Quite a few S2s would actually be OK if all their junctions were grade separated I think.

The UK can't even build a high quality dual carriageway without shoving a roundabout into the middle of it to save 5p so there's no hope of us ever getting a comprehensive network of good quality, grade separated S2s.

[NICK 647063]

The ones that come straight into my head when I see this topic are

A64 York to a Malton suffers from daily congestion

A1237 the whole lot around York should be D2

A64 Leeds (Seacroft) to A1(M) very busy especially weekday peaks but will get worse when the East Leeds Orbital opens as they predict a big increase along with all the new housing, it’s now back to pre M1 levels.

A66 between M6 and A1(M) it’s HGV after HGV and the single sections are totally inadequate.

A46 around Newark now the only remaining section of S2

These are roads I drive often and really stand out as over capacity and a missing link in the dual carriageway network.

[B9127]

A92 in Dundee from Scott Fyffe circle to Claypotts Junction - you can see the land that was left aside to dual it which included building an underpass to connect Craigie High School to a major housing estate - now it is a single c/way bottleneck with a just completed lights controlled pedestrian crossing half way along

[Robert Kilcoyne]

The A75 should be D2 from Gretna to Dumfries, including the whole of the Dumfries bypass.

[the cheesecake man]

Here's one I've started noticing since joining SABRE.

The A61 is a dual carriageway from Sheffield inner ring road north through Hillsborough and Wadsley Bridge until it reaches Grenoside. It's an obvious thought that the dual carriageway might have continued. But looking more closely as you continue north, the building lines don't change when the road reverts to single carriageway, houses on the right still have a service road, houses on the left have massive front gardens ready to be CPOd for a service road, and there's a wide southbound carriageway sized grass strip on the right used only for parking talivans. Is this a sign that continuing the dual carriageway towards the M1 was not just an idea but a definite plan?

As I understand it, there were once plans (in the 1960s?) to upgrade it into the Hillsborough Expressway - i.e. a northern/western equivalent of the Parkway. This was about the same time they were planning the inner ring road as a fully grade-separated urban motorway, which would have been every bit as much of a terrifying rollercoaster ride (if not more so) than the Coventry Ringway had it been built to plan.

Interesting. Pathetic Motorways (as seen on TV) has an A61(M) ring road. As does Haydn. An anonymous comment on PM mentions this Hillsborough Expressway but that seems to be the only trace of it.

[KeithW]

A66 between M6 and A1(M) it’s HGV after HGV and the single sections are totally inadequate.

Its in the pipeline for RIS2
https://highwaysengland.co.uk/projects/ ... s-pennine/

[danfw194]

I can think of a few....

A5 - west of Shrewsbury upto (and including) the A483 at Ruabon.

The Oswestry bypass should have been D2 with provision for future GSJs in an ideal world, or at least just plain D2.

Agree with both. I find the A5-A483 multiplex intensely irritating, especially given it's a pretty wide S2 - it's not exactly hemmed in by urban areas. Seems like such a missed opportunity. I don't know the history behind the road building here so maybe there was a reason, but it's crying out to be dualled.

[NICK 647063]

Its in the pipeline for RIS2
https://highwaysengland.co.uk/projects/ ... s-pennine/

Yes I’m aware of what’s in the pipeline but was just answering the question about what should have been dual carriageway.... to be fair most I mention have something planned, as you say the A66 does, the A64 has Hopgrove to Barton le willows which has 4 options to be decided on and the A1237 is to be dualled as part of the major roads network from A19 to Hopgrove.

[Lewis1997]

I can think of a few....

A5 - west of Shrewsbury upto (and including) the A483 at Ruabon.

The Oswestry bypass should have been D2 with provision for future GSJs in an ideal world, or at least just plain D2.

Agree with both. I find the A5-A483 multiplex intensely irritating, especially given it's a pretty wide S2 - it's not exactly hemmed in by urban areas. Seems like such a missed opportunity. I don't know the history behind the road building here so maybe there was a reason, but it's crying out to be dualled.

