 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Looking west near Hartford | ||||
| Route information | ||||
| Maintained by Cheshire East Council Cheshire West and Chester Council National Highways | ||||
| Length | 19 mi (31 km) | |||
| Major junctions | ||||
| Southwest end | Delamere 53°12′41″N 2°40′50″W / 53.211468°N 2.680578°W | |||
 A54
 M56 | ||||
| Northeast end | Rostherne 53°22′07″N 2°23′11″W / 53.368722°N 2.386351°W | |||
| Location | ||||
| Country | United Kingdom | |||
| Counties | Cheshire | |||
| Primary destinations | Northwich | |||
| Road network | ||||
| ||||
The A556 is a road in England which extends from the village of Delamere in Cheshire West and Chester to the Bowdon Interchange in Cheshire East, bordering Greater Manchester.[1][2] The road contains a mixture of single and dual carriageway sections and forms a large part of the route between Manchester and Chester. It also acts as a major access route to Chester/North Wales to the west and to Manchester to the east for the conurbation of towns and villages around the Dane Valley centering on Winsford and Northwich. The central part, which forms the Northwich Bypass between Davenham and Lostock Gralam, suffers because of the amount of commuter traffic from this area. The part of the route between the M6 motorway Junction 19 and the M56 motorway Junction 7 is a major route into Manchester and has been recently upgraded to a four-lane dual carriageway.
The road is frequently congested, carrying approximately 80,000 vehicles per day in 2020 between the M6 and M56 and 45,000 vehicles per day From the A533 Junction for Winsford and Northwich to the M6.[citation needed] The road has a high accident record; between 1998 and 2005, there were around 200 accidents, resulting in 5 fatalities and 39 people being seriously injured.[3]
This road occupies part of the intended route for the original M60 motorway which would have provided a motorway bypass for Sale, Altrincham and Stretford. The plans were revived as the A556(M) but the road was finally built as the current all-purpose A556. The former A6144(M) which started at the M63 (now M60) Junction 8 occupies another section of the planned M60.
- ^ "Bowden Roundabout". Google maps. Retrieved 25 September 2018.
- ^ 109 Manchester (Map). 1:50000. Landranger. Ordnance Survey.
- ^ "A556 Knutsford to Bowdon Environmental Improvement". Highways Agency. Archived from the original on 4 July 2008. Retrieved 21 January 2008.