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Chester

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Chester
Location Map ( geo)
Bridge Street, Chester - Geograph - 602609.jpg
The centre of Chester. Several two digit A roads met at or near here.
Cameraicon.png View gallery (35)
County
Cheshire
Highway Authority
Cheshire West and Chester
Forward Destination on
M53, M56, A41, A51, A54, A55, A483, A494
Next Primary Destinations
Ellesmere Port • Runcorn • Northwich • Nantwich • Queensferry • Conwy • Mold • Whitchurch
Places related to the M53
Places related to the M56
Places related to the A41
Places related to the A51
Places related to the A55

Chester is a city on the River Dee close to North Wales and The Wirral, and acts as a major commercial centre for both those areas. There have been transport links to the city since Roman times, and many long distance routes terminate here, including the A51, A54, A55, A56, M53 and M56.

There have been numerous projects to bypass the city. Probably the most important one lay to the north, which started in the 1930s with the construction of the A5117 to connect the A56 to the A550 (and hence the A55), and continued with the arrival of the M56 and subsequent projects to improve and grade separate the route, which continue today. The current bottleneck is just inside the border with Wales, where the road narrows from 4 to 2 lanes heading westbound.

The other main bypass has been to the south and east, forming an extension of the A55 up to meet the M53.

History

Chester Eastern Bypass

The Eastern Bypass shown just after WW2

The 2 mile dual carriageway from Christleton to Plas Newton Lane, Newton was opened in July 1941. Christleton to A56 Hoole Road was new build. A56 Hoole Road to Plas Newton Lane was a widening of B5131. Use of the existing B5131 completed the bypass through Upton to Moston. Work had commenced on 31 October 1938. It had been virtually completed by November 1940 but lack of available manpower to make the junctions safe delayed the opening.


Chester Inner Ring Road

Stage 1 - Southern Section, then B5131, shown in 1966

Stage 1 - the Southern section from A483 Grosvenor Roundabout to A51 The Bars (0.6 mile) had been completed in 1965. This was an upgrade of existing streets, but still single carriageway. Cost was £227,000.


Stage 2, Western Section cuts through the City Walls. Shown in 1969.

Stage 2 - St Martin's Way and Nicholas Street. The Western section from A483 Grosvenor Roundabout to A5116 Fountains Roundabout was opened on 22 April 1966 by Barbara Castle, Minister of Transport. 0.85 mile dual carriageway. It contraversially cut through the City Walls, with a replacement concrete arch on St Martin's Way. The northern section was an elevated viaduct, 900 feet in length. Cost was £1.4 million.


Stage 3 - St Oswalds Way. The North-eastern section from A5116 Fountains Roundabout to A51 The Bars and the A56 link on Hoole Way to Hoole Way Roundabout was opened on 31 October 1971. They were dual carriageways. Some work remained to be done at the time, which would involve temporary lane closures. This completed the Ring Road which had cost £3 million in total.

Chester Western Bypass

The A5480 Western Bypass

Phase 1: Countess Way from Liverpool Road (A5116) to Parkgate Road (A540) was opened on 2 October 1989 by Jim Humphries, County Council Chairman. Constructed by Redrow Construction.

Phase 2: Deva Link (north) from Parkgate Road (A540) to Saughall Road was opened on 27 August 1993 by Peter Walker, County Council Chairman. Cost £6.5 million.

Phase 3: Deva Link (south) from Saughall Road to Sealand Road (A548) was opened on 15 September 1993 per the Land Compensation Act notice. It was opened by David Lloyd Griffiths, Environment Services Committee Vice-chairman, and Margaret Byatt, Mayor. Phase 3 was constructed by the developer of Chester Retail Park and this completed the Bypass.

See A5480.


Chester Second Eastern Bypass (North Wales Expressway)

Connecting M53 to the Southern Bypass further out of the City

The A55 dual carriageway from M53 Hoole Island Junction to Boughton Heath Junction (for the Chester Southern Bypass) was opened on 27 June 1991 per the Land Compensation Act notice.


Routes

Route To Notes

M53

Liverpool, Ellesmere Port

M56

Runcorn, Warrington, Manchester, Airport

A55

NORTH WALES, Holyhead, Queensferry

A41

Birkenhead

A41

Whitchurch

A51

Nantwich

A54

Congleton via A51

A556

Northwich via A51, A54

A483

Wrexham

A494

Mold

A540

Neston

A548

Queensferry, Flint

A56

Helsby

A5104

Broughton Former A55.




Chester
Sections
Junctions
Crossings
Roads
Miscellaneous
Related Pictures
View gallery (35)
Whitchurch Road - Geograph - 1338024.jpgGoodbye from Chester - Geograph - 4875331.jpgGreat Boughton - the A41 (Whitchurch Road) - Geograph - 795866.jpgMorning Traffic at the Fountains Roundabout - Geograph - 2792081.jpgGrosvenor Roundabout and Chester HQ - Geograph - 1141029.jpg
Places in North West England
Major CitiesCarlisle • Liverpool • Manchester • Preston • Salford
Primary DestinationsAltrincham • Ashton-under-Lyne • Barrow • Birkenhead • Blackburn • Blackpool • Bolton • Bootle • Brough • Burnley • Bury • Chester • Clitheroe • Colne • Congleton • Crewe • Ellesmere Port • Fleetwood • Garston • Heysham • Huyton • Kendal • Keswick • Kirkby Lonsdale • Lancaster • Leigh • Macclesfield • Manchester Airport • Morecambe • Nantwich • Northwich • Oldham • Penrith • Rochdale • Runcorn • Skelmersdale • Southport • Speke • St Helens • Stockport • Trafford Park • Wallasey • Warrington • Whitehaven • Widnes • Wigan • Windermere
Other PlacesAlderley Edge • Alston • Ashton-in-Makerfield • Chorley • Cockermouth • Eccles • Hazel Grove • Hindley • Holmes Chapel • Hyde • Kirkby • Knutsford • Littleborough • Liverpool Airport • Lytham St Annes • Maghull • Middleton • Middlewich • Nelson • Newton-le-Willows • Ormskirk • Poynton • Sale • Stretford • Wilmslow • Winsford • Workington


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