The A1 and A1(M) - Dualling North of Newcastle and completing the Motorway from the South

[Newcastle Historian]

No end in sight to tailbacks for Western Bypass motorists
by Adrian Pearson, The Journal, May 9th 2012


Traffic on the A1 Western Bypass

EFFORTS to secure Western Bypass upgrade cash have met with failure after ministers snubbed one of the country’s most congested roads.

While motorists using the A19 through North Tyneside have cause to celebrate with up to £170m of road investment, those using the A1 Western Bypass in Newcastle and Gateshead face a decade more of regular rush hour gridlock.

Ministers setting out transport priorities for spending in 2015 onwards turned down pleas from Gateshead and Newcastle councils to see a £75m relief road built to ease traffic problems on the A1. Under plans put to the Department for Transport, funding would have been used to put together the business case for a new relief road from the Lobley Hill junction to the A184 on what is now Britain’s third busiest stretch of road.

Despite the 123,400 vehicles using the Western bypass every day – seeing the road operate at three times its maximum capacity – it has repeatedly failed to attract investment.


Read More - http://www.journallive.co.uk/north-e...#ixzz1uMkDQKxE

[toonlad]

I don't favour upgrading the A1 with anything less than a D3 motorway (three lanes either direction) between Washington Services and Newcastle Great Park. Anything less is a waste of money and a short term solution to a long term problem.

[WilfBurnsFan]

Originally Posted by toonlad

I don't favour upgrading the A1 with anything less than a D3 motorway (three lanes either direction) between Washington Services and Newcastle Great Park. Anything less is a waste of money and a short term solution to a long term problem.

Upgrade or bypass? Given the need to rebuild bridges, cost of disruption etc any new-build would scarcely be much more expensive. And extend the 3rd lane south to Durham (North to the border would be nice but I'm not holding my breath). I'm forever hearing on the radio - 5, not Newcastle - of holdups in the 61, 62 area.

[cranfan]

Originally Posted by Tooooon

A much better spend than £32 billion on a stupid HSR which only runs about 90 miles!

I think you may be quoting the cost for London to Leeds and Manchester, and the distance to Birmingham (and understating that - it's more like 120 miles)

The full HS2 is costed at about 3x the price-per-mile as the Dishforth-Leeming upgrade. A1 improvements through the Gateshead/Newcastle area would presumably be rather more expensive - the sections toward the border less so.

[bigchrisfgb]

Originally Posted by Tooooon

I would love it if they did a proper upgrade of the bypass D3,4 and even 5 near the A184 and continue D3 all the way through to Yorkshire and even just a D2 to the borders.Probably about £4billion pounds.A much better spend than £32 billion on a stupid HSR which only runs about 90 miles!

It should be 3 lanes from Seaton Burn or Gosforth all the way south into Yorkshire. From Seaton Burn or Gosforth it should be a duelled all that up to the borders.

It will never happen though.

[Newcastle Historian]

Northumberland A1 dualling requires strong business case
by Adrian Pearson, The Journal, May 28th 2012


Single carriageway on the A1 in Northumberland

THE Transport Secretary has said the North East must make a stronger case if it wants to win A1 dualling cash. Justine Greening told Hexham MP Guy Opperman a united bid for improving the road would be needed before Government cash can be spent, and that it must be careful to present a better case than in previous years. Mr Opperman has been pushing the issue with the Transport Secretary in order ahead of a new round of national roads spending from 2015.

The Conservative MP asked the minister to offer clear support for the A1, a route the Conservatives have made a route of national strategic importance in order to stand a chance of receiving major investment. In a letter to the Tory MP, Ms Greening said: “Before considering funding solutions for a proposal such as this, it would first be necessary to determine whether there is a strong business case for the proposals.

“To determine this requires detailed work, but as the main component of road schemes benefits is usually travel time savings, and given traffic volumes on this length of the network are generally low, earlier studies failed to make the case for full dualling.” The minister also urged the MP to secure backing from the North East Chamber of Commerce, saying the group had previously not backed the road when it was part of a regional group helping set local transport priorities.


Read More - http://www.journallive.co.uk/north-e...#ixzz1w9Hk2rr4

[WilfBurnsFan]

It won't be seen as being of 'national' strategic importance if Scotland votes for inependence.

Maybe EU funding would then be one possible way forward, though presumably that would need Westminster's approval and, as we know, central government could not care two hoots for NE England and its interests.

[Seamaster]

Originally Posted by Newcastle Historian

Northumberland A1 dualling requires strong business case

No, it requires seats on the route to suddenly become marginals.

[Newcastle Historian]

Originally Posted by Seamaster

No, it requires seats on the route to suddenly become marginals.

Very true.

I don't think that ANY of us (alive today) will ever see any serious dualling of the A1 - no matter how many times the subject crops up in debate!

[cranfan]

Wasn't the case for dualling always based on safety, rather than economics (and is this because the economics don't stand up?)

Would it be easier to get funding for smaller sections, eg the 7.5 miles missing between Morpeth and Alnwick?