There has been rumours and a lot of background grumbling over the last year/18 months or so about the A5 from Shrewsbury to and including the A483 to Ruabon. Even some mention of the M54 being extended to Shrewsbury but that’s for another day I reckon.
https://www.shropshirestar.com/news/tra ... th-new-pm/

[danfw194]

The Oswestry bypass should have been D2 with provision for future GSJs in an ideal world, or at least just plain D2.

Agree with both. I find the A5-A483 multiplex intensely irritating, especially given it's a pretty wide S2 - it's not exactly hemmed in by urban areas. Seems like such a missed opportunity. I don't know the history behind the road building here so maybe there was a reason, but it's crying out to be dualled.

There has been rumours and a lot of background grumbling over the last year/18 months or so about the A5 from Shrewsbury to and including the A483 to Ruabon. Even some mention of the M54 being extended to Shrewsbury but that’s for another day I reckon.
https://www.shropshirestar.com/news/tra ... th-new-pm/

Interesting article, particularly this line:
"The stretch of the trunk road is one of the few sections of the A5, which runs between London and Holyhead, to be single carriageway."
Hmmmm, not quite.

[punyXpress]

Yes I’m aware of what’s in the pipeline but was just answering the question about what should have been dual carriageway.... to be fair most I mention have something planned, as you say the A66 does, the A64 has Hopgrove to Barton le willows which has 4 options to be decided on and the A1237 is to be dualled as part of the major roads network from A19 to Hopgrove.

" Great crested newts are causing delays to York’s outer ring road upgrade. " Apparently they need a hibernaculum!

[GiGaMine]

The A563 ('ringroad') around Leicester has space on one side of the carriageway and bridges wide enough to allow upgrading to a dual carriageway.

Definitely could do with being done...or at least finish the loop (obviously too late for the latter)

[trickstat]

Agree with both. I find the A5-A483 multiplex intensely irritating, especially given it's a pretty wide S2 - it's not exactly hemmed in by urban areas. Seems like such a missed opportunity. I don't know the history behind the road building here so maybe there was a reason, but it's crying out to be dualled.

There has been rumours and a lot of background grumbling over the last year/18 months or so about the A5 from Shrewsbury to and including the A483 to Ruabon. Even some mention of the M54 being extended to Shrewsbury but that’s for another day I reckon.
https://www.shropshirestar.com/news/tra ... th-new-pm/

Interesting article, particularly this line:
"The stretch of the trunk road is one of the few sections of the A5, which runs between London and Holyhead, to be single carriageway."
Hmmmm, not quite.

Maybe the parts of the A5 that are single carriageway are small in number but very long! I would guess that something like 90% of the A5 is single carriageway.

[danfw194]

The A563 ('ringroad') around Leicester has space on one side of the carriageway and bridges wide enough to allow upgrading to a dual carriageway.

Definitely could do with being done...or at least finish the loop (obviously too late for the latter)

Good spots, hadn't ever really spotted those features or considered that before, although I tend to avoid the A563 like the plague. I think the whole road is a lost cause quite frankly. It doesn't really hold any strategic importance nationally or regionally, as it only has the A47 from Pboro and A6 from Mkt Hboro plugging directly in (without having already intersected one of the other Leicester bypasses M1/A46). There are not vast amounts of through traffic coming in or out on those roads, so a very high percentage of A563 users are Leicester locals. And if you are a local, you find you're own way to close the loop (Goodwood Road and Ethel Road being the loop closer I'll use). Leicester as a whole is a bit of a disaster for roads and traffic, but I'm sure you can say the same about most UK cities.

Maybe the parts of the A5 that are single carriageway are small in number but very long! I would guess that something like 90% of the A5 is single carriageway.

Ah I hadn't read it like that, I guess at a push the author could explain it away in those terms! Certainly a puzzling sentence.