A470 road
This articlemay contain an excessive amount of intricate detail that may interest only a particular audience.(June 2015) |
A470 | ||||
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Route information | ||||
Maintained by North and Mid Wales Trunk Road Agency and South Wales Trunk Road Agency | ||||
Length | 186 mi (299 km) | |||
Major junctions | ||||
From | Cardiff | |||
A4119 A4160 A48 A469 M4 A4054 A468 A4058 A4223 A4059 A472 A4060 A4102 A465 A4215 A40 A479 A483 A4081 A44 A489 A458 A487 A494 A5 A55 A547 | ||||
To | Llandudno | |||
Location | ||||
Country | United Kingdom | |||
Primary destinations | Pontypridd Merthyr Tydfil Brecon Builth Wells Rhayader Llangurig Dolgellau Blaenau Ffestiniog Betws-y-Coed | |||
Road network | ||||
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TheA470(also named theCardiff to Glan Conwy Trunk Road)[1]is atrunk roadinWales.It is the country's longest road at 186 miles (299 km) and links the capitalCardiffon the south coast toLlandudnoon the north coast.[2]While previously one had to navigate the narrow roads ofLlanidloesandDolgellau,both these market towns are now bypassed due to extensive road modernisation[when?].The 26 miles (42 km) from Cardiff Bay toMerthyr Tydfilare mainlydual carriageway,but most of the route from north of Merthyr to Llandudno issingle carriageway.
Route
[edit]National parks
[edit]The road travels through two of thenational parks of Wales:theBrecon Beacons,andSnowdonia National Parkstarting just south ofDinas Mawddwy.
Cardiff Bay – Merthyr Tydfil
[edit]This sectionneeds additional citations forverification.(July 2022) |
The southernmost point of the route is inCardiff Bay,outside theWales Millennium Centre.It runs upLloyd George Avenue(this was previously Collingdon Road, and the A470 previously ran along the parallelBute Street), and continues along St. Mary Street in centralCardiff.The road then becomes North Road, and after atidal flowsystem running toMaindyand then goes over the flyover at theGabalfainterchange of theA48and theA469.It becomes an urban dual-carriageway along Manor Way, with a 30 mph (48 km/h) speed limit and with many traffic-signalled crossings. It passes without interruption under theM4at the giantCorytonroundabout. For the next 15 miles (24 km) it is a modern high-speed dual carriageway by-passingTongwynlaisandCastell Coch,Taff's Well,toPontypridd.Heading north toAbercynon,the road now follows the route of theTaff Vale RailwaysLlancaiach Branchto Quakers Yard roundabout,[3]where it is joined by the A4059 fromAbercynon,AberdareandHirwaun;theA472fromYstrad MynachandPontypoolfinally the A4054 fromQuakers Yard,andMerthyr Tydfil.
From Quakers Yard roundabout (locally known as "Fiddlers Elbow" ), 5.5 miles (8.9 km) of dual carriageway takes the road to the Pentrebach roundabout where the A4060 links, and then to the Merthyr Tydfil roundabout where the road meets theA465and the dual carriageway ends. A twisting section alongside theTaf Fawrreservoirs ofLlwyn-on,CantrefandBeaconstakes the road to its highest point atStorey Armson the pass over theBrecon Beaconsbefore a long descent toBrecon.
Merthyr Tydfil – Builth Wells
[edit]The remainder of the route north of Brecon consists of older routes now renamed "A470". This artificiality is apparent as a driver following the entire route north to south must diverge from the main line of respective stretches of road no fewer than five times. A short three lane stretch heads north east before a sharp left turn is required to stay on the road. From this point on the road becomes narrow and twisting and overtaking is problematic except at a few straight sections. Another sharp left turn at a stop sign inLlyswentakes the road alongside theRiver WyeintoBuilth Wells.
Builth Wells – Mallwyd
[edit]The road continues to follow the Wye to the busy crossroads where it meets the A44 in the centre ofRhayader.On reachingLlangurig,a right turn outside the village takes the road pastLlanidloesand throughLlandinam,the birthplace ofDavid Daviesand now the headquarters ofGirl Guides Wales.Another anomalous left turn at alevel crossingsets the path forCaersws,CarnoandLlanbrynmair.Just beyond the village ofTalerddigthe road descends and crosses under theShrewsbury–Aberystwyth railway line.The long descent towardsCommins Cochis a relatively new stretch of road that replaced a set of road-works that had traffic light controlled single lane working for over 10 years because of unstable ground conditions. The river bridge atCommins Cochis so narrow and set at such an angle that only one vehicle at a time can pass. AtCemmaes Roadthe road joins theA487at a roundabout. A right turn at the roundabout takes the road on toMallwydwhere theA458joins at yet another roundabout.
