Is the M1 the oldest motorway?

The first section of motorway built in Britain was the Preston Bypass in Lancashire, which opened in 1958 and is now part of the M6 motorway. However the M1 was Britain's first full-length motorway and opened in 1959.



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Britain's first motorway, the Preston by-pass, opened in 1958. Designed by Lancashire County Council under civil engineer Sir James Drake – regarded as the pioneer of the UK motorway network – it's now part of the M6. The next 10 years saw UK's network expand as hundreds of miles of motorway were built.

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What's the longest motorway in the UK?
  • M6: Catthorpe, Leicestershire — Gretna Green, Dumfriesshire – Spread: 236 miles (379.8km)
  • M1: Staples Corner, London — Hook Moor, Yorkshire – Spread: 200 miles (321.9km)
  • M4: Chiswick, London — Pont Abraham, Carmarthenshire – Spread: 191.9 miles (308.8 km)


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Answer. Answer: A motorway just relates to the A road that it's relieving pressure from. The reason there is no M7 is that the A7, which runs from Carlisle to Edinburgh has no need for a motorway to relieve it.

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Hanger Lane Gyratory – West London. Magic Roundabout – Swindon. Gravelly Hill Interchange (Spaghetti Junction) – Birmingham.

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In later years, as the M1 was extended southwards into London and the M25 was built, the M10's original purpose eroded. It was sometimes suggested that the motorway might have been extended to meet the M25 at junction 22, but this was never proposed.

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Somewhere to the east of Glasgow lies the A8(M) - but look carefully, because it's not easy to find. The A8(M) is the UK's shortest motorway, running for just over 280 metres (308 yards). It forms a link between two roundabouts at Baillieston Interchange, better known as the junction between the M8 and M73.

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No Motorway
  • Cornwall.
  • Dorset.
  • Norfolk.
  • Rutland.
  • Suffolk.


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The M96, positioned 20 miles from the M5 and the M50, has remained a well-hidden secret for years that saves countless lives. The 400-metre-long stretch of road in Moreton-in-Marsh has seen more crashes and traffic incidents than major routes because of its special purpose of training blue light workers.

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The M9 is a major motorway in Scotland. It runs from the outskirts of Edinburgh, bypassing the towns of Linlithgow, Falkirk, Grangemouth and Stirling to end at Dunblane.

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Hardknott Pass is a hill pass between Eskdale and the Duddon Valley in the Lake District National Park, Cumbria, England. The tarmac-surfaced road, which is the most direct route from the central Lake District to West Cumbria, shares the title of steepest road in England with Rosedale Chimney Bank in North Yorkshire.

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The Lake Moeris Quarry Road is recognized as the oldest surviving paved road in the world. Dating from the Old Kingdom period in Egypt, it transported basalt blocks from the quarry to a quay on the shores of ancient Lake Moeris.

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The M25 or London Orbital Motorway is a major road encircling most of Greater London. The 117-mile (188-kilometre) motorway is one of the most important roads in the UK and one of the busiest. Margaret Thatcher opened the final section in 1986, making the M25 the longest ring road in Europe upon opening.

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