More Ring Roads

Steven · Post by **Steven** » Sat Aug 31, 2002 15:09

I was driving along near to my in-laws today, when I discovered a whole new Ring Road for Paul's list:

Here's the location on Streetmap, in Burntwood, Staffordshire.

Any more like this?

Steven

c2R · Post by **c2R** » Sat Aug 31, 2002 16:13

Not quite like that one... but I notice the list doesn't include Watford's ring road (the A411)
http://www.streetmap.co.uk/newmap.srf?x ... search.srf
Of course it's more a glorified gyratory sysem, but as it encompasses the entire town centre perhaps it should be included...
Chris.

PeterA5145 · Post by **PeterA5145** » Sat Aug 31, 2002 16:24

<<was driving along near to my in-laws today, when I discovered a whole new Ring Road for Paul's list. Any more like this?>>

Not quite the same thing, but this area on Streetmap shows the two separate sections of Manchester's "Eastern Bypass" in run-down Clayton and Openshaw:

http://www.streetmap.co.uk/streetmap.dl ... 50&A=Y&Z=1

One is in the bottom centre square, named as "Easter By-P", the other in the top left square, named simply as "E. B."

I believe these were originally part of an aborted inter-wars scheme for a genuine Eastern By-Pass.

Regards,

Peter

Steven · Post by **Steven** » Sat Aug 31, 2002 17:15

c2R <<Of course it's more a glorified gyratory sysem, but as it encompasses the entire town centre perhaps it should be included...>>

Hmm, maybe West Bromwich's Ringway ought to get included then. It's unclassified, but does go round the town centre in a clockwise-only loop.

Steven

Steven · Post by **Steven** » Sat Aug 31, 2002 17:27

Of course, there's also a (very!) imperfect ring in Telford in too, with its Central road. Again, unclassified. Again, clockwise only. It does circle the town centre though! (But then being as the town centre consists merely of a shopping centre......)

Steven

PS - Look Guy, Telford Central Station! (warning - in-joke alert!)

Steven · Post by **Steven** » Sat Aug 31, 2002 17:52

Gosh,on a rollnow:

Newcastle under Lyme (A34/A52/A527)

Steven

Guy-Barry · Post by **Guy-Barry** » Sat Aug 31, 2002 18:00

Steven: << PS - Look Guy, Telford Central Station! (warning - in-joke alert!) >>

Careful, or I'll start telling you about the Bath ring road...

Guy

Truvelo · Post by **Truvelo** » Sat Aug 31, 2002 18:16

<<Hmm, maybe West Bromwich's Ringway ought to get included then. It's unclassified, but does go round the town centre in a clockwise-only loop.>>

It has recently been made two way and traffic lights have been installed at every junction. It used to take less than 2 minutes to do a complete lap but now takes at least twice that.

But hang on, you can no longer do a complete lap because part of it is now buses only.

Pete A259 · Post by **Pete A259** » Tue Sep 03, 2002 15:28

from my own experience...the Watford ringroad is a very exciting road.....its also quite bizarre, it forms a roundabout around the Harlequin shopping centre and its very difficult to find where you should catch the bus from also.....it has about 7 lanes at one point too!

M4Simon · Post by **M4Simon** » Tue Sep 03, 2002 22:57

PeteA259: <<the Watford ringroad is a very exciting road.....its also quite bizarre>>
You're not wrong there, but were you aware that around ten years ago the idea of reversing the flow was being discussed. This would have meant that the Harlequin car parks would have been left in-left out. Unfortunately, I cannot recall how the links to the A411 north would have worked, and I think this predates the eventual construction of the Watford - M1 link road.
It's a while since I've been there, but the Harlequin car parks are not particularly well designed. Once you pass a floor on the car park it is impossible to return to a lower floor if there are no spaces higher up. As a consequence, people tend to hang about on the lower floors waiting for spaces to empty. This eventually backs out onto the ring road causing congestion. (Deliberate understatement there...) On the other hand, when people leave the car park they have to take their chance of merging in with ring road traffic - not all the exits are signal controlled. You also need to watch for the conflict with the bus lanes (as posted earlier). Coupled with Bushey Arches, it doesn't take much to bring Watford to a halt on a busy Saturday before Christmas.
The County Council have never taken seriously my proposal to resolve Watford's traffic problems once and for all by building a 10 foot high wall around the place.
Simon

Pete A259 · Post by **Pete A259** » Wed Sep 04, 2002 15:08

haha! i wouldnt be able to get my shopping done if they did that! turning the traffic the other way would be a disaster! the Harlequin car parks can be fun......especially when twisting round though my friend sitting in the back seat who had just had a strawberry milkshake wasnt having much fun!