Mallwyd – Llandudno
[edit]The country becomes more forested and the road climbs up throughDinas Mawddwyand then steeply up the eastern foot-hills ofCadair Idrisbefore dropping down to theDolgellauby-pass. More sharp twists and turns in the forestry and through the village ofGanllwydbrings the road up onto the high plateau of the Cambrian dome where the road follows the ancient track ofSarn HelenRoman road passing the redundant nuclear power station atTrawsfynydd.A right turn beyond the power station takes the road on toFfestiniogandBlaenau Ffestiniogbefore heading over theCrimea PasstoDolwyddelan.A sharp left turn interrupts the A470 as it becomes theA5for a short distance towardsBetws-y-Coedbefore turning right again back onto the A470 just beforeWaterloo Bridge.Passing down the valley of theRiver Conwythe road passes throughLlanrwst,Tal-y-CafnandGlan Conwy,at which point there is a dual roundabout that intersects with theA55North Wales Expressway before descending intoLlandudno.The northernmost point of the route is inLlandudnoitself at the sea front, where it meets the North Shore Parade, theA547.
Junctions
[edit]This article contains a bulleted list or table of intersections whichshould be presented in a properly formatted junction table.(December 2021) |
This list is for the section between Cardiff and Merthyr Tydfil.
History
[edit]Modern route
[edit]The modern route of the A470 arose from a campaign in the 1970s by theWestern Mailfor a single route connecting North and South Wales, in the lead up to the1979 Welsh devolution referendum.It was successful, and in 1978, the Welsh Office discussed a potential course of the road roughly through the centre of the country, which was implemented the following year.[18]
Original route
[edit]The route fromCardifftoBreconwas the original A470.[19]It originally ran into Brecon town centre and joined theA40 road.The old A470 between the by-pass and the town, along Newgate Street, is now the B4601. A4062 was the number for the section from the junction of the A40 and the B4601 – the Brecon (eastern) bypass to B4602 section. The B4601 was originally the A40 which ran through the town of Brecon. Similarly, the B4602 was originally the westernmost part of the A438.
Original road numbers
[edit]Brecon – Llangurig
[edit]The A438 was the original number for the road from the junction with B4602 to the sharp left turn where A470 turns north in the vicinity ofLlanfilo.The A438 continues on from there toHerefordandTewkesbury.From north of Llanfilo toLlyswenwas the A4073. A479 originally linked the A40 west ofCrickhowellto theA44 roadatRhayader.The A479 now runs only from Crickhowell to Llyswen. The stretch from Rhayader toLlangurigwas the A44. Officially, this is now part of the A470,[20]but some local signage shows A44/A470.[citation needed]
Llangurig – Mallwyd
[edit]From Llangurig to Moat Lane (east ofCaersws), it was once part of the A492, which originally ran from Llangurig toNewtown.[21]The section Moat Lane to Newtown has since been renumbered A489, and from Moat Lane toGlantwymynthe A470 replaced the A489 which ran all the way fromMachynllethto theA49 roadnorth ofCraven Armsin southShropshire.Now the A489 designation applies to two roads separated by 17 miles (27 km) of the A470. The stretch between Glantwymyn to Mallwyd was called the A4084.
Dolgellau
[edit]Originally starting at the Cross Foxes nearDolgellauthe A458 now runs only from Mallwyd toShrewsbury.It now starts at Mallwyd with the Mallwyd to Cross Foxes section being the A470. Cross Foxes to near Gellilydan (in theMeirionyddpart ofGwyneddsouth ofFfestiniog) brings us to a complicated series of route renumbering. This stretch was originally the A487 which ran through Dolgellau town centre. The modern A470 bypasses the town using the line of the oldRuabon – Morfa Mawddach railway.
Gellilydan – Llandudno
[edit]Gellilydan via Llan Ffestiniog toBlaenau Ffestiniog(Congl-y-Wal) was not originally allocated a number. The section from Blaenau Ffestiniog toBetws-y-Coedwas the B4407, and from there toLlandudnowas the A544.[22]By 1946, the A496 had become extended to Llandudno.[23]
The section of road from Glan Conwy corner to Llandudno is a new well aligned direct route to Llandudno. The old A496 has been renumbered A547 between Glan Conwy and Llandudno Junction and A546 between Llandudno Junction and Llandudno. The A496 now numbers only the Dolgellau – Blaenau Ffestiniog coast road.
