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Plan of Ringways 1, 2, 3 and 4

TheLondon Ringwayswere a series of fourring roadsplanned in the 1960s to circle London at various distances from the city centre. They were part of a comprehensive scheme developed by theGreater London Council(GLC) to alleviate traffic congestion on the city's road system by providing high-speedmotorway-standard roads within the capital, linking a series of radial roads taking traffic into and out of the city.

There had been plans to construct new roads around London to help traffic since at least the 17th century. Several were built in the early 20th century such as theNorth Circular Road,Western AvenueandEastern Avenue,and further plans were put forward in 1937 withThe Highway Development Survey,followed by theCounty of London Planin 1943. The Ringways originated from these earlier plans, and consisted of the main four ring roads and other developments. Certain sections were upgrades of existing earlier projects such as the North Circular, but much of it was new-build. Construction began on some sections in the 1960s in response to increasing concern about car ownership and traffic.

The Ringway plans attracted vociferous opposition towards the end of the decade over the demolition of properties and noise pollution the roads would cause. Local newspapers published the intended routes, which caused an outcry among local residents living on or near them who would have their lives irreversibly disrupted. Following an increasing series of protests, the scheme was cancelled in 1973, at which point only three sections had been built. Some traffic routes originally planned for the Ringways were re-used for other road schemes in the 1980s and 1990s, most significantly theM25,which was created out of two different sections of Ringways joined together. The project caused an increase in road protesting and an eventual agreement that new road construction in London was not generally possible without huge disruption. Since 2000,Transport for Londonhas promoted public transport and discouraged road use.

History

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Background

[edit]
The Great West Road was an early 20th century attempt to solve traffic congestion around London

London has been significantly congested since the 17th century. Variousselect committeeswere established in the late 1830s and early 1840s in order to establish means of improving communication and transport in the city. TheRoyal Commission on London Traffic(1903–05) produced eight volumes of reports on roads, railways and tramways in the London area, including a suggestion for "constructing a circular road about 75 miles in length at a radius of 12 miles fromSt Paul's".[1]

Between 1913 and 1916, a series of conferences took place, bringing all road plans in Greater London together as a single body. Over the next decade, 214 miles (344 km) of new roads were constructed, primarily as post-war unemployment relief. These included theNorth Circular RoadfromHanger LanetoGants Hill,Western AvenueandEastern Avenue,theGreat West RoadbypassingBrentford,and bypasses ofKingston,Croydon,WatfordandBarnet.[2]In 1924, the Ministry of Transport proposed another circular route, the North Orbital Road. This ran further out from London than the North Circular and was planned to be around 70 miles (110 km) long, running from theA4atColnbrookto theA13atTilbury.[3]

The Highway Development Survey, 1937

[edit]

In May 1938, SirCharles Bresseyand SirEdwin Lutyenspublished aMinistry of Transportreport,The Highway Development Survey, 1937,which reviewed London's road needs and recommended the construction of many miles of new roads and the improvement of junctions at key congestion points.[4]Amongst their proposals was the provision of a series of orbital roads around the city with the outer ones built as American-styleParkways– wide, landscaped roads with limited access and grade-separated junctions.[4]These included an eastern extension of Western Avenue, which eventually became theWestway.[5]

Bressey's plans called for significant demolition of existing properties, that would have divided communities if they had been built. However, he reported that the average traffic speed on three of London's radial routes was 12.5 miles per hour (20.1 km/h), and consequently their construction was essential.[4]The plans stalled, as theLondon County Councilwere responsible for roads in the capital, and could not find adequate funding.[6]

County of London Plan and Greater London Plan, 1940s

[edit]
One of Abercrombie's proposed inner ring roads, as shown in the 1945Ministry of Informationdocumentary filmThe Proud City.

