A601(M) motorway
The A601(M) is a motorway in Lancashire, England. It is 1.3 miles (2.1 km) long, and meets the M6 at Junction 35. It was a unique motorway within the United Kingdom as it had a dual carriageway section leading north from Junction 35 of the M6, with a single carriageway section (one of the only 3 single carriageway sections with motorway status in the United Kingdom) leading south, where it terminated at a T junction on a B road. The A601(M) is not the A601 under motorway restrictions, as is the usual explanation for such a classification in the UK. The A601 itself is the Derby inner ring road, over 100 miles (160 km) away.
![]() The southern end of the A601(M) | |
Route information | |
Length | 1 mi[1] (2 km) |
Existed | 1960–present |
History | Constructed 1960 |
Major junctions | |
North end | ![]() |
![]() ![]() | |
South end | M6 |
Road network | |
![](../I/m/M6_motorway_near_Carnforth.jpg)
History
The section between the M6 and Junction 35A was originally opened in 1960,[2] as part of the Lancaster Bypass.[3] This was a 2 lane motorway. In 1970,[3] the M6 was extended north, and a short spur was left to the A6. The terminal roundabout was given the junction number 35A. Plans existed to extend this as part of an Arnside link road, which would have connected the Furness Peninsula with the M6, but they were scrapped for environmental reasons, but parts of this road exist today, along the A590.[4]
In 1987, a link was constructed with the B6254, to remove traffic for Over Kellet Quarries and Kirkby Lonsdale passing through Carnforth. The road was then renumbered as the A601(M). No junction number was given to this terminus. In early 2020 the link road was downgraded to a B road.[5][6]
Junctions
A601(M) motorway | ||
Southbound exits | Junction | Northbound exits |
Carnforth, Over Kellet, Kirkby Lonsdale B6254 | Terminus | Start of motorway |
Lake District, Carlisle, Kendal, Barrow-in-Furness, Lancaster, Preston, THE SOUTH M6 |
J35 | Lake District, Carlisle, Barrow-in-Furness, Lancaster, Preston, THE SOUTH M6 |
Start of motorway | J35a Terminus |
Milnthorpe, Kendal, Morecambe, Carnforth A6 |
References
- "Directions to A601(M)". Google. Retrieved 19 April 2013.
- The Motorway Archive – Dates Page Archived 1 November 2006 at the Wayback Machine
- Route 6 – Junction 35
- "History of designation". Landscapes for Life. Archived from the original on 11 November 2013. Retrieved 10 November 2013.
- CBRD Motorway Database – A601(M)
- "The Lancashire County Council (A601(M) Partial Revocation) Scheme 2019 Confirmation Instrument 2020". legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 15 August 2020.