A594 road (Leicester)

Last updated

UK road A594.svg
A594
Leicester Central Ring Road
Route information
Length3.75 mi (6.04 km)
Major junctions
Major intersections Leicester Station
UK road A6.svg A6
UK road A5199.svg A5199
UK road A426.svg A426
UK road A47.svg A47
UK road A50.svg A50
UK road A6.svg A6
UK road A607.svg A607
UK road A47.svg A47
Leicester Station
Location
Country United Kingdom
Constituent country England
Primary
destinations
Leicester
Road network

The A594 Central Ring is Leicester's central distributor road network. [1]

Contents

With the continuing regeneration of the inner city, the Central Ring has become a route within the city centre rather than one that encloses it; especially near the New Walk/Freemen's/University of Leicester and the Bede Island/Waterside/De Montfort University districts, to the south and west of the urban core respectively.

Length and shape

The road's length is approximately 3.65 miles (5.87 km) anti-clockwise and 3.85 miles (6.20 km) clockwise due to divergent one-way routings to the southeast. Typical distances from the city centre at Every Street to the Central Ring are between 0.4 miles (0.6 km) and 1.2 miles (1.9 km).

The road is for the most part circular, but it forms a chevron pointing southwards as it merges into the A426 and A5199, Aylestone and Welford Roads. It is largely a dual-carriageway urban clear route. There are grade-separated junctions at the A607 (flyover/overpass) to the north and at the A47 (underpass) to the west.

History

The inner ring road was constructed in stages in the 1960s/1970s. A 1974 map shows that the St Nicholas Circle had been constructed, as well as Vaughan Way and Burleys Way, to the junction with Belgrave Road.

The areas in which it was built had a pre-existing street pattern which it has somewhat disrupted. This may be seen most clearly in the eastern part of the ring road, which has severed streets like Bedford Street and Wharf Street into two sections, one in the city centre itself, and one in the nearby residential estate of St Matthew's, which has consequently become very isolated.

Route

Starting in the east, with a roundabout, with exits to the east (the A47, and Humberstone Gate to the west), it passes south along St George's Way, until it joins the route of the London Road (the A6), and becomes Waterloo Way for a short distance. It then turns south-west, leaving the railway station on the outer side of the ring-road, and continues south-west, parallel to the railway line, crossing New Walk. Towards the end of this section, it nears Leicester Tigers ground, and a section of the old Waterloo Way near this end has been renamed Tigers Way.

It is here that the inner ring-road splits, with a one-way system causing clockwise and anticlockwise traffic to take different routes. The clockwise traffic uses Infirmary Road and then Oxford Street, passing by Leicester Royal Infirmary and De Montfort University, whilst anticlockwise traffic uses Welford Road and Newark Street.

West of the city centre, the two roads merge into the dual carriageway Vaughan Way. Just north of this is Saint Nicholas Circle, providing access into the old town and western retail core, and also west to the nearby bridge over the River Soar.

Southgates Underpass provides access for traffic going straight on at Saint Nicholas Circle, and joins up with Vaughan Way again at the north. Vaughan Way continues round, and then whilst heading north-east, becomes Burley's Way at the junction with the re-emerged A6, which heads north as St Margaret's Way in the direction of Loughborough.

Burley's Way then passes north-east over the Fosse Way junction roundabout (formerly the A46, now the A607, known locally as Belgrave Gate/Belgrave Road), with a flyover for continuing Central Ring traffic. It then becomes St Matthew's Way, before ending up at the St George's Way A47 roundabout described before.

