York
York | |||
Location Map ( geo) | |||
York Minster | |||
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County | |||
Yorkshire | |||
Highway Authority | |||
York | |||
Forward Destination on | |||
A19, A59, A64, A166, A1079, A1237 | |||
Next Primary Destinations | |||
Bridlington • Harrogate • Hull • Leeds • Scarborough • Selby • Thirsk | |||
Other Nearby Primary Destinations | |||
Wetherby | |||
Places related to the A19 | |||
Places related to the A59 | |||
Places related to the A64 | |||
Places related to the A166 | |||
Places related to the A1079 | |||
York is a major destination in Yorkshire whose non-trunk roads are currently maintained by York Council. The city was historically a Roman fort and also a Viking stronghold, and as such is rich in history.
It is one of the few remaining cities in Britain to have its walls mostly still intact. The Great North Road has always passed York some distance to the west, but the railway era ensured the city was well connected.
Due to it being at the crossroads of several major routes, the city has always had problems with traffic congestion. In 1937, the council began building an outer ring road. Construction halted due to the Second World War, and never recommenced. The existing sections can be seen on Kingsway West, and Clifton Green (formerly Kingsway North). Clifton Bridge is on the line of the new road, however it was not built until 1963.
In 1948, plans were made to build a new outer ring road - this would have been further out from the city given that urban development was already starting to surround the old ring road. An inner ring was also proposed - this would have been part of a bigger redevelopment of the centre of York outside of the city walls. Due to the huge cost and controversial nature of the proposals, the inner ring never saw the light of day, however the A1036 does use some improved roads from an (also cancelled) 1970s proposal.
In 1976, York was finally bypassed to the south - the A64 being diverted onto a high quality two lane dual carriageway. In 1986 the first half on the A1237 was built from the A19 at Shipton to the A64 at Hopgrove. A year later the ring was completed with the opening of the section westward from the A19 to Copmanthorpe.
York was on the route of the proposed East Coast Motorway that was drawn up by pressure groups in the early 1990s, though it is important to note that this was never a Governmental proposal. The route of the motorway would have approached York approximately along the line of the A1079, around the east and north of York, and the north along the A19.
Nowadays, the A1237 northern ring road is notorious for being congested, whilst the southern ring road - the A64, used to contain the fearsome Hopgrove Roundabout bottleneck, which was alleviated somewhat following signalisation of the junction in the mid-2000s. As of 2022 there are proposals to dual the eastern half of the A1237, however the roundabouts will remain.
Routes
Route | To | Notes |
Selby | ||
Thirsk | ||
(A1(M) South), (M1), Leeds | Also Ring Road (South and East) | |
Scarborough, Malton | Also Ring Road (South and East) | |
(A1(M) North), Harrogate | ||
Bridlington | ||
Hull | ||
Ring Road (North and West) | Entirely single carriageway and saturated with roundabouts. | |
City Centre | Previously the A64 | |
Clifton Bridge | Appears on OS Mapping, but not signed on the ground. | |
Sherburn-in-Elmet | via Cawood Bridge | |
Wetherby | ||
Howden | Runs from the A166/A1079 junction via Elvington. | |
Wigginton |
York | ||||||||
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