B5030
B5030 | ||||||||||
Location Map ( geo) | ||||||||||
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From: | Uttoxeter (SK086343) | |||||||||
To: | Ellastone (SK109419) | |||||||||
Distance: | 5.3 miles (8.5 km) | |||||||||
Meets: | A522, A50, A518, B5031, B5032 | |||||||||
Primary Destinations | ||||||||||
Highway Authorities | ||||||||||
Traditional Counties | ||||||||||
Route outline (key) | ||||||||||
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Although only a B-road, east Staffordshire's B5030 is both busy and important. For most of its length, it forms the main route to the JCB factory at Rocester and also one of the main routes to the Alton Towers theme park. The road quality is therefore remarkably good for a B-road.
Route
The B5030 starts on the edge of Uttoxeter, on a mini-roundabout with the A522. It heads north for a few hundred yards to a roundabout on the A50 Uttoxeter bypass. Three roads meet at this roundabout - the third being the A518 - and the B5030 multiplexes with the A518 for a few hundred yards to the next roundabout, where the A518 heads back south into Uttoxeter. Interestingly, this multiplex section is signed on the ground as B5030 (A518) which would give rise to the unusual situation of an A road terminating on a B road! After the roundabout, the B5030 appears once again and the next couple of miles are mostly new-build to cope with the traffic.
The B5030 heads more-or-less straight for the village of Rocester, although the former route of the road is still obvious. It is not long before we reach JCB-owned land. As proof of this, the roadside becomes landscaped and we pass a man-made lake to the west of the road. Indeed, it feels as if the road is now travelling through parkland and it is not immediately obvious whether any roads we meet are private or public. Indeed, many of the road signs we meet relate to JCB rather than the road network.
The B5030 bypasses Rocester to its west and passes to the east of the JCB factory. It crosses the River Churnet before passing another lake. To the east of the road can be seen the huge The Fossor sculpture, a representation of the company whose land the road passes through. Soon afterwards, we meet a roundabout where the B5031 moves off to the west and takes the Alton Towers traffic with it.
After the engineering of the last few miles, the final stretch of the B5030 can come as a surprise as it has not been upgraded. The road is now much more winding and narrow, for example. It is crossed twice by the straighter Limestone Way footpath. We pass to the west of Riverside Doveleys (a stately home) and ends on the B5032 a short distance later. The B5032 TOTSOs here and therefore B5030 traffic continues on to Ellastone without giving way.
History
The Uttoxeter to Combridge improvement was due to be officially opened on 18 August 1989. Forecast cost was £2.8 million.