Doncaster Bypass - why was the Gazette opening notice a year late?
Moderator: Site Management Team
Doncaster Bypass - why was the Gazette opening notice a year late?
The Wiki and newspaper reports give the opening date as 31 July 1961. Even Ernest Marples was there. Reports describe it as a motorway and film footage shows the motorway - www.britishpathe.com/video/open-new-motorway
The Gazette notice for the opening from north of Blyth to Red House gives an opening date of 3 August 1962.
www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/42743/page/5990
Any ideas why there was a delay?
The Gazette notice for the opening from north of Blyth to Red House gives an opening date of 3 August 1962.
www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/42743/page/5990
Any ideas why there was a delay?
Ian
Re: Doncaster Bypass - why was the Gazette opening notice a year late?
That is interesting - I wonder if it was forgotten to put a notice in that it had opened at the time?
Is there a road improvement project going on near you? Help us to document it on the SABRE Wiki - help is available in the Digest forum.
Have you browsed SABRE Maps recently? Get involved! - see our guide to scanning and stitching maps
Have you browsed SABRE Maps recently? Get involved! - see our guide to scanning and stitching maps
Re: Doncaster Bypass - why was the Gazette opening notice a year late?
Welcome Ross, you have added to the collective knowledge of the society, by posing a question no one seems able to answer. Maybe in time someone will find the answer.
“The simple step of a courageous individual is not to take part in the lie" - Aleksandr I. Solzhenitsyn
Johnny Mo
Johnny Mo
- RichardA35
- Elected Committee Member
- Posts: 5719
- Joined: Thu Jul 11, 2002 18:58
- Location: Dorset
Re: Doncaster Bypass - why was the Gazette opening notice a year late?
It may well be something quite simple and prosaic.
Quite often the mainline would be opened ahead of the final tie in and junction as traffic management and construction phasing demanded traffic use the manline before a certain piece of work (Blyth roundabout?) could be built.
So it might have been that an official opening was held to coincide with the mainline and a further year's work was needed before all the elements of the scheme covered by the order (and the notification) were completed.
Quite often the mainline would be opened ahead of the final tie in and junction as traffic management and construction phasing demanded traffic use the manline before a certain piece of work (Blyth roundabout?) could be built.
So it might have been that an official opening was held to coincide with the mainline and a further year's work was needed before all the elements of the scheme covered by the order (and the notification) were completed.
- Conekicker
- Member
- Posts: 3767
- Joined: Sat Dec 10, 2005 22:32
- Location: South Yorks
Re: Doncaster Bypass - why was the Gazette opening notice a year late?
At this remove in time, it's extremely unlikely that anyone involved is still alive, much less browsing this forum. A question that is likely to remain forever unanswered I fear.
Patience is not a virtue - it's a concept invented by the dozy beggars who are unable to think quickly enough.
Re: Doncaster Bypass - why was the Gazette opening notice a year late?
I'd suggest it's like most things - probably someone forgot to put the paperwork in on time.
Bryn
Terminally cynical, unimpressed, and nearly Middle Age already.
She said life was like a motorway; dull, grey, and long.
Blog - https://showmeasign.online/
X - https://twitter.com/ShowMeASignBryn
YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@BrynBuck
Terminally cynical, unimpressed, and nearly Middle Age already.
She said life was like a motorway; dull, grey, and long.
Blog - https://showmeasign.online/
X - https://twitter.com/ShowMeASignBryn
YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@BrynBuck
Re: Doncaster Bypass - why was the Gazette opening notice a year late?
There's at least one other interesting thing on that page - the invitation for firms of good standing to invest at least £200,000 to provide petrol filling stations and catering facilities on a 50 year ground lease for a site at Leicester Forest East on the London to Yorkshire Motorway. The Minister will provide areas of hardstanding for car parking, internal roads and lighting.
Simon
Simon
Did you know there's more to SABRE than just the Forums?
Add your roads knowledge to the SABRE Wiki today!
Have you browsed SABRE Maps recently? Try getting involved!
Please contact me if you want to know more
Add your roads knowledge to the SABRE Wiki today!
Have you browsed SABRE Maps recently? Try getting involved!