Ongoing development

As part of Leicester's regeneration, it was proposed to reconnect Wharf Street South and North with a cycle/foot/bus bridge. [2]

A plan to move the ring road around the station as part of the regeneration of the old police station and Charles Street surrounding into a new business quarter was abandoned. [3]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A41 road</span> Road in England

The A41 is a trunk road between London and Birkenhead, England. Now in parts replaced by motorways, it passes through or near Watford, Kings Langley, Hemel Hempstead, Aylesbury, Bicester, Solihull, Birmingham, West Bromwich, Wolverhampton, Newport, Whitchurch, Chester and Ellesmere Port.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A6 road (England)</span> North-south road in England

The A6 is one of the main north–south roads in England. It runs from Luton in Bedfordshire to Carlisle in Cumbria, although it formerly started at a junction with the A1 at Barnet in north London, and is described as running from London to Carlisle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A57 road</span> Road in England

The A57 is a major road in England. It runs east from Liverpool to Lincoln via Warrington, Salford and Manchester, and then through the Pennines over the Snake Pass (between the high moorlands of Bleaklow and Kinder Scout), around the Ladybower Reservoir, through Sheffield and past Worksop. Between Liverpool and Glossop, the road has largely been superseded by the M62, M602 and M67 motorways. Within Manchester a short stretch becomes the Mancunian Way, designated A57(M).

<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">A46 road</span> Road in England

The A46 is a major A road in England. It starts east of Bath, Somerset and ends in Cleethorpes, Lincolnshire, but it does not form a continuous route. Large portions of the old road have been lost, bypassed, or replaced by motorway development. Between Leicester and Lincoln the road follows the course of the Roman Fosse Way, but between Bath and Leicester, two cities also linked by the Fosse Way, it follows a more westerly course.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A52 road</span> Major road in the East Midlands of England

The A52 is a major road in the East Midlands, England. It runs east from a junction with the A53 at Newcastle-under-Lyme near Stoke-on-Trent via Ashbourne, Derby, Stapleford, Nottingham, West Bridgford, Bingham, Grantham, Boston and Skegness to the east Lincolnshire coast at Mablethorpe. It is approximately 147 miles (237 km) long.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Magic Roundabout (Swindon)</span> Roundabout in Swindon, England

The Magic Roundabout in Swindon, England, is a ring junction constructed in 1972 consisting of five mini-roundabouts arranged in a circle. Located near the County Ground, home of Swindon Town F.C., its name comes from the popular children's television series The Magic Roundabout. In 2009, it was voted the fourth-scariest junction in Britain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edinburgh City Bypass</span> Road in Scotland

The Edinburgh City Bypass, designated as A720, is one of the most important trunk roads in Scotland. Circling around the south of Edinburgh, as the equivalent of a ring road for the coastal city, it links together the A1 towards north-east England, the A702 towards north-west England, the M8 through the Central Belt towards Glasgow, the A7 through south-east Scotland and north-west England as well as the A8 leading to the M9 for Stirling and the Queensferry Crossing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A64 road</span> Road in West and North Yorkshire, England

The A64 is a major road in North and West Yorkshire, England, which links Leeds, York and Scarborough. The A64 starts as the A64(M) ring road motorway in Leeds, then towards York it becomes a high-quality dual carriageway until it is east of the city, where it becomes a single carriageway for most of its route to Scarborough.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Middleway</span> Ring road in Birmingham, England

The A4540 is a ring road in Birmingham, England, also known as the Middle Ring Road, or the Middleway. It runs around the centre of the city at a distance of approximately 1 mile (1.6 km). The ring road was planned and designed by Herbert Manzoni. It is now simply known as the Ring Road due to the removal of the old Inner Ring Road.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leicester City Centre</span> Human settlement in England

Leicester City Centre is Leicester's historical commercial, cultural and transport hub and is home to its central business district. Its inner core is roughly delineated by the A594, Leicester's inner ring road, although the various central campuses of the University of Leicester, De Montfort University and Leicester College are adjacent to the inner ring road and could be considered to be a continuation of the City centre. In a similar way, the Leicester Royal Infirmary precinct, New Walk business district (Southfields), the Welford Road Stadium of Leicester Tigers’ RUFC and the King Power Stadium of Leicester City to the south, and the Golden Mile to the north could also be deemed to be extensions to the central core.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Queensway, Birmingham</span> Ring road in central Birmingham, England, UK

