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A6144(M) motorway

A6144(M) shield

A6144(M)
The A6144(M) crossing the River Mersey
Route information
Length: 1.2 mi (1.9 km)
Existed: 1987 – 2006
Major junctions
Northeast end: Urmston
  UK-Motorway-M60.svg
M60 motorway
Southwest end: Carrington
Road network

A6144(M) shield

The A6144(M) was a motorway in Carrington, Greater Manchester, England. It was known in official documentation as the Carrington Spur Road and built to facilitate the transport of hazardous goods from Shell Chemicals' ethylene oxide plant in Carrington and other industrial estates in Carrington and Broadheath. It was unusual in that it was entirely single carriageway, the only motorway of its kind in the UK. The others are dual carriageway for at least some of their length.

About 1 mile (2 km) long, the road connected the A6144 road to the M60 at junction 8. It was the highest numbered A-road(M) motorway and one of only two four-digit, Axxxx(M) motorways, the other being the A6127(M) (now A167(M)). The motorway was not a trunk road and not the responsibility of the Highways Agency.

The road had no hard shoulder but two emergency lay-bys with SOS phones and lights were provided midway along its length. It was possible to go from the A6144 to the A56 without going on the mainline of the M60 or any other motorway. A reason for its motorway status was that the junction with the M60 had two small roundabouts that were difficult for a driver of a long vehicle prohibited from motorways to perform a U-turn because of their size.

The unusual status of the A6144(M) led to its gaining a number of fans, particularly within organisations such as the Society for All British And Irish Road Enthusiasts (SABRE).

In 2004, work to widen the M60 motorway altered the junction with the A6144(M) which was changed into a single roundabout allowing all motorway-prohibited traffic to turn and not join the M60.


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Wikipedia

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