29-732: The Edinburgh City Bypass , designated as A720 , is one of the most important trunk roads in Scotland. Circling around the south of Edinburgh , as the equivalent of a ring road for the coastal city, it links together the A1 towards north-east England, the A702 towards north-west England, the M8 through the Central Belt towards Glasgow , the A7 through south-east Scotland and north-west England as well as
58-524: A " T ". Connecting roads were classified as 'link roads", and had route numbers prefixed by an " L ". Many of these roads had their origins in historic routes , including turnpike roads . Although a number of old road signs using these route designations may still be encountered, Ireland has adopted a newer classification scheme of national primary and national secondary routes ("N" roads), regional roads , and local roads . "N" roads remain equivalent to trunk roads in that they are planned and managed at
87-517: A full network map of trunk roads and motorways in England. Most interurban trunk roads are primary routes , the category of roads recommended for long distance and freight transport. Not all primary routes are trunk roads, the difference being that maintenance of trunk roads is paid for by national government bodies rather than the local councils in whose area they lie. Primary routes are identified by their direction signs, which feature white text on
116-566: A geological fault that crosses the bypass here, and the area having (at the time) active coal mining. In 2015, an upgrade for the Sheriffhall Junction was prepared, with four options for grade separation. In 2020, plans to add a grade-separated through route were costed at £120 million. The project was criticised by the Scottish Greens , who stated that it would induce demand . The flyover is expected to open in 2027, but
145-630: A green background with route numbers in yellow. Trunk roads, like other "A" roads, can be either single- or dual-carriageway. Historically, trunk roads were listed on maps with a "T" in brackets after their number, to distinguish them from non-trunk parts of the same road, however this suffix is no longer included on current Ordnance Survey maps, which simply distinguish between primary and non-primary "A" roads. A trunk road which has been upgraded to motorway standards may retain its original "A" number, but with an "M" in brackets to denote that motorway regulations apply on it. Long distance examples of this are
174-597: A plan of the route being detrunked. The routes to be detrunked (as set out in detrunking orders) are not always linear sections, but can be split into multiple sections, and span multiple counties. In England, the government has de-trunked much of the trunk road network since the late 1990s, transferring responsibility to local councils to allow National Highways to concentrate on a selection of core trunk routes, mostly dual carriageways and motorways. The most important roads in Sweden are labelled "national trunk road". In 1982,
203-1183: A separate system of highway and road traffic law. At that time, 4,500 miles (7,200 km) of British roads were classified as trunk roads. Additional roads have been "trunked", notably in the Trunk Roads Act 1946 ( 9 & 10 Geo. 6 . c. 30). Others, like virtually all British motorways, have entered the system as a result of new construction. As of 2004, Great Britain had 7,845 mi (12,625 km) of trunk roads, of which 2,161 mi (3,478 km) were motorways. Since 1994, trunk roads in England have been managed by National Highways (formerly Highways England, and before that, Highways Agency), while Scotland has had responsibility for its own trunk roads since 1998 ; these are currently managed by Transport Scotland