Star.pngStar.pngStar grey.pngStar grey.pngStar grey.png

Motorway

From Roader's Digest: The SABRE Wiki
Jump to navigation Jump to search
Motorway
Traffordd
Mótarbhealach
M54 near Featherstone, Staffordshire - Geograph - 391701.jpg
M54 motorway
Cameraicon.png Pictures related to Motorway
View gallery (6)
Quick Links
Special Road • All-purpose Road • Smart Motorway

A motorway is a road designated for the exclusive use of certain types of motorised traffic. They are usually built to high standards, often three or four lanes in each direction with a hard shoulder for emergency use. They are generally intended for strategic traffic - passenger and goods - and to carry heavy flows of traffic.

Despite common belief, motorway is a legal term, not an engineering term - it is entirely permissible for a motorway to exist as a single carriageway road (here is a list of examples), and it may contain traffic lights and roundabouts along its length. Equally, high-standard roads are not automatically motorways.

In the United Kingdom motorways are signed in blue, and have a separate numbering system to the rest of the network. They are legally defined as being a particular type of Special Road where the only traffic allowed is contained within Class I (cars, motorcycles and light vans with pneumatic tyres) or Class II (goods vehicles and military vehicles).

In the Republic of Ireland, motorways are considered to be part of the relevant National Route, and motorway restrictions (defined under s.43 of the Roads Act 1993) can be applied using legislation laid out under s.49 of the act.

Types of Motorway

Conventional Motorway

HE states that a Conventional Motorway is one which typically has 3 lanes in each direction (can vary though), a Hard Shoulder, and some technology, in practice any motorway that hasn't been upgraded to a smart motorway. Some A roads with Motorway designation also fall into this category such as the A1(M)

Smart Motorway

Since 2006 HE has been upgrading motorways into Smart Motorways by turning the Hard Shoulder into an extra running lane. These motorways have additional technology and Variable Speed limits as well as Emergency Refuge Areas.

Expressway

An expressway is a new official term used by HE for upgrading an All-purpose Road Dual Carriageway into a Motorway alike designation. These roads typically only have 2 lanes, however some due for this upgrade currently have 3 or 4 lanes in each direction. These roads will have Emergency Refuge Areas and some technology (somewhere between the amount on a Conventional Motorway and a smart Motorway). These roads will have the road numbers changed this is likely to be getting an (M) on the end of their A numbers.



Videos

M62 J26 to J27

Travelling along the M62 from the roundabout under J26 heading up the eastbound sliproad and through the roadworks

Watch video > >

M62 J27 to J28

Travelling along the M62 eastbound through the roadworks

Watch video > >

M66 Motorway Southbound

A southbound trip along entire length of the M66 motorway. As well as the front view, there is a rearview mirror.

Watch video > >

M67 Motorway Eastbound

A trip along entire length of the M67 eastbound. Even though it was filmed off-peak, there were still substantial queues waiting to get into Mottram-in-Longdendale!

Watch video > >

M60 Orbital Anticlockwise

A full anticlockwise loop of Manchester's M60 orbital motorway, starting at J3 (A34) and ending at J2 (A560) one orbit later. There's a contraflow on the north-east section

Watch video > >




Motorway
Related Pictures
View gallery (6)
Motorway Font - Coppermine - 4861.JPGSh1-dunedin.jpgSh16-mway1.jpgSh16-20.jpgSh20-tunnel.jpg
Road Basics
Physical layoutSingle track • Single carriageway • Dual carriageway • High Quality Dual Carriageway • Road Widths • Urban Streets • Abandoned Road
Legal typesAll-purpose Road • Special Road • Motorway • Trunk road • Principal road • Classified Numbered road • Classified Unnumbered Road • Unclassified road • Primary Route • Non Primary Route • Right of Way • Unadopted road
Road numbers1922 Road Lists • Classification • Defunct road • Euroroutes • MoT Maps • National Cycle Network • Numbering principles • Numbering anomalies • Disputed Numbers • Recycled number • Unallocated numbers • Fictional Road Numbers • Junction numbers • Essential Traffic Routes • Street Names
Road FeaturesArterial Road • Automatic Bollard • Balancing Pond • Belisha Beacon • Bott's Dots • Bypass • Cannon • Cats' Eyes • Cattle Grid • CD Lanes • Central Reservation • Chopsticks • Crash Barrier • Cuttings and Embankments • Cycle Lane • Emergency Phone • Escape lane • Expressway • Fingerpost • Flare • Ford • Gore • Green Bridge • Green Wave • Hairpin bend • Hard shoulder • Island • Junction • Layby • Level Crossing • Local Access Road • Managed Motorways • Milestone • Multi Lane Drop • Multiplex • No-Car Lane • Nose • Oxbow Road • Parapet • Petrol station • Play Street • Raised Pavement Markers • Ramp Metering • Retaining Wall • Road Studs • Roadside Art • Roadside Quarry • Roadworks • Secret motorway • Service Area • Signage • Smart Motorway • Snow pole • Speed Limit • Spur • Street Lighting • Surface Dressing • Temporary terminus • Throughpass • Tidal Flow • Tiger tail • Toll booth • Traffic cone • Traffic Signals • Tunnel • Vehicle Recovery • Walking and Cycling Friendly Road • Weaving • Wig-Wag Signals • Winter Maintenance • Zip merge
Traffic CalmingBuild-Outs • Chicane • Dragon's Teeth • Home Zone • Low Traffic Neighbourhood • Pinch Point • Quiet Lane • Rumble strips • Safety Cameras • Sleeping Policeman • Speed bump
Public Transport FeaturesBus Lane • Bus stop • Guided Busway • Park and Ride • Tramway • Trolleybus System
Other termsAnderson report • Guildford Rules • Highway Authority • Highway Code • Model Traffic Area • Motorway alphabet • Pre-Worboys • Primary Destinations • Roads by 10 • Transport alphabet • Worboys report
AcronymsAADT • ADS • ANPR • ATM • DfT • GSJ • HA • HATO • HE • HETO • HQDC • LAR • LILO • LTN • MOVA • NCN • NMU • NRA • PBU • POPE • PTS • PFI • RCS • SABRE • SCOOT • SSD • SON • SOX • SRN • TEN-T • TERN • TfL • TII • TOTSO • TRO • TSM • TSRGD • UTC • VAS • VMS • VSL

SABRE - The Society for All British and Irish Road Enthusiasts
Discuss - Digest - Discover - Help