Cultural references
[edit]In 2014,Cerys Matthewspresented a documentary on the A470 onBBC Radio 4,journeying from the north of the country to Cardiff Bay.[24][25]The programme described the road as "theM1 motorwayof Wales ", despite most of the road being rural single-carriageway, with Matthews stopping off at places like Llanrwst and Rhayader.[26]
In March 2022, Arachne Press publishedA470: Poems for the Road / Cerddi’r Ffordd,a bilingual English and Welsh book of poems about the A470, edited by Siân Northey and Ness Owen.[27]Published onSt. David's Day,by June of that year it had its second reprint.[28]
Other references in Welsh popular culture include:
- a 1993 song byGeraint Lövgreen[29]
- a video and photo exhibition in 2001[30][31]
- a bi-monthly magazine, subtitledWhat's on in Literary Wales[32]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^"The Cardiff to Glan Conwy Trunk Road (A470) (Gelligemlyn Improvement, Side Roads) Order 201-".Welsh Government.Retrieved5 June2014.
- ^"A470: Images of Wales's longest road from south to north".BBC News. 4 August 2019.Retrieved11 June2021.
- ^Evans, Edward A. (1996)."The Nelson branch".Backtrack. pp. 12–17.Retrieved14 March2009.
- ^"A470".roads.org.uk.Retrieved9 August2022.
- ^"A470 Coryton Interchange".roads.org.uk.Retrieved9 August2022.
- ^"A470 Taff's Well Interchange".roads.org.uk.Retrieved9 August2022.
- ^"A470 Nantgarw Interchange".roads.org.uk.Retrieved9 August2022.
- ^"A470 Upper Boat Interchange".roads.org.uk.Retrieved9 August2022.
- ^"A470 Glyntaff Interchange".roads.org.uk.Retrieved9 August2022.
- ^"A470 Broadway Interchange".roads.org.uk.Retrieved9 August2022.
- ^"A470 Bridge Street Interchange".roads.org.uk.Retrieved9 August2022.
- ^"A470 Abercynon Interchange".roads.org.uk.Retrieved9 August2022.
- ^"A470 Abercynon Roundabout".roads.org.uk.Retrieved9 August2022.
- ^"A470 Abercanaid Roundabout".roads.org.uk.Retrieved9 August2022.
- ^"A470 Orbit Roundabout".roads.org.uk.Retrieved9 August2022.
- ^"A470 Swansea Road Roundabout".roads.org.uk.Retrieved9 August2022.
- ^"A470 Cefn Coed Roundabout".roads.org.uk.Retrieved9 August2022.
- ^Osmond, John (26 March 2010)."A Road to Love For".IWA.Retrieved17 August2020.
- ^"MOT Map".Ordnance Survey.1923.Retrieved16 April2012.
- ^"1:250,000 Road Map".Ordnance Survey.Retrieved16 April2012.
- ^"One Inch Seventh Series".Ordnance Survey.Retrieved26 May2012.
- ^"MOT Map Sheet 11".Ordnance Survey.1923.Retrieved16 April2012.
- ^"Ten Mile Map of Great Britain".Ordnance Survey.1946.Retrieved16 April2012.
- ^"BBC Radio 4 Extra – the Welsh M1, 2. Welshness".
- ^"BBC Radio 4 Extra – the Welsh M1, 1. Heading South".
- ^"The A470 – a route into the Welsh psyche".Wales Online.24 January 2014.Retrieved17 August2020.
- ^"Review: A470: Poems for the Road/Cerddi'r Ffordd".Institute of Welsh Affairs.31 March 2022.
- ^"Bilingual poetry book about A470 sets Welsh hearts racing".The Guardian.3 July 2022.
- ^"Geraint Lovgreen a'r Enw Da – 1981-1998 – Music – Sain Records – Music from Wales".sainwales.com.
- ^"The A470: free of motels and road movies".BBC News. 25 March 2001.Retrieved23 April2010.
- ^"Picture gallery: A470 exhibition".BBC News. 25 March 2001.Retrieved23 April2010.
- ^Robert Lee Brewer (ed.)2012 Poet's Market,Writers Digest Books (2011),ISBN1599632306.