Please contact me if you want to know more
Re: Doncaster Bypass - why was the Gazette opening notice a year late?
Thanks for the input everyone. No worries if there is no answer, it's good to have a mystery.
I did wonder if it was initially a local authority scheme. I've come across a reference to the original scheme - The Doncaster By-Pass Special Road Scheme 1957(1) but the Gazette does not show this for some reason. The wiki A1(M)/Blyth - Adwick le Street pointed me to the 2006 variation, but it only lists the variations.
There is an interesting case at https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10 ... lCode=pjxa where a learner driver, prosecuted for driving on the motorway requested the Special Roads opening documentation to be proved by the prosecutor. The main emphasis was that a case can be adjourned for the documentation to be produced, which is by the by here. Could be interesting if there was a case where the opening documentation was late.
Ian
I did wonder if it was initially a local authority scheme. I've come across a reference to the original scheme - The Doncaster By-Pass Special Road Scheme 1957(1) but the Gazette does not show this for some reason. The wiki A1(M)/Blyth - Adwick le Street pointed me to the 2006 variation, but it only lists the variations.
There is an interesting case at https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10 ... lCode=pjxa where a learner driver, prosecuted for driving on the motorway requested the Special Roads opening documentation to be proved by the prosecutor. The main emphasis was that a case can be adjourned for the documentation to be produced, which is by the by here. Could be interesting if there was a case where the opening documentation was late.
Ian
Ian
- Steven
- SABRE Maps Coordinator
- Posts: 19250
- Joined: Tue Feb 12, 2002 20:39
- Location: Wolverhampton, Staffordshire
- Contact:
Re: Doncaster Bypass - why was the Gazette opening notice a year late?
It wasn't - the A1 through Doncaster was part of the London - Edinburgh - Thurso Trunk Road as defined in the 1936 Trunk Roads Act.
However, the larger top-tier authorities such as in this case, West Riding County Council, were the agents of the Ministry in the field and had quite a large say - hence why James Drake, Harry Yeadon et al across the Pennines in Lancashire played such a large part in the early motorway network.
Steven
Motorway Historian
Founder Member, SABRE ex-Presidents' Corner
Add your roads knowledge to the SABRE Wiki today!
Have you browsed SABRE Maps recently? Try getting involved!
Motorway Historian
Founder Member, SABRE ex-Presidents' Corner
Add your roads knowledge to the SABRE Wiki today!
Have you browsed SABRE Maps recently? Try getting involved!
Re: Doncaster Bypass - why was the Gazette opening notice a year late?
The Doncaster Bypass was part of the London - Yorkshire Motorway scheme, it was seen as a distributor motorway at the northern end similar to the M10 at the southern end.
“The simple step of a courageous individual is not to take part in the lie" - Aleksandr I. Solzhenitsyn
Johnny Mo
Johnny Mo
- Steven
- SABRE Maps Coordinator
- Posts: 19250
- Joined: Tue Feb 12, 2002 20:39
- Location: Wolverhampton, Staffordshire
- Contact:
Re: Doncaster Bypass - why was the Gazette opening notice a year late?
This is incorrect - it wasn't seen as a distributor motorway similar to the M10.
The original northern end of the London-Yorkshire Motorway was the northern end of the Doncaster Bypass, with the main line being roughly along the route of M18 and up the A1(M); with the Aston Spur (roughly the M1 mainline past Sheffield, originally Motor Road 11, then M57 under the continuation of the all-purpose numbering scheme) being relatively local access.
The section of the Doncaster Bypass south of the London - Yorkshire Motorway was generally seen as a more local route and was consistently allocated a different number.
MT112-67 and MT29-145 are good places for starting once the National Archives reopens fully, plus the relevant Motorway Archive deposits in Northamptonshire Archives.
Steven
Motorway Historian
Founder Member, SABRE ex-Presidents' Corner
Add your roads knowledge to the SABRE Wiki today!
Have you browsed SABRE Maps recently? Try getting involved!
Motorway Historian
Founder Member, SABRE ex-Presidents' Corner
Add your roads knowledge to the SABRE Wiki today!
Have you browsed SABRE Maps recently? Try getting involved!