[Tyr]

They key to traffic problems around the built up areas of the north east isn't to expand motorways, its to improve rail services, expand the metro, etc...

Very true.

I don't think that ANY of us (alive today) will ever see any serious dualling of the A1 - no matter how many times the subject crops up in debate!

Aye, sadly so, I'm surprised there isn't more pushing for it from Scots MPs- the point of such roads being to link places, not to serve northumberland

Originally Posted by WilfBurnsFan

It won't be seen as being of 'national' strategic importance if Scotland votes for inependence.

Maybe EU funding would then be one possible way forward, though presumably that would need Westminster's approval and, as we know, central government could not care two hoots for NE England and its interests.

1: That is unlikely to happen
2: It still would be. Perhaps even more so. Its a key route into a foreign country with which England (ugh...even saying that leaves a nasty taste in my mouth...) has a lot of business.

[Newcastle Historian]

Nick Clegg will face calls for A1 dualling in Northumberland
by David Black, The Journal, August 28th 2012



THE ECONOMIC CASE for full dualling of the A1 through Northumberland will be put to Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg by a senior Liberal Democrat councillor when he visits the North East today. Coun Alan Thompson will press his party leader for coalition Government action on upgrading the road north of Morpeth to create an “economic highway” linking the region with Scotland.

Coun Thompson – Northumberland County Council’s executive member for highways – claims the county is an “economic cul-de-sac” in terms of transport, and that dualling the A1 from Teesside to Edinburgh will help it bridge the gap with more prosperous regions. He first outlined the case for an economic highway last summer in a presentation to a Tyneside conference organised by the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE), which examined fears that the economic development of the North East could be stalled by poor transport links.

Today he plans to make the case during a question and answer session which Mr Clegg will conduct with Lib Dem party members in Newcastle. Coun Thompson will call on the Government to put the A1 at the top of its list of pending infrastructure projects. Three months ago Transport Secretary Justine Greening said the North East has to make a stronger business case if it wants to win A1 dualling cash.


Read More (Two Pages) - http://www.journallive.co.uk/north-e...#ixzz24rSaIdRh

[Newcastle Historian]

New Transport Secretary urged to prioritise
A1 dualling through Northumberland
by William Green, The Journal, September 5th 2012


Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin and the A1 near Felton

NEW TRANSPORT SECRETARY Patrick McLoughlin has been urged to put fully dualling the A1 through Northumberland at the top of his priorities. Berwick MP Sir Alan Beith yesterday invited Mr McLoughlin to see for himself the urgent need to upgrade the A1 between Morpeth and Felton, and at Mousen Bends near Belford.

Local road campaigner Anne-Marie Trevelyan also said she would ensure the new Transport Secretary was well aware of the need to upgrade the A1 as soon as possible.

Business and motoring chiefs also raised concerns about the “revolving door” when it came to transport secretaries. There have been three since the coalition was formed in May 2010 after Prime Minister David Cameron moved Justine Greening to head up the Department for International Development.


Read More - http://www.journallive.co.uk/north-e...#ixzz25aEwuZBX

[toonlad]

It aint gonna happen, though I agree it is sorely needed.

I actually think a full motorway link is needed between Edinbugh and London, especially if the Union survives the 2014 referendum. We need to demonstrate to Scotland that links between the two countries and growth north of the border are issues of importance to Westminster. The wholly in England HS2 plan and the SE centric Heathrow expansion do the opposite.

[jkkne]

McCloughlin has been brought in as a yes man, so to echo others, no chance of dualling happening.

Perhaps we should be petitioning the likes of Salmond (as odious as he is) and Sturgeon to put the case for the business benefit not to ourselves as a region but to them.

Sure if Scotland does gain it's independence we can apply for some shiny EU funding!

[Tyr]

A full motorway would be too much IMO, we don't need that in Northumberland.

[Godscrasher]

Originally Posted by Tyr

A full motorway would be too much IMO, we don't need that in Northumberland.

Didn't do any harm for the Wetherby lot.

[geordiejon]

The population of Wetherby and West Yorkshire is significantly higher than Northumberland and warrants a full motorway. Northumberland has the most sparse population in England. Dualing all the way to Edinburgh would be enough with a full dualing of the A69 from Hexham to the M6 and that last part of the A1 in North Yorkshire converted to full motorway would serve the North East immensely.

[Seamaster]

Originally Posted by jkkne

Perhaps we should be petitioning the likes of Salmond...

Aye, and get the Scots to pay for it.

[Tyr]

Originally Posted by geordiejon

The population of Wetherby and West Yorkshire is significantly higher than Northumberland and warrants a full motorway. Northumberland has the most sparse population in England. Dualing all the way to Edinburgh would be enough with a full dualing of the A69 from Hexham to the M6 and that last part of the A1 in North Yorkshire converted to full motorway would serve the North East immensely.

Yep.
Making a full motorway would cause unecessary environmental destruction, cost an unecessarily large amount of money to build and maintain, cause an unecessarily large amount of disruption, etc....

For much of the route a single lane is OK capacity wise even- dualling is more of a safety thing. (though there definietly are sections which need dualling for capacity).