The Ringway plan had developed from early schemes prior to theSecond World WarthroughSir Patrick Abercrombie'sCounty of London Plan,1943andGreater London Plan,1944.One of the topics that Abercrombie's two plans had examined was London's traffic congestion, and The County of London Plan proposed a series of ring roads labelled A to E to help remove traffic from the central area.[7][8]

Even in a war-ravaged city with large areas requiring reconstruction, the building of the two innermost rings, A and B, would have involved considerable demolition and upheaval. The cost of the construction works needed to upgrade the existing London streets and roads todual carriagewayor motorway standards was considered significant; the A ring would have displaced 5,300 families.[9]Because of post-war funding shortages, Abercrombie's plans were not intended to be carried out immediately. They were intended to be gradually built over the next 30 years. The subsequent austerity period meant that very little of his plan was carried out. The A Ring was formally cancelled byClement Attlee's Labour government in May 1950.[9]After 1951, the County of London focused on improving existing roads rather than Abercrombie's proposals.[10]

Ringway Scheme, 1960s

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By the start of the 1960s, the number of private cars and commercial vehicles on the roads had increased considerably from the number before the war. British car manufacturing doubled between 1953 and 1960.[11]The Conservative government, led by Prime MinisterHarold Macmillan,had strong ties to the road transport industry, with more than 70 members of parliament being members of theBritish Road Federation.Political pressure to build roads and improve vehicular traffic increased, which led to a revival of Abercrombie's plans.[12]

The Ringway plan took Abercrombie's earlier schemes as a starting point and reused many of his proposals in the outlying areas but scrapped the plans in the inner zone. Abercrombie's A Ring was scrapped as being far too expensive and impractical.[13]The innermost circuit, Ringway 1, was approximately the same distance from the centre as the B Ring. It used some of Abercrombie's suggested route, but it was planned to use existing transport corridors, such as railway lines, much more than before. The location of these lines produced a ring that was distinctly box-shaped, and Ringway 1 was unofficially called theLondon Motorway Box.[14]

In 1963,Colin Buchananpublished a report,Traffic in Towns,which had been commissioned by the Transport Minister,Ernest Marples.In contrast to earlier reports, it cautioned that road building would generate and increase traffic and cause environmental damage. It also recommended pedestrianisation of town centres and segregating different traffic types. The report was published byPenguin Booksand sold 18,000 copies. Several key ideas in the report would later be perceived as being correct as road protesting grew from the 1980s onward.[15]The London Traffic Survey was published the following year, and concluded that the Ringways should be built in order to cater for future network traffic, instead ofTraffic in Townswhich said if a road was not built, there would be no demand along that route anyway.[16]The 1960s plans were developed over a period of several years and were subject to a continuing process of review and modification. Roads were added and omitted as the overall scheme was altered, and many alternative route alignments were considered during the planning process.[17]The plan was published in stages starting with Ringway 1 in 1966 and Ringway 2 in 1967. After the Conservatives won the GLC elections in the latter year, they confirmed that both Ringways would be constructed as planned.[18]

The plan was hugely ambitious, and almost immediately attracted opposition from several directions.[19]Ringway 1 was designed to be an eight-lane elevated motorway running through the middle of many town centres such asCamden Town,BrixtonandDalston.[20][21]A principal problem was the route of Ringway 2 in south London, given that the South Circular Road was largely an unimproved series of urban streets and there were fewer railway lines to follow. Parts would be built with four lanes in each direction, and in some cases there was no other plan than to destroy whatever urban streets were in the way of the new road.[19]AtBlackheath,the road would have run in a deep-bored tunnel to avoid any impact on the local area, at an estimated cost of £38 million.[22]However, until around 1967, the opposition was more towards specific proposals instead of the concept of Ringways generally.[23]

The reportMotorways in London,published in 1969 by the architect/plannerLord Esherand Michael Thomson, a transport economist at theLondon School of Economics,calculated that costs had been enormously underestimated and would show marginal economic returns. They predicted large quantities of additional traffic that would be generated purely as a result of the new roads.[24]Access to the new roads would soon be overwhelmed even before the rings and radial roads were near capacity, while about 1 million Londoners would find their lives blighted by living within 200 yards of a motorway.[25]Reports suggested between 15,000 and 80,000 Londoners would lose their homes as a result of the Ringways.[26]TheTreasuryand the Ministry of Transport both came out against the scheme, primarily because of worries over the cost. TheChancellor of the ExchequerRoy Jenkinssaid he could not prevent the GLC from proposing the schemes, but assumed that the government could ultimately prevent them from being implemented.[27]

Despite this opposition, the GLC continued to develop its plans, and began the construction of some of the parts of the scheme. The plan, still with much of the detail to be worked out, was included in theGreater London Development Plan, 1969(GLDP) along with much else not related to roads and traffic management. In 1970, the GLC estimated that the cost of building Ringway 1 along with sections of 2 and 3 would be £1.7 billion (approximately £33.2 billion as of 2023).[28][29]

