The A6144(M) was a

motorway A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway and expressway. Other similar terms i ...

Carrington, Greater Manchester Carrington is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Trafford, Greater Manchester, England. Historically a part of Cheshire, the village is west of the Greater Manchester Urban Area, and includes several industrial sites. H ...

, England. It was known in official documentation as the ''Carrington Spur Road'' and built to facilitate the transport of hazardous goods from

Shell Chemicals Shell Chemicals is the petrochemicals arm of Shell plc. The name "Shell Chemicals" refers to the nearly seventy companies engaged in chemicals businesses for Shell, which together make up one of the largest petrochemical producers in the world. T ...

ethylene oxide Ethylene oxide is an organic compound with the chemical formula, formula . It is a cyclic ether and the simplest epoxide: a three-membered Ring (chemistry), ring consisting of one oxygen atom and two carbon atoms. Ethylene oxide is a colorless a ...

plant in Carrington and other industrial estates in Carrington and Broadheath. It was extremely unusual in that it was entirely single carriageway, the only motorway of its kind in the UK as others were 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 three four-digit, Axxxx(M) motorways, the others being the A6127(M) (now A167(M)) and the temporary

A1077(M) The A1077 road runs through North Lincolnshire, England, between Scunthorpe and South Killingholme. Route Scunthorpe to Barton The western terminus of the A1077 starts at the M181 motorway '' Frodingham Grange'' roundabout in Gunness, next t ...

. The motorway was not a trunk road and not the responsibility of the

Highways Agency National Highways, formerly the Highways Agency and later Highways England, is a government-owned company charged with operating, maintaining and improving motorways and major A roads in England. It also sets highways standards used by all fo ...

. The road had no hard shoulder but two emergency

lay-by A rest area is a public facility located next to a large thoroughfare such as a motorway, expressway, or highway, at which drivers and passengers can rest, eat, or refuel without exiting onto secondary roads. Other names include motorway servi ...

s 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 th
Society for All British And Irish Road Enthusiasts
(SABRE).

Revocation of special road status

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. Trafford Borough Council confirmed its intention to remove

special road A special road is a road or highway (these terms have different meaning in different jurisdictions in the UK) in the United Kingdom reserved for use by ''special'' classes of traffic; such roads include but are not limited to motorways. For a ro ...

status from the A6144(M) when the M60 widening works were completed. The A6144(M) ceased to be a special road on 25 May 2006, losing its motorway status. It is now subject to a 50 mph (80 km/h)

speed limit Speed limits on road traffic, as used in most countries, set the legal maximum speed at which vehicles may travel on a given stretch of road. Speed limits are generally indicated on a traffic sign reflecting the maximum permitted speed - expres ...

and is classified as the A6144. The road through Sale retained the A6144 number, meaning that there are two branches (and two junctions with the

M60 motorway The M60 motorway, Manchester Ring Motorway or Manchester Outer Ring Road is an orbital motorway in North West England. Built over a 40-year period, it passes through most of Greater Manchester's metropolitan boroughs except for Wigan and Bol ...

) with the same road number. Despite losing motorway status, pedestrians, cyclists, and horse riders are still prohibited on the road.

Preservation

Following the change of signage on 25 May 2006, two marker posts, the A6144(M) confirmation sign and a lay-by warning sign are privately preserved.

References

External links

CBRD Motorway Database – A6144(M)Pathetic Motorways – A6144(M)Pathetic Motorways – M60
* ttp://www.sabre-roads.org.uk/wiki/index.php?title=A6144%28M%29 SABRE Wiki – A6144(M) {{DEFAULTSORT:6-6144M Former motorways of the United Kingdom Roads in Greater Manchester Two-lane expressways