A130 road

Last updated

UK road A130.svg
A130
A130 road map.jpg
Click map to enlarge
Route information
Length17.4 mi (28.0 km)
Major junctions
North endHowe Green
Major intersectionsA12
UK road A1114.svg A1114
UK road A132.svg A132
UK road A1245.svg A1245
A127
A13
South end Canvey Island
Location
Country United Kingdom
Primary
destinations
Canvey Island
Chelmsford
Basildon
Road network

The A130 is a major road in England linking Howe Green, near Chelmsford, the county town of Essex, with Canvey Island in the south of that county. It is a primary route for some of its length, only losing that status south of the A13 junction at Sadlers Farm roundabout as it nears its terminus on Canvey Island. It was originally a much longer cross-country route (see History).

Contents

Route

The present route can be divided into two sections. The road now starts near the village of Howe Green (to the south of Chelmsford) at the Howe Green interchange J17 on the A12. [1] The A130 road heads south away from the Chelmsford area as a new dual carriageway opened in 2002. This is a "secret motorway" complete with hard shoulders, but classified as an A-road. It extends for 6 miles (9.7 km) as far as a junction with the A132 near Wickford, whilst a slightly newer section south of there continues the route as a standard dual carriageway as far as a junction with a spur connecting to the old road (now A1245) and the A127 Southend Arterial Road a few miles west of Southend-on-Sea.

The new road here more or less follows the same path as the World War II GHQ Line hence the many pillboxes visible alongside the carriageway between the Howe Green and the A132 junctions. An older section of dual carriageway extends as far south as the A13 at the Sadlers Hall Farm (Sadlers Farm), a roundabout near Benfleet. As with the A13 from London, the primary route section of the A130 ends here too.

South of the Sadlers Farm roundabout, the final leg of the A130 continues as a non-primary single-carriageway route into Canvey Island on the River Thames. Canvey Way is a causeway connecting "mainland" with island, and connects with the older road through the island, the B1014. On the island itself, a final short stretch of dual carriageway leads to the built-up area where the road turns east and becomes single, before meeting the B1014 again at a one-way system in the central area, incorporating the High Street.

History

The A130 was a much longer route. It originally started on the old A10 just south of Cambridge at Trumpington, and ended on the A127 near Rayleigh (Fairglen interchange). North of Fairglen, and prior to its renumbering as A1245, there was a roadside sign 'A130 Cambridge 53' [miles]. When the M11 Cambridge Western Bypass section was built in the early 1980s, the A10 through Cambridge was reclassified as A1309, whilst the A130 was truncated as far south as Great Dunmow on the A120, due east of London Stansted Airport. The section between Trumpington and Stump Cross (M11 junction 9A, the A11 spur) became A1301, whilst the section between there and Great Dunmow became an extension of the B184. The A11 was also reclassified to minor A-roads and B-roads at this time (qv.). In early 2008, the section between Great Dunmow and Little Waltham was declassified to become an extension of the B1008, itself a product of earlier re-routing.

During the mid-1980s, the A12 Chelmsford Bypass opened and this led to the A130 multiplexing with the former for a few miles to the north and east of Chelmsford. In more recent times, a new road between the village of Howe Green and the Chelmsford suburb of Springfield, Essex Regiment Way, directed traffic away from the northern suburbs. The original A130 through the villages north of Chelmsford and the town itself followed what is now an unclassified road, then B1008 (now extended to include the northern section of Essex Regiment Way), a short section of A1016, and then A1060 and A1114 to the southeast, the latter two forming sections of the same dual carriageway, incorporating a tidal flow flyover (demolished 2020) at Army & Navy Roundabout.

At the southern end, the route was extended as far as the A13 by the 1970s, and then onto Canvey Island via the Canvey Way causeway, when this was constructed in about 1974 it was numbered A1301. [2] The partially dual carriageway section between Chelmsford and the A127 was replaced by a new road (much of it "secret motorway") in 2002–3. The older road is now unclassified through the village of Rettendon (formerly a notorious accident blackspot), and then A1245 between the A132 and A127 junctions.

In early summer 2016, work was undertaken on the stretch between Rettendon and Howe Green (in both directions) to turn the existing hard shoulders into 3rd lanes, as the traffic volume had reached 50,000 vehicles per day. The resurfacing and re-marking of the hard shoulders needed to turn them into 3rd lanes was completed, but problems were then discovered in the crash barriers [3] and subsequently the strength of the embankments supporting the road. The new lanes were then coned off, and the road left at 2 lanes in each direction with no hard shoulder. As of 18 April 2018, the southbound lane has been fully re-opened whilst work continues on the northbound side. [4]

A130 bridge names

When the new A130 road (A127 to A12) was being built in c. 1999-2003, all the under and over-bridges were given names associated with local landmarks and features. The 15 named bridges are listed below. [5] 'Under' refers to a crossing that passes under the A130, and 'over' to one passing over the A130.

