B1050
B1050 | |||||||||||||
Location Map ( geo) | |||||||||||||
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From: | Bar Hill (TL382638) | ||||||||||||
To: | Chatteris (TL386857) | ||||||||||||
Via: | Longstanton bypass, Earith, Somersham | ||||||||||||
Distance: | 17.8 miles (28.6 km) | ||||||||||||
Meets: | A14, A1307, A1123, B1086, A141, B1098 | ||||||||||||
Former Number(s): | A141 | ||||||||||||
Highway Authorities | |||||||||||||
Traditional Counties | |||||||||||||
Route outline (key) | |||||||||||||
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The B1050 is a rural B-road in the Fens.
Route
It starts on the A14 at the Bar Hill Junction and heads north to Longstanton. The village's bypass was opened in December 2008. The Cambridgeshire guided busway is then crossed at a set of traffic lights. After going through Willingham, the B1050 follows the bank of the River Great Ouse to Earith, where it meets the A1123 and multiplexes with it west for a short distance.
The B1050 regains its number in the centre of Earith and continues north into Somersham where it TOTSOs right (left is the B1086). It then zigzags across the fens into Chatteris where it splits. The left fork reaches the A141 western bypass, whilst the right fork heads to the High Street where it ends end-on with the B1098.
History
In 1922 the B1050 started on the A132 (current A1307) at Girton, on the edge of Cambridge, and went through Oakington to Longstanton to rejoin its current route.
After World War II, this section of road was interrupted by RAF Oakington. There was no bypass, but simply a gap in the B1050. This situation lasted until the 1960s when the route was diverted to Bar Hill.
The northern terminus of the B1050 in 1922 had been a junction with the B1085 at Earith. The road from there to Somersham was unclassified and the onward route to Chatteris was a part of the A141. The B1050 was extended to Somersham in the early 1920s and then when the A141 was rerouted via Warboys in 1935 it was further extended to Chatteris. It ended in the centre of town on the A141 until the bypass was built.
Longstanton Western Bypass was opened fully on 3 December 2008 (per a Sabre posting of 7 December 2008).