In 1970, the British Road Federation surveyed 2,000 Londoners, 80% of whom favoured more new roads being built.[30]In contrast, a public enquiry was held to review the GLDP in a climate of strong and vocal opposition from many of theLondon Boroughcouncils and residents associations that would have seen motorways driven through their neighbourhoods. TheWestwayand a section of the West Cross Route fromShepherd's BushtoNorth Kensington,opened in 1970. It showed the public what the Ringways would be like for local residents and what demolition would be required, and led to increased complaints over the scheme.[31]The GLDP received 22,000 formal objections by 1972.[32]The GLC realised that theSouth Cross Routemight be impractical to build, and looked instead at integrating public transport through a new park-and-ride scheme atLewishamthat would serve a newFleet lineon theLondon Underground.[33]

The GLC attempted to hold on to the Ringway plans until the early 1970s, hoping that they would eventually be built.[34]By 1972, in an attempt to placate the Ringway plan's vociferous opponents, the GLC removed the northern section of Ringway 1 and the southern section of Ringway 2 from the proposals.[35]In January 1973, the enquiry recommended that Ringway 1 be built, but that much of the rest of the Ringway schemes be abandoned.[36]The project was submitted to theConservative governmentfor approval and, for a short period, it appeared that the GLC had made enough concessions for the scheme to proceed.[37]A report around this time commissioned by planning lawyer Frank Layfield showed that the GLDP was too dependent on roads for its transport plans.[38]Because the GLC had proposed the Ringways as a complete scheme, protesters against specific parts of it in different areas were able to unite against a common goal, which led to the Layfield Inquiry successfully challenging the proposals.[23]

TheLabour partymade large gains in theGLC elections of April 1973with a policy of fighting the Ringways scheme. Given the continuing fierce opposition across London and the likely enormous cost, thecabinetcancelled funding and hence the project.[32][39]

Ringway 1

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Plan of Ringway 1 showing the parts of the central area scheme that were built. Blue lines are roads built as planned, red lines those built later. Roads shown in grey were never built.

Ringway 1was the London Motorway box, comprising theNorth,East,SouthandWestCross Routes.[40]Ringway 1 was planned to comprise four sections across the capital forming a roughly rectangular box of motorways. These sections were designated:[41]

Much of the scheme would have been constructed as elevated roads on concrete pylons and the routes were designed to follow the alignments of existing railway lines to minimise the amount of land required for construction, including theNorth London linein the north, theGreenwich Park branch linein the south, and theWest London lineto the west.[20][42]

Ringway 1 was expected to cost £480 million (£9.38 billion today) including £144 million (£2.74 billion today) for property purchases. It would require 1,048 acres (4.24 km2) and affect 7,585 houses.[43]

Only two parts of Ringway 1 were completed and opened to traffic. Part of the West Cross Route between North Kensington and Shepherd's Bush was opened byJohn PeytonandMichael Heseltinein 1970, simultaneously withWestway,to protests; some residents hung a huge banners with 'Get us out of this Hell – Rehouse Us Now' outside their windows and protesters disrupted the opening procession by driving a lorry the wrong way along the new road.[44][45]The East Cross Route, incorporating the new 'eastern bore' of theBlackwall Tunnelopened in 1967, was completed in 1979.[46]

A dual carriagway in a trench with concrete retaining walls on each side.
TheEast Cross RouteatHackney Wick.The central slip road is the only part of theNorth Cross Routeto be constructed and would have carried the merging eastbound carriageway of that road.
A dual carriageway crossed by a railway bridge in the foreground. Two high-rise blocks stand in the distance.
TheWest Cross RoutenearWhite City

The North Cross Route began south ofWillesden Junctionand followed theNorth London lineeastwards then passed under theMidland main lineandMetropolitan lineatWest Hampstead,where it was intended to meet a planned extension of theM1 motorwaywith a link toFinchley Road.It diverged away from the railway and passed throughHampsteadin acut-and-cover tunnelowing to local geography, and overBritish Rail's goods depot atCamden Town,where there was to be an interchange with the proposed Camden Town bypass. It again followed the North London line to the north ofSt PancrasandKing's Cross,then ran in a tunnel throughHighbury,and crossed Kingsland High Street inDalstonon a viaduct. It continued along the North London line throughHackneyandHomerton,leading to a junction with the East Cross Route atHackney Wick.[42]

