A1068

The A1068 is an excellent road if you wish to travel north through Northumberland whilst avoiding the A1. The section from Ellington through to Alnmouth is generally signposted as part of the 'Northumberland Coastal Route', which then turns off at Lesbury to follow the B1339.

Route

The A1068 between Guide Post and Choppington

The route begins to the north of Newcastle upon Tyne at the Holiday Inn roundabout where the A19 ends on the A1. From here it heads north, with a brief stretch of dual carriageway to the west of Cramlington, including flared carriageways before the A1172 roundabout. Dual status ends on the edge of Cramlington where there is a multiplex along the A192 over the River Blyth. That road then continues ahead towards Morpeth while we bear right to pass through Bedlington and Guide Post. The River Wansbeck is then crossed before we reach the A197 to the west of Ashington. We turn right to follow this route eastward for a little over 500 yards before the A1068 resumes at a left turn 1.5 miles of the town centre.

Continuing north-eastwards, we skirt Ashington Community Woodland (to our right) before going on to reach a roundabout junction with the A189 (coming in from the right) and our road picks up the baton of that route's primary status. To the east, as we head on up the A1068, lie Cresswell and Druridge Bay.

Crossing the River Aln at Lesbury

The next stop is Widdrington, then Red Row. The original line of the A1068 passed through Red Row and Broomhill. This stretch has some serious right-angled bends in it, so the decision was taken many years ago to by-pass Red Row and Broomhill to the east and meet up again with the original road at Amble.

After leaving Amble via The Wynd, we reach Warkworth, which is a lovely village with an ancient castle. We cross the River Coquet there and continue for less than half a mile from the coast to Lesbury where we turn inland. We go under the East Coast Main Line, then over the A1 Alnwick bypass to reach, on the edge of the town centre, a roundabout which marks the pre-bypass line of the A1 and was the original northern terminus of our route. Now, however, we turn left and head southwards out of town to end on the A1 at a GSJ a mile south-east of the town centre.

History

The A1068 came into existence in 1924 in the first pass of road renumberings since classification a couple of years before. Starting on the A197 in Ashington it took over the routes of the B1336 to Widdrington and then the B1337 to Alnwick. This route is identical to that of the current A1068,except in Widdrington (where the old road now no longer exists) and between Red Row and Amble (as mentioned above). The old B1337/A1068 there is now numbered B6345.

After World War II the A1068 was extended south from Ashington. It started by taking over the A1078 to Guide Post (this was originally the B1333 and was upgraded to Class I status not long after the A1068 came into being). It then took on the A196 to what would become Cramlington New Town, then the A194 to meet the A1 to the north of Seaton Burn. The growth of Cramlington did not alter the line of the A1068 at all but merely gave it a second carriageway. However, the Seaton Burn junction was completely remodelled when the A1 was upgraded and the A1068 now starts to the southeast of its former endpoint.

Construction of the Alnwick bypass also saw the A1068 rerouted by being extended along the pre-bypass A1 to continue to end on that road.

Opening Dates

Year	Section	Notes
1965	Warkworth Bridge	The new bridge over the River Coquet was reported as opened by the Newcastle Evening Chronicle of 9 July 1965. It had two 100 foot spans and a 33 foot carriageway. Cost was £150,000. It bypassed the narrow 14th century bridge which had had traffic lights installed 3 years previous.
1987	Ellington Bypass	The 1 mile road opened on 18 December 1987. Contractor was the County Council Direct Labour Organisation, cost £1.6 million.
1987	Broomhill and Hadston Bypass	Main Street, Red Row to south of Togston East Farm, Radcliffe. Then online through Radcliffe to Amble. Mentioned in a December 1987 Newcastle Journal report. Not shown on 1986 Philips Road Atlas. It may have opened in 1986.
2004	Lesbury New Bridge	The bowstring arch bridge over River Aln and new road alignment to the west of the village was opened on 23 March 2004 by John Morris, County Council Chairman. Contractor was Mowlem plc, cost £3 million. The original 15th Century stone arch bridge was retained as a footpath.