A15 road
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The A15 is a major road in England. It runs north from Peterborough via Market Deeping, Bourne, Sleaford and Lincoln before disappearing at its junction with the M180 near Scawby. The road re-emerges ten miles east, and continues north past Barton-upon-Humber and over the Humber Bridge before terminating at Hessle near Kingston-upon-Hull.
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[edit] Driving conditions
According to the AA, the route is 95 miles long, and should take 2 1/4 hours. Norman Cross - Bourne takes 33 minutes, Bourne to Lincoln takes 46 minutes and Lincoln to the Humber Bridge takes 54 minutes.
A section of the A15 provides the longest stretch of straight road in the UK.
[edit] Peterborough
The A15 is Peterborough's main connecting road from the south to the A1(M), joining near Stilton, at Norman Cross, though this short stretch is only single carriageway and has many sets of traffic lights and speed cameras. In Yaxley, there is the BP Little Hampton Filling Station on the left. Entering Peterborough, it meets the A1260 The Serpentine at a roundabout near a large Tesco and Serpentine Green Shopping Centre on the left. It becomes London Road and passes Peterborough United. The old A15 route heading out of Peterborough is known as Lincoln Road. The A15 takes two routes through Peterborough. The one on the west side passes the Peterborough railway station and the Esso Westside Service Station on the left, and leaves the centre as Bourges Boulevard, then Lincoln Road and Werrington Parkway after the A47 GSJ. It passes a Morrisons just after the A47. The route on the east side follows the Paston Parkway, which is the old route of the A47. Both routes head through Werrington (passing either side) before joining again at Glinton.
[edit] Kesteven
Just south of the roundabout on the A16 and B1166, it crosses the River Welland so entering South Kesteven in Lincolnshire. The roundabout marks the western end of the £7m four mile Market Deeping bypass, finished in July 1998. The A15 and A16 roads are now merged in a one mile dual-carriageway stretch. In Langtoft and Baston there are 40mph speed cameras. North of Baston is the Waterside Garden Centre close to where it meets the north-south Roman King Street. It goes over the River Glen at the point it is crossed by the Macmillan Way, at Kate's Bridge. Just north of here is the BP Kate's Bridge Service Station.
It goes through Thurlby, passing the Horseshoe pub before coming to the small town of Bourne. It passes Bourne Grammar School, the Masons Arms and Royal Oak pubs as South Road then South Street. In the town centre, there are traffic lights at the A151 crossroads. In North Street, it passes the Burghley Centre (shops). There is the Esso Bourne Service Station on the left, which has a Tesco Express. The section north of Bourne to the junction with the A153 near Sleaford is often quiet. It passes close to Dyke and through Morton, passing the Kings Head and Lord Nelson pubs. There is a junction with the B1177 Billingborough). Close by are Rippingale and Aslackby, then it goes through the middle of Folkingham at the northern end of which it enters North Kesteven.
There is a roundabout with the east-west A52, and it goes through Osbournby, where it passes the Whichcote Arms pub. It passes the Tally Ho Inn, near Aswarby. Sleaford and Silk Willoughby were until 1993 on the A15, which slowed traffic down chronically as the traffic went across a level crossing and through Sleaford's shopping area. The £5.7m bypass opened on 16 September 1993, by Douglas Hogg, where there is a roundabout with the A153 and B1517, where the traffic increases. The A15 crosses the River Slea and leaves the bypass at the roundabout with the A17 and B1518 (former route). Situated on this large roundabout are a Little Chef with a Travelodge, a McDonalds and a Total garage at the Holdingham service station. The road goes close to Leasingham, which used to be on the A15. There is a junction for Cranwell with the B1429. It meets the B1191 (for Scopwick), B1202 and B1178. On the route to Lincoln, it goes near to two RAF bases - RAF Digby, which is used for communications rather than as a flying station, and across the end of the runway of RAF Waddington, which flies AWACS and Nimrod aircraft.