The whole of the East Cross Route was built. It runs south from Hackney Wick as theA12(previously designated as the A102(M) andA102) toBow Road,then, as the A102, under theRiver Thamesvia the Blackwall Tunnel to theSun in the Sandsroundabout atBlackheath,then as theA2toKidbrooke,meeting the South Cross Route.[47]

The South Cross Route ran beneathBlackheath Parkin a tunnel, following railways as much as possible for its route thoughPeckham,Brixton,where it was planned to connect with the"South Cross Route to Parkway D Radial"a motorway running south-east to Ringway 3, andClaphamtoNine Elms.There was then a link to the West Cross Route and Ringway 2 atWandsworth.[48]

The West Cross Route followed theWest London line,with a bridge over the Thames near Chelsea Basin. There was a planned interchange withCromwell Road(A4) at Earl's Court and withHolland Park AvenueatShepherd's Bush.The section north Shepherd's Bush to theWestwaywas constructed as planned. North of the Westway, it would have continued to follow the West London line, crossing the Great Western railway and theGrand Union Canal,linking with the North Cross Route at Willesden Junction.[48]

Ringway 2

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Plan of Ringway 2 as proposed in late 1960s

Ringway 2was an upgrade of theNorth Circular Road(A406) and a new motorway to replace theSouth Circular Road(A205).[49]The North Circular Road was largely a coherent route (see "Background" above), but the South Circular Road was merely a signposted route through the suburbs of South London on pre-existing sections of standard roads, involving twists and turns, selected by route planners in the 1930s. South of the river, Ringway 2 would have headed roughly toward the North Circular Road atChiswick,though there was no definite proposed route.[50]Much of the Ringway, particularly the southern section where a new route was required, would have been placed in cuttings to mitigate disruption to local residents.[51][52]

Northern section

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The North Circular Road was to have been improved to motorway standard along its existing route. Some plans refer to the section in east London as theM15,but this was not planned to refer to the entire road. Since the Ringways Plan was cancelled, most of the route has been upgraded, some of it close to motorway standard, but this has been done piecemeal. In places, the road is a six-lanedual carriagewaywithgrade separatedjunctions, while other parts remain at a much lower standard. In some cases this has been because of protests; the junction of the North Circular Road and theA10was only completed in 1990 after several other schemes had been blocked.[53]

At the western end of the North Circular Road a new section of motorway would have been constructed to take the route of Ringway 2 eastwards from the junction with theM4atGunnersburyalong the course of therailway linethrough Chiswick to meet and cross the River Thames atBarnes.This section was never well planned and did not have an exact proposed alignment.[50]

The route of the eastern section of the North Circular Road south from its junction with theM11atSouth Woodfordto the junction with theA13(the"South Woodford toBarkingRelief Road ") was built on the planned motorway alignment, opening in 1987. The section between South Woodford andRedbridgeroundabout (A12junction) was, for a time, temporarily designated as part of the M11.[54]

At its eastern end, Ringway 2 was planned to have crossed the River Thames at Gallions Reach in a new tunnel betweenBecktonandThamesmead.[55]Although this tunnel was never built, the utility of an additional river crossing in this area continued to be recognised during the decades after the Ringway Scheme's cancellation and various proposals for anEast London River Crossinghave been developed, the most recent of which was theThames Gateway Bridge,cancelled in 2008.[56]

Southern section

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Ringway 2 was planned to run throughOxleas Wood

The South Circular Road was in the 1960s, and remains still, little more than an arbitrary route through the southern half of the city following roads that are mainly just single carriageway. The road planners considered the existing routing unsuitable for a direct upgrade so a new replacement motorway was planned for a route further to the south where the road could be constructed with less destruction of local communities.[57]

Starting in theLondon Borough of Greenwichat the southern end of the new tunnel in Thamesmead, the planned route for the new southern section of Ringway 2 would have first interchanged with theA2016then headed south, first throughPlumsteadtowardsPlumstead Commonand then, via open land, to Shooters Hill Road (A207). Controversially, the route was then planned to cross the ancient woodland ofOxleas Woodand the adjacent Shepheardleas Wood to connect to the"Rochester Way Relief Road"(A2) at a junction atFalconwood.[49]