Queensway is the name of a number of roads in central Birmingham, England, but most often refers to the Queensway tunnel, part of the A38. Queensway is the suffix of several other roads and circuses, such as Smallbrook Queensway and Colmore Circus Queensway; all of which were once part of the historic A4400 Inner Ring Road, often called collectively the Queensway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A17 road (England)</span> Road in England

The A17 road is a mostly single carriageway road linking Newark-on-Trent in Nottinghamshire, England, to King's Lynn in Norfolk. It stretches for a distance of 62 miles travelling across the flat fen landscapes of southern Lincolnshire and western Norfolk and links the East Midlands with East Anglia. The road is notable for its numerous roundabouts and notoriously dangerous staggered junctions and also for its most famous landmark, the Cross Keys Bridge at Sutton Bridge close to the Lincolnshire/Cambridgeshire/Norfolk borders which carries the road over the River Nene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A6030 road</span> Road in England

The A6030 is a small ring-road entirely within the built-up central area of Leicester, from its roundabout with the A563 near Hamilton, south to cross the A47 at Evington, past Leicester General Hospital and the Leicestershire Golf Club to meet the A6 again at Stoneygate near Oadby.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sheffield Inner Ring Road</span> Road in Sheffield, England

Sheffield Inner Ring Road is a dual-carriageway circling central Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. Marked up as the A61 all the way around, it was built from the 1960s onwards. The Ring Road connects to the Sheffield Parkway, which itself connects with the M1 motorway. Many of Sheffield's current and under construction major office premises and luxury apartments are located on the Ring Road.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kinsale Road Roundabout</span>

The Kinsale Road Roundabout is a five-arm signalised roundabout in Cork City in Ireland, located approximately 3km south of the city centre at the junction of the N40 South Ring Road and the N27 South City Link/Airport Road.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bricklayers Arms</span> Road junction

Bricklayers Arms is the road intersection of the A2 and the London Inner Ring Road where Bermondsey meets Walworth and Elephant & Castle in south London. It is the junction of Tower Bridge Road, Old Kent Road, New Kent Road and Great Dover Street. It comprises a four-way green roundabout plus one-way flyover and one-way bypass lane.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A607 road</span> Road in England

The A607 is an A road in England that starts in Belgrave, Leicester and heads northeastwards through Leicestershire and the town of Grantham, Lincolnshire, terminating at Bracebridge Heath, a village on the outskirts of Lincoln. It is a primary route from Thurmaston to the A1 junction at Grantham.

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

The A4053 Coventry ring road is a 2.25-mile (3.62 km) ring road in Coventry, England, which forms a complete dual-carriageway loop around the city centre. The road encompasses the old and new Coventry Cathedrals, the city's shopping areas and much of Coventry University. With the exception of one roundabout at junction 1, the ring road's nine junctions are entirely grade separated and closely spaced, with weaving sections between them, some as short as 300 yards (270 m), giving the road a reputation for being difficult to navigate. The junctions include connections with three other A roads: the A4114, A4600 and A429.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A40 road in London</span> Major trunk road connecting London to Fishguard, Wales

The A40 is a major trunk road connecting London to Fishguard, Wales. The A40 in London starts in the City of London and passes through six London Boroughs: Camden, Westminster, Kensington & Chelsea, Hammersmith & Fulham, Ealing and Hillingdon, to meet the M40 motorway junction 1 at Denham, Buckinghamshire.

References

  1. "A594 (Leicester) - Roader's Digest: The SABRE Wiki". www.sabre-roads.org.uk. Retrieved 8 October 2022.
  2. "A New Community for Everyone". Leicester Regeneration Company. 19 November 2004. Archived from the original on 18 September 2005.
  3. "End of road for ring road revamp". BBC News . UK: BBC. 30 August 2005. Retrieved 12 January 2025.

52°38′03″N1°07′25″W / 52.6342°N 1.1235°W / 52.6342; -1.1235