Bridges on the A130 between the A127 and A12
NameCrossingOver /  UnderRemarks
Annwood Bridge A127 Southend Arterial RoadUnderNamed after Annwood Lodge
Monument BridgeRailway (Shenfield to Southend line)UnderMonument to two airmen killed in March 1918
Rawreth Barn BridgeDoubblegate LaneOverNamed after a farm
Ivydene Bridge A129 Southend RoadUnderNamed after Ivydene Nursery
Mayrose Bridge River Crouch (tidal water course)UnderNamed after Mayrose House
Ashdale BridgeRailway (Wickford to Southminster llne)UnderNamed after Ashdale House
Turnpike Bridge A132 Rettendon TurnpikeOverRettendon Turnpike
Curry Hill FootbridgeFootpathOverLocal footpath
Hoe BridgeHoe LaneUnder
Laceys BridgeSouth Hanningfield RoadUnderNamed after Laceys Farm
Canon Barns BridgeCanon Barns RoadOverNamed after Canon Barns farm
Exchange BridgeChurch LaneOverTelephone exchange
St Peter's Way FootbridgeFootpathOverLong distance footpath (Ongar to Bradwell)
Downhouse BridgePrivate RoadOverTo Hanningfield water treatment works
Sir Hughes BridgeSandon Brook (water course)UnderNamed after properties Great Sir Hughes and Little Sir Hughes

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">GHQ Line</span> Defence line built in the United Kingdom during World War II

The GHQ Line was a defence line built in the United Kingdom during World War II to contain an expected German invasion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A12 road (England)</span> Road in England

The A12 is a major road in Eastern England. It runs north-east/south-west between London and the coastal town of Lowestoft in the north-eastern corner of Suffolk, following a similar route to the Great Eastern Main Line until Ipswich. A section of the road between Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth became part of the A47 in 2017. Between the junctions with the M25 and the A14, the A12 forms part of the unsigned Euroroute E30. Unlike most A roads, this section of the A12, together with the A14 and the A55, has junction numbers as if it were a motorway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">N11 road (Ireland)</span> National primary road in Ireland

The N11 road is a national primary road in Ireland, running for 129 km (80 mi) along the east side of Ireland from Dublin to Wexford. It passes close to Bray, Greystones, Wicklow, Arklow, Gorey, and Enniscorthy. Beyond Wexford, the route continues to Rosslare as the N25. The road forms part of European route E01. As of July 2019 the N11/M11 is of dual carriageway or motorway standard from Dublin as far as Oilgate in County Wexford.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A47 road</span> Road in England

The A47 is a major trunk road in England linking Birmingham to Lowestoft, Suffolk, maintained and operated by National Highways. Most of the section between Birmingham and Nuneaton is now classified as the B4114. From Peterborough eastwards, it is a trunk road.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Circular Road</span> Ring road around Central London, England

The North Circular Road is a 25.7-mile-long (41.4 km) ring road around Central London in England. It runs from Chiswick in the west to Woolwich in the east via suburban North London, connecting various suburbs and other trunk roads in the region. Together with its counterpart, the South Circular Road, it mostly forms a ring road around central London, except for crossing of the River Thames, which is done by the Woolwich Ferry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A10 road (England)</span> Road in England

The A10 is a major road in England which runs between The City of London and King's Lynn in Norfolk.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A11 road (England)</span> Road in England

The A11 is a major trunk road in England. It originally ran roughly north east from London to Norwich, Norfolk. It now consists of a short section in Inner London and a much longer section in Cambridgeshire, Suffolk and Norfolk. The lengthy section between these was renumbered as a result of the opening of the M11 in the 1970s and then the A12 extension in 1999.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A13 road (England)</span> Major road in England

The A13 is a major road in England linking Central London with east London and south Essex. Its route is similar to that of the London, Tilbury and Southend line via Rainham, Grays, Tilbury, Stanford-Le-Hope & Pitsea,and runs the entire length of the northern Thames Gateway area, terminating on the Thames Estuary at Shoeburyness. It is a trunk road between London and the Tilbury junction, a primary route between there and Sadlers Hall Farm near South Benfleet, and a non-primary route between there and Shoeburyness.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A414 road</span> Major road in England