Heading south from the A2, Ringway 2 would have crossed Eltham Warren Golf Course and Royal Blackheath Golf Club to reach theA20atMottinghamwhere its next junction would have been constructed. Next, heading west out of the London Borough of Greenwich, the motorway crossed to Baring Road (theA2212) nearGrove Park station.After this, there was a cut-and-cover tunnel underneath playing fields at Whitefoot Lane, followed by an elevated section over Bromley Road (A21).[49]

West of Bromley Road, Ringway 2 remained on an elevated alignment towardsBeckenham Hill station.From here, it continued through more open land towardsLower Sydenham stationwhere the motorway would have turned south to run alongside the railway line pastNew Beckenham station.It then rose to an interchange with Elmers End Road (A214).[50]Continuing along the railway line south-west ofBirkbeck station,near Cambridge Road there was a proposed interchange with another of the GLC's planned motorways, the"South Cross Route to Parkway D Radial"coming south-east along the railway line from Ringway 1 at Brixton and heading to Ringway 3. Like Ringway 2 this road was never built.[50]

Ringway 2 took another elevated route crossing the railway by Goat House Bridge, before running in a cutting bySouth NorwoodandThornton Heath.It then passed under theBrighton Main Lineup to a major junction with theM23coming north fromMitcham.This area would have required extensive demolition. Taking the easiest alignment, the Ringway continued towards a junction with theA24atColliers Wood.An elevated section alongside theSutton Loop LinebetweenTootingandHaydons Roadtook it up to the Wandle Valley. It crossed theSouth West Main Lineto meet theA3at a major junction inWandsworth.From here, it continued to Putney alongside railways, before meeting the northern section at Chiswick.[50]

In 1970 the GLC expected the 25-mile (40 km) long southern ring to cost £305m, including £63m for property purchases. It would require 1,007 acres (4.08 km2) and affect 5,705 houses.[43]

Ringway 3

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Ringway 3

Ringway 3was a new road, the north section of which became part of theM25fromSouth MimmstoSwanleyvia theDartford Crossing.[58]It was intended for traffic bypassing London, and was a central government scheme outside of the remit of London County Council. The route was roughly based on the earlier "D" ring designed byPatrick Abercrombie.[59]The southern section was never planned in detail, so a specific route does not exist. The section in west London was eventually built to a lower standard as theA312.[58]

Ringway 3 was planned to link the capital's outer suburbs linking areas such asCroydon,Esher,Barnet,Waltham Cross,ChigwellandDartford.[60]Construction began on the first section of the motorway betweenSouth MimmsandPotters Barin 1973 and the motorway was initially designated as theM16 motorwaybefore its opening.[61][62]

While the construction of the first section was in progress, the plan for Ringways 3 and 4 were modified considerably. Broadly speaking, the northern and eastern section of Ringway 3 (from the current junction 23 of theM25 motorwaywith theA1east and south to the current junction 3 with theM20) was to be built and connected to the southern and western section of Ringway 4 to create the M25. The remaining parts of the two rings became redundant.[63]

The South Mimms to Potters Bar section (junction 23 to junction 24) was opened in 1975, temporarily designated as an A-road (A1178).[64]The remaining sections of the northern Ringway 3 were constructed over the next eleven years: the M25 motorway was completed in 1986 with the opening of the Ringway 4 to Ringway 3 linking section from Micklefield to South Mimms (junction 19 to junction 23).[65]

One part of Ringway 3 in west London was eventually built as The Parkway/Hayes Bypass (A312).[66]Unlike many other Ringway proposals it was favourably viewed by local residents, for it solved serious congestion problems. It was one of the few major road schemes approved by the GLC after Labour took control in 1981.[67]

Ringway 4

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Ringway 4

Ringway 4was more commonly known by the names "North Orbital Road" and "South Orbital Road",[68]and was first mentioned in Bressey's report.[69]The southern section became part of theM25andM26fromWrotham HeathtoHunton Bridge.Sections of theA405andA414through Hertfordshire follow its proposed route.[70]The road was planned as a combination of motorway and all-purposedual carriageway,connecting a number of towns around the capital includingTilbury,Epping,Hoddesdon,Hatfield,St Albans,Watford,Denham,LeatherheadandSevenoaks.[71]

