Liverpool - East Lancashire Road ; official opening by His Majesty King George V ; 18 July 1934 : Lancashire County Council : 1934 : Radshaw Nook looking west towards Liverpool
The "East Lancs Road", as the A580 is colloquially known, was in many respects Britain's major pre-WW2 road construction project and in many ways it stood alone prior to the construction of the UK's Motorway programme in the late 1950s; the latter, interestingly, was also to be found in Lancashire with the construction of the first section of the M6, the Preston By-Pass. The Liverpool - East Lancashire Road was the first of the 'modern' arterial roads to be mostly constructed on a new alignment, not an improvement of an existing route, and as such it was designed with 'roundabouts', or 'circuses', at many junctions and in places it included over and underbridges for existing roadways and railway lines.
The history of the scheme goes back to c.1912 when potential schemes to improve road communications between the two great ports and industrial cities of South Lancashire, Liverpool and Manchester, was first considered. Delayed by war, the scheme was restarted in the 1920s when, under the aegis of both Lancashire County Council and the new Ministry of Transport a plan for the 28 miles of new highway was drawn up and funding agreed; the MOT agreed to a 75% grant towards the estimated cost of £3,000,000. It was to run from 'a point' in Liverpool to 'a point' in Salford, basically the respective borough boundaries and indeed this was, in later years, to become an achilles heel as the highway began and ended on existing roads in crowded areas. Nevertheless The County Council and the Corporations of Liverpool, Bootle and St. Helens, along with the Mersey Docks and Harbour Board, found the balance and the decision was made, in depression years, to use unskilled workers in their repsective areas to help built the road. In April 1927 the project was formally started, largely under the direction of the County Council's Highways & Bridges Committee. The 'first sod' within the County was cut at a ceremony on 29 April 1929, the same day that the section constructed within the City of Liverpool, and constructed by them, opened.
The bulk of the road was constructed by Sir Lindsay Parkinson Co. Ltd. with various constractors used for the surfacing. It was built to then high standards, regarding width, gradients and 'preservation of natural features' and much of it, when opened, had a single three-lane carriageway 40 feet wide, and pavements and a cycle lane alongside. Over the years the majority of the road has been widened and improved but, at the eastern end within Salford, the road width is still much the same thanks to early housing development on either side. The brochure includes much detail as to construction, design and costs and includes a series of photographs showing major works, including over and underbridegs, as well as aerial shots of the road in early 1934 prior to the formal opening by HM The King who arrived by car from Lowton Station and was driven into Liverpool having unveiled a commemorative plaque at 1050am!
Liverpool - East Lancashire Road ; official opening by His Majesty King George V ; 18 July 1934 : Lancashire County Council : 1934 : Radshaw Nook looking west towards Liverpool
The "East Lancs Road", as the A580 is colloquially known, was in many respects Britain's major pre-WW2 road construction project and in many ways it stood alone prior to the construction of the UK's Motorway programme in the late 1950s; the latter, interestingly, was also to be found in Lancashire with the construction of the first section of the M6, the Preston By-Pass. The Liverpool - East Lancashire Road was the first of the 'modern' arterial roads to be mostly constructed on a new alignment, not an improvement of an existing route, and as such it was designed with 'roundabouts', or 'circuses', at many junctions and in places it included over and underbridges for existing roadways and railway lines.
The history of the scheme goes back to c.1912 when potential schemes to improve road communications between the two great ports and industrial cities of South Lancashire, Liverpool and Manchester, was first considered. Delayed by war, the scheme was restarted in the 1920s when, under the aegis of both Lancashire County Council and the new Ministry of Transport a plan for the 28 miles of new highway was drawn up and funding agreed; the MOT agreed to a 75% grant towards the estimated cost of £3,000,000. It was to run from 'a point' in Liverpool to 'a point' in Salford, basically the respective borough boundaries and indeed this was, in later years, to become an achilles heel as the highway began and ended on existing roads in crowded areas. Nevertheless The County Council and the Corporations of Liverpool, Bootle and St. Helens, along with the Mersey Docks and Harbour Board, found the balance and the decision was made, in depression years, to use unskilled workers in their repsective areas to help built the road. In April 1927 the project was formally started, largely under the direction of the County Council's Highways & Bridges Committee. The 'first sod' within the County was cut at a ceremony on 29 April 1929, the same day that the section constructed within the City of Liverpool, and constructed by them, opened.
The bulk of the road was constructed by Sir Lindsay Parkinson Co. Ltd. with various constractors used for the surfacing. It was built to then high standards, regarding width, gradients and 'preservation of natural features' and much of it, when opened, had a single three-lane carriageway 40 feet wide, and pavements and a cycle lane alongside. Over the years the majority of the road has been widened and improved but, at the eastern end within Salford, the road width is still much the same thanks to early housing development on either side. The brochure includes much detail as to construction, design and costs and includes a series of photographs showing major works, including over and underbridegs, as well as aerial shots of the road in early 1934 prior to the formal opening by HM The King who arrived by car from Lowton Station and was driven into Liverpool having unveiled a commemorative plaque at 1050am!