The A414 is a major road in England, which connects the towns of Hemel Hempstead in Hertfordshire and Maldon in Essex. The road commences at the A41, at a junction west of Hemel, and travels through the town to junction 8 of the M1 motorway at Buncefield. From there, it runs parallel to the M1 until junction 7, heading south of St Albans and east through Hatfield and Hertford. The road then crosses the A10 and into Essex; it travels through Harlow, Chipping Ongar and Chelmsford, before terminating at Maldon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dual carriageway</span> Type of road

A dual carriageway (BrE) or a divided highway (AmE) is a class of highway with carriageways for traffic travelling in opposite directions separated by a central reservation (BrE) or median (AmE). Roads with two or more carriageways which are designed to higher standards with controlled access are generally classed as motorways, freeways, etc., rather than dual carriageways.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A127 road</span> Road in Essex, England

The A127, also known as the Southend Arterial Road, is a major road in Essex, England. It was constructed as a new arterial road project in the 1920s, linking Romford with Southend-on-Sea, replacing the older A13. Formerly classified as a trunk road, it was "de-trunked" in 1997. It is known as the Southend Arterial Road except for part of its length in Southend-on-Sea. It is also streetlit for its whole length despite its majority coverage through rural land.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South Benfleet</span> Human settlement in England

South Benfleet is a town and former civil parish, in the Castle Point district of Essex, England, 30 miles east of London. It is adjacent to the village of North Benfleet. The Benfleet (SS7) post town includes South Benfleet, Thundersley, New Thundersley and Hadleigh. The Battle of Benfleet took place here between the Vikings and Saxons in 894. In 1951 the parish had a population of 8191.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A120 road</span> Road in the east of England

The A120 is an A-road in England, which runs between Puckeridge in Hertfordshire and Harwich in Essex.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A505 road</span> Road in southern England

The A505 is a road in the East of England. It follows part of the route of the Icknield Way and the corresponding Icknield Way Path and runs from Leighton Buzzard in Bedfordshire to the A11 Abington Interchange North in Cambridgeshire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">East Cross Route</span> Road in East London

East Cross Route (ECR) is a dual-carriageway road constructed in east London as part of the uncompleted Ringway 1 as part of the London Ringways plan drawn up the 1960s to create a series of high speed roads circling and radiating out from central London. The road was constructed between 1967 and 1973 and runs from Hackney Wick in north-east London, through the Blackwall Tunnel, to Kidbrooke in south-east London. The ECR was initially designated as part of the A102, but has, subsequently, been partially renumbered so that sections of it are now the A2 and A12.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">M12 motorway (Great Britain)</span> Planned road in England

The M12 motorway was a planned motorway starting in north-east London and joining the A12 road in Essex. The 1960s scheme would have started at a junction with the M11 motorway and North Circular and ended near Brentwood, Chelmsford, or at the proposed new Maplin Sands airport; the motorway was part of the ambitious London Ringways plan to build motorways throughout London. Although most of the Ringways plan was cancelled in 1969 the M12 motorway project was still included in the Roads for Prosperity white paper published in 1989 along with major proposed developments to the A12 road. It was not formally cancelled until 30 March 1994 by the Secretary of State for Transport, John MacGregor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A4 road (Northern Ireland)</span> Major road in Northern Ireland

The A4 is a major east–west road in Northern Ireland. It travels for 69.2 miles from Portadown to Belcoo through County Armagh, County Tyrone and County Fermanagh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A146 road</span> A road in East Anglia, England

The A146 is an A road that connects Norwich in Norfolk and Lowestoft in Suffolk, two of East Anglia's largest population centres. It is around 27 miles (43 km) in length and has primary classification along its entire route. It is mainly single carriageway throughout its route, with the exception of a section of dual carriageway on the southern edge of Norwich.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Road transport in Peterborough</span>

The City of Peterborough in East Anglia has an extensive and well integrated road network, owing partly to its status as a new town. Since the 1960s, the city has seen considerable expansion and its various suburbs are linked by a system of parkways.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A132 road (England)</span> Road in England

The A132 road is a road in England connecting Pitsea and South Woodham Ferrers.

References

  1. "Sabre maps".
  2. Ordnance Survey 'The Thames Estuary' Sheet 178 dated 1974
  3. "Opening of third lane on A130 delayed due to crash barrier safety concerns".
  4. "Third lane of the A130 to open on Sunday".
  5. "A130 bridges: The names of all the bridges on the A130 and the reason behind them" . Retrieved 17 January 2024.

51°41′35″N0°31′15″E / 51.69304°N 0.52086°E / 51.69304; 0.52086