Despite its name, the route of Ringway 4 did not make a complete circuit of London. It was, instead, C-shaped. The planned route started at a junction with theM20 motorway(then also being planned) nearWrothaminKentand ran west as motorway around the capital to Hunton Bridge near Watford.[72]From Watford, the road was to head east until it met Ringway 3 nearNavestockinEssex.[73]

Construction began on the first section of the motorway betweenGodstoneand Reigate (junctions 6 to 8) in 1973, and included a junction with theM23 motorwaywhich was under construction at the same time.[62]This opened in 1976; the remaining sections of the southern Ringway 4 were constructed over the next ten years.[74]

While the construction of the first section was in progress, the plan for Ringways 3 and 4 was modified considerably. Broadly speaking, the motorway section of Ringway 4 was to be built and connected to the northern and eastern section of Ringway 3 (from the current M25 junction 23 with theA1clockwise to the current junction 3 with the M20). Two additional sections of motorway were added to the plan to join the two original sections and the remaining parts of the two rings were cancelled. The south-eastern section of Ringway 4 between Wrotham and Sevenoaks was redesignated as theM26.[63]

Except for a deviation from the original plan around Leatherhead, the current M26 and the M25 between junctions 5 and 19 mostly follow the planned Ringway 4 route.[70]One short section of the dual-carriageway portion of Ringway 4 was constructed in Hoddesdon linking the town to theA10.[73]

Legacy

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Ringway 1

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Aerial view of elevated roundabout with flyover passing above and slipways joining from three directions. Construction appears to have recently finished.
Elevated junction of theWest Cross RouteandWestwayshortly after opening. The West Cross Route would have continued under the roundabout with the stubs linking to the northern slip roads.
A long dark building with small windows and upper floors slightly overhanging lower ones. Two pale bands at the overhangs step up and down along the face of the building.
Southwyck HouseinBrixtonwas specifically designed to shield the housing estate behind it from the noise of Ringway 1

In the central London area, only theEast Cross Routeand part of theWest Cross Routeof Ringway 1 were constructed together with the elevatedWestwaywhich linksPaddingtonto NorthKensington.[66]These were all begun and completed before the plan was cancelled. With its elevated roadway on concrete pylons flying above the streets below at rooftop height, the Westway provides a good example of how much of Ringway 1 would have appeared had it been constructed.[75][76]The East Cross route was the only part to be built in its entirety and it includes a permanently unfinished junction atHackney Wickwith the proposed North Cross Route.[47]

Another relic of the scheme isSouthwyck Housein Brixton, which was designed to shield the housing estate to its south from the noise of Ringway 1, leading to its nickname of "Barrier Block".[77]

Ringway 2

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The North Circular Road section of Ringway 2 survived the cancellation of the Ringways. It remained atrunk roadand a 5.5-mile (8.9 km) extension from South Woodford to Barking had land reserved from 1968.[53]This extension was approved in 1976, and opened in 1987.[53][78]Improvements have been made to the existing North Circular, so that most of it is now dual carriageway. However, these have been done in a piecemeal fashion so that the road varies in quality and capacity along its length and still has several unimproved single carriageway sections and awkward junctions.[79]

By comparison, very little has been done to improve the condition of South Circular Road and no part of the southern part of Ringway 2 was built, mainly because of the density of the residential areas through which the route runs. The road remains predominantly single carriageway throughout.[80][81]

Ringways 3 and 4

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Parts of Ringways 3 and 4 were started soon after Ringway 1 was cancelled. The first section of the northern half of Ringway 3 was constructed betweenSouth MimmsandPotters Barand opened in 1975. The first section of Ringway 4 was built betweenGodstoneandReigateand opened the following year.[61]Before the first of these opened, the planned north and east sections of Ringway 3 and the planned south and west sections of Ringway 4 were combined as theM25(the northern part was initially designated as theM16during the planning stages but opened as the M25). The remaining sections of these two circular routes were never built.[63]

M23

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Uncompleted London-bound slipway from theA23to the unbuiltM23north of junction 7, showing an unused bridge

