Woodbank Junction

Woodbank Junction, also known as Shotwick Junction, is where the A494 and A550 meet on the England/Wales border. Interwoven with Deeside Park Junction, the two junctions function as one although they are on opposite sides of the border.

The junction was originally a set of traffic lights. In the late 1970s proposals were made to replaced it with a grade separated junction. Six options were shortlisted:

• 100kph freeflow underpass
• 120kph freeflow underpass
• 100kph freeflow flyover
• 120kph freeflow flyover
• 100kph 270 degree loop
• 120kph 270 degree loop

The difference between the 100kph and 120kph options is the line of the A494 through route takes a gentler curve for the higher speed option. All the freeflow options have the same layout whereby the northbound carriageway is D3 between the two junctions and the southbound carriageway has braiding. The loop options have three lanes between the junctions on both carriageways. The loop options were rejected as they gave poor cost benefit results. The 100kph schemes were also rejected as they gave little cost or engineering savings by lowering the standard of the road. The preferred option was the 120kph freeflow scheme with the A550 in an underpass as this has less visual intrusion than a flyover.

• 

  1970s preferred option

• 

  1970s 270 degree loop

The above scheme was never built and 30 years was to pass before the junction was eventually grade separated in 2008. Unlike the original preferred option it was the 120kph flyover that was eventually built although built to a different design. The southbound slip roads are basically the same as the 1970s proposals but the northbound side does away with the three lane weaving section and passes through the A500 at-grade so the traffic lights still remain.

In 2017 further improvements were planned which would have included a direct link between the A548 and A494 east. This would have replaced the A494 through Queensferry as the main route between the M56 and North Wales. In addition the traffic lights at the A550 would have been removed and Woodbank Lane closed. Traffic travelling between the A550 and North Wales would continue using the existing route via Queensferry. These proposals were later scrapped and small scale improvements are now being considered.

Proposals from 2017

Routes

Route	To	Notes
A494	NORTH WALES, Queensferry
A494	Manchester (M56)
A550	B'head (M53)
A550	NORTH WALES, Queensferry
A5117	Manchester (M56)