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B4464

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B4464
Location Map ( geo)
Cameraicon.png View gallery (8)
From:  Portobello (SO955983)
To:  Bentley (SO990986)
Via:  Willenhall
Distance:  2.5 miles (4 km)
Meets:  A454, B4484, A462, M6, A454
Former Number(s):  A454, A463
Primary Destinations
Highway Authorities

Walsall

Traditional Counties

Staffordshire

Route outline (key)
B4464 Portobello - County Bridge
(A462) County Bridge
B4464 County Bridge - Bentley
This article is about the present route of the B4464 near Wolverhampton.
For an earlier route in Kidderminster, see B4464 (Kidderminster)
.


Route

Approaching the M6

The B4464 runs east through the Staffordshire town of Willenhall and forms part of the traditional route between Wolverhampton and Walsall. It is known locally as the New Road.

Starting at the roundabout junction with A454 at Portobello, the route heads eastwards into Willenhall town centre, passing through an extremely run-down area as it does so, including an abandoned school and a former car showroom. A poor road surface completes the depressing set, with the B4484 heading off to the north towards Wednesfield in this section. Things do improve somewhat as the route reaches the town centre itself; whilst the road is still poor quality, at least there are signs of life with some shops and offices and perhaps even some people. In the centre of the town, the B4484 (formerly B4157) heads off southwards towards Bilston, and the slightly depressing run-down feeling continues all the way to County Bridge, passing the parish church of St. Giles on the way, where we have a short multiplex with the A462.

East of this point, the road is completely different in character. It is reasonably wide and well-aligned, and passes mostly residential properties before finally terminating at M6 junction 10.

History

Old tollhouse on the B4464

In 1821, the New Road through Willenhall did not exist, and the main route was via Wolverhampton Street and the rather wonderfully named Doctor's Piece. The present New Road is, however, shown on the 1835 Ordnance Survey map of the area, and so we can suggest that it was built in that great pass of turnpike road building in the Wolverhampton area in the late 1820s and early 1830s. Indeed, one of the old tollhouses still exists on the route.

In 1922, the A454 ran along the New Road through Willenhall town centre. By the early 1950s, it was very clear that the amount of traffic passing through the town was unacceptably high, and Willenhall required a bypass. The original planning for the bypass called for a motorway from the planned M6 junction at Bentley to the A4123 southwest of Bilston, with a short spur motorway to Portobello serving to complete the Willenhall Bypass.

After much deliberation, a start was made on the Willenhall Bypass (as an all-purpose route) in the early 1970s, and for a time the A454 was diverted down the new road (known as The Keyway) to the present B4484 junction. As a consequence, the road through Willenhall gained a new number of B4464. After many false starts, the A454 Black Country Route was finally completed in the early 1990s, and so the B4464 was extended eastwards, once again over the former A454 route, to M6 junction 10 at Bentley.

It can be said, therefore, that Willenhall is one of the few towns that have been bypassed three times.




B4464
Junctions
Places
Related Pictures
View gallery (8)
Bloxwich Lane, Walsall - Coppermine - 23376.jpgGeograph-3686029-by-JThomas.jpgKeyway Island Portobello - Geograph - 1198557.jpgIMG 4826.JPGIMG8560 Urbis ZX3s M6 Junction 10.jpg
Other nearby roads
Wolverhampton
A41 • A446(M) • A449 • A454 • A457 • A459 • A460 • A462 • A463 • A464 • A464 (Oaken - Nantwich) • A4038 • A4039 • A4098 • A4123 • A4124 • A4126 • A4150 • A4444 • A4510 • B4155 • B4156 • B4157 • B4158 (Wolverhampton) • B4159 • B4160 (Wolverhampton) • B4161 • B4162 • B4162 (Monmore Green - Deepfields) • B4163 • B4164 (Moxley - Ocker Hill) • B4200 • B4454 (Wednesfield) • B4483 • B4484 • B4563 • B4590 • Bilston Link Motorway • C6 (Staffordshire) • C40 (Staffordshire) • C108 (Staffordshire) • C114 (Staffordshire) • C116 (Staffordshire) • C137 (Staffordshire) • C153 (Staffordshire) • C170 (Staffordshire) • C184 (Staffordshire) • C234 (Staffordshire) • C259 (Staffordshire) • C260 (Staffordshire) • C272 (Staffordshire) • C273 (Staffordshire) • C335 (Staffordshire) • C500 (Staffordshire) • E33 (London - Glasgow) • E34 (Old System) • Holyhead Road • M6 • M6 Toll • M54 • NCN81 • Northern and Western Motorway • T11 (Britain) • T14 (Britain) • T49 (Britain) • T50 (Britain) • U99 (Wolverhampton) • U110 (Wolverhampton) • U111 (Wolverhampton) • U112 (Wolverhampton) • U113 (Wolverhampton) • U114 (Wolverhampton) • U115 (Wolverhampton) • U116 (Wolverhampton) • U117 (Wolverhampton) • U118 (Wolverhampton) • U119 (Wolverhampton) • U120 (Wolverhampton) • U121 (Wolverhampton) • Western Orbital • Wolverhampton Outer Ring Road
Walsall
B4400 – B4499
B4400 • B4401 • B4402 • B4403 • B4404 • B4405 • B4406 • B4407 • B4408 • B4409 • B4410 • B4411 • B4412 • B4413 • B4414 • B4415 • B4416 • B4417 • B4418 • B4419
B4420 • B4421 • B4422 • B4423 • B4424 • B4425 • B4426 • B4427 • B4428 • B4429 • B4430 • B4431 • B4432 • B4433 • B4434 • B4435 • B4436 • B4437 • B4438 • B4439
B4440 • B4441 • B4442 • B4443 • B4444 • B4445 • B4446 • B4447 • B4448 • B4449 • B4450 • B4451 • B4452 • B4453 • B4454 • B4455 • B4456 • B4457 • B4458 • B4459
B4460 • B4461 • B4462 • B4463 • B4464 • B4465 • B4466 • B4467 • B4468 • B4469 • B4470 • B4471 • B4472 • B4473 • B4474 • B4475 • B4476 • B4477 • B4478 • B4479
B4480 • B4481 • B4482 • B4483 • B4484 • B4485 • B4486 • B4487 • B4488 • B4489 • B4490 • B4491 • B4492 • B4493 • B4494 • B4495 • B4496 • B4497 • B4498 • B4499
Earlier iterationsB4407 • B4409 • B4414 • B4416 • B4423 • B4424 • B4426 • B4428(W) • B4428(E) • B4432 • B4433
B4454 • B4455 • B4456 • B4458 • B4459 • B4464 • B4477 • B4482 • B4485 • B4486


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