TheM23was particularly affected by the cancellation of the Ringways. The original plan had been to connect it to Ringway 2 nearStreatham,and when the Ringway was cancelled, it was extended to meet Ringway 1 nearStockwell.Once the Ringways were cancelled completely, there seemed little point in finishing the M23 as it would drop all its traffic onto suburban streets.[82]

However, the M23 up to Streatham remained a projected route throughout the 1970s, and appeared on some road atlases of the time. The Wallington M23 Action Group campaigned for the motorway to be formally cancelled, as the inability to develop land along the line of the proposed M23 had led to planning blight in the area.[82]In 1978, the M23 north of Hooley was cancelled, to be replaced by an all-purpose relief road replacing the A23. Some residents complained, saying the motorway should still be built, and that its terminus atHooleycaused a build up of traffic there, and contributed to congestion on other roads. These proposals were cancelled in May 1980.[83]

The M23 to Streatham was briefly revived in 1985 by the GLC after the government had announced plans to spend £1.5 billion on trunk roads in London.[84]In December 2006, the A23 Coulsdon Relief Road opened to traffic. It was one of the few road proposals approved by the anti-carMayor of London,Ken Livingstone,and included a dedicated lane for buses and cycles.[85][86]

Radials

[edit]

Some of the radial routes that were planned to connect to the Ringway system were built much as planned, including theM1andM4.[87]Other radial roads, such as theM3,M11andM23,were truncated on the outskirts of London far from their intended terminal junctions on Ringway 1.[88][89][90]

Later events

[edit]
Coulsdon Relief Road

In 1979, theParliamentary Secretaryto the Ministry of Transport,Kenneth Clarke,announced that the budget for developing London's road network would be cut from £500m to £170m. Several schemes which were roughly on the line of the Ringways, including Ringway 1 atEarl's CourtandFulham,and Ringway 3 atHayes,were cancelled.[91]Upon becoming leader of the GLC in 1981,Ken Livingstonedemanded an audit of all road schemes being worked on, including the remnants of Ringway plans, and cancelled many of them. One of the few schemes that did survive was the A2 Rochester Way Relief Road, the successor to the original Dover Radial. The road was constructed in a cutting instead of the originally proposed elevated build, in order to adhere to new environmental guidelines.[67]

In 2000,Transport for London(TfL) was formed, taking responsibility for all related projects in Greater London, including roads. They did not have responsibility for maintaining any motorways, so the built parts of the Westway and West and East Cross Routes were downgraded to all-purpose roads.[66]TfL has concentrated primarily on improving public transport in London and discouraging the use of private cars where practical.[92]The only new road constructed by TfL has been the A23 Coulsdon Relief Road, which opened in 2006.[93]In a significant departure from the Ringways, the road incorporates abus lanewhich was proposed by Livingstone, thenMayor of London.[94]

The feedback and complaints from the Ringway plans led to an increased interest towardsroad protest in the United Kingdom.These included opposition to transport projects such asTwyford DownandHeathrow Terminal 5and industrial projects such asHinkley Point C nuclear power station.[95]

Documentation

[edit]

The Ringway plans were largely made in secret, and in some cases no definitive route was proposed, which has made it difficult to work out its exact location and impact. Consequently, the project is not particularly well known to the general British public.[20]The website roads.org.uk, run by enthusiast Chris Marshall, has been praised for its level of detail in researching the Ringways, and cited as a definitive source of information.[20][96]

See also

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London ring roads

[edit]

Motorways

[edit]

London orbital railways

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^Barbour 1905,p. 33.
  2. ^Asher 2018,pp. 12–13.
  3. ^Asher 2018,p. 13.
  4. ^abcAsher 2018,p. 15.
  5. ^Dnes 2019,p. 102.
  6. ^Asher 2018,p. 18.
  7. ^Asher 2018,p. 19.
  8. ^Dnes 2019,p. 101.
  9. ^abAsher 2018,p. 21.
  10. ^Asher 2018,p. 23.
  11. ^Asher 2018,p. 25.
  12. ^Asher 2018,pp. 27–28.
  13. ^Asher 2018,p. 31.
  14. ^Baily, Michael (7 January 1969)."London's Motorway Box Controversy – Investing in an answer to more and more traffic".The Times.No. 57452. p. 7.Retrieved8 October2017.
  15. ^Asher 2018,pp. 40–41.
  16. ^Asher 2018,p. 41.
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Bibliography

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