A580 road (Great Britain)
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| Route information | |
| Length: | 29.5 mi (47.5 km) |
| History: | Construction began 29 April 1929 and finished in 1934 |
| Major junctions | |
| West end: | Walton, Liverpool |
 A5058 road      ![]](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ed/Motorway_Right.svg/5px-Motorway_Right.svg.png "]"){kind=small} M57 motorway A59 road A5207 road A5208 road A570 road A571 road A58 road A49 road M6 motorway A573 road A572 road A579 road A574 road A577 road A575 road M61 motorway M60 motorway A5185 road A666 road A6 road
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| East end: | Irlams o' th' Height, Salford (A6) |
| Location | |
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Primary destinations: |
St Helens, Merseyside |
| Road network | |
The A580 (officially the Liverpool-East Lancashire Road) is the United Kingdom's first purpose-built intercity highway. The road, which remains a primary A road, was officially opened by King George V on 18 July 1934. It links Walton in Liverpool to Salford near Manchester. The road is known colloquially as the "East Lancs Road" or simply "the Lancs".
The road was built to provide better access between the Port of Liverpool and the industrial areas of East Lancashire around Manchester. The new high-quality trunk road would supersede the indirect and heavily built-up A57 through Prescot, Warrington and Eccles. Journey times for road haulage would be reduced to under an hour.
The first part, which was completed within three years, was from Walton, Liverpool to the junction with the A6 at Irlams o' th' Height in Salford. The 29.5 mi (47.5 km) road was constructed in an almost straight alignment with few curves.
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