[edit] Lincoln
Towards Lincoln, it meets the B1131. At Bracebridge Heath, it passes the Total garage at the Sleaford Road Service Station, just before it meets the A607 at traffic lights. It is crossed by the Viking Way at the moment Lincoln Cathedral comes into full view. Here the road is on the brink of the descent of Cross O'Cliff Hill and the entry into the City of Lincoln. It meets the A1434 Newark Road from North Hykeham at traffic lights, where it becomes St Catherine's Road. At a roundabout at the south end of (what becomes) Lincoln's High Street, it exits to the right along South Park and meets Canwick Rd at traffic lights, where it heads left. It crosses the railway near Tesco on the right, and the River Witham, before heading up the hill on the north side of the Lincoln Gap, and heading in the direction of the A158 (for Skegness), past Christ's Hospital School and a Tesco. A new eastern bypass to the A158/A15 junction has been announced, though funding is proving difficult.
[edit] Lindsey
North of Lincoln, the A15 enters West Lindsey, and meets the start of the A158 at a roundabout, then multiplexes with the A46, and follows the Roman road Ermine Street past the Lincolnshire Showground and Riseholme College of Agriculture, now part of the University of Lincoln. There is a junction with the A1500, for Gainsborough. It used to be straight, but with RAF Scampton becoming a base for V bombers in the 1950s, the runway had to be extended and the road now has a curved diversion. Overtaking is difficult as the road, although straight, is undulating. There is a roundabout with the A631 at Caenby Corner, and the Total Caenby Corner Garage. At the B1205 staggered crossroads, it enters North Lincolnshire. At the B1206 crossroads, the old route used to go through Hibaldstow and Brigg. It passes close to Kirton in Lindsey, home of an RAF base much used in World War II, with the communications pylon still visible. Hibaldstow has an airfield now used for parachuting competitions by Target Skysports, and was a wartime fighter airfield as well. The five-mile £7m Brigg and Redbourne bypass was added in December 1989 which follows the old Ermine Street in North Lincolnshire further than previously, with a much flatter, wider and safer road, to cross the Sheffield to Cleethorpes railway line join the M180 at junction 4, near Scunthorpe. This was the upgraded route of an unclassified road.
The route of the A15 now becomes part of the three-laned M180, which was opened on 2 September 1977. The A15 section along Ermine Street was planned to be opened at the same time, but it had to wait twelve years. This five mile section of motorway never ever sees hold ups. The build up of traffic to Grimsby prompted calls for the Brigg bypass for many years, but the Flixborough explosion of 1974 made it more of an emergency. This section goes under the A18, over the River Ancholme, over the old route of the A15 (B1206) and over the South Trans-Pennine railway. At junction 5, the A15 reforms at the dual-grade roundabout, which is crossed by the Viking Way and has a JET garage at the Barnetby service station. It continues north as an excellent dual carriageway which carries about as little traffic as the M180. The M180 drops to two lanes under this roundabout and continues to Grimsby and Immingham as the A180, which has a logbook of many drivers falling asleep over its hypnotic concrete surface.
The A15 towards the Humber Bridge, goes directly across the runways of the former RAF Bomber Command airfield at Elsham Wolds, which is now an industrial estate. The former route of the A15, pre-1978, is now called B1206, and ends at New Holland, where the A15 formerly connected with the Humber Ferry. The £5.6m six-mile Brigg Bypass to Barton-upon-Humber Bypass (up to where the B1218 crosses) section opened in June 1978. The £2m one-mile Barton-upon-Humber Bypass to Humber Bridge (A1077 interchange) section opened in September 1978, although some maps show this being open before the southern section to the M180. When this whole section opened to the GSJ with the A1077 in 1978, there was no longer any access to the B1218. In the early 1990s, a new interchange was added with the B1206 (the former A15), which is crossed by the Viking Way. The section across the Humber was opened on 17 July 1981, by the Queen, and was the worlds longest single span bridge until 1997. The tolls are north of the bridge. It crosses the A63 and ends at a roundabout with A164 (for Beverley) and A1105.
[edit] External links
| A roads in Zone 1 of the Great Britain road numbering scheme | |
|---|---|---|
| A1 | ||
| A10 - A11 - A12 - A13 - A14 - A15 - A16 - A17 - A18 - A19 | ||
| A100 - A101 - A102 - A105 - A109 - A118 - A120 - A124 - A127 - A129 | ||
| A135 - A140 - A149 - A151 - A159 - A160 - A165 - A167 | ||
| A171 - A179 - A180 - A182 - A189 - A194 | ||
| A1000 - A1058 - A1066 - A1068 - A1079 | ||
| A1081 - A1086 - A1101 - A1156 - A1198 | ||
| A1200 - A1202 - A1205 - A1303 - A1309 | ||
| List of A roads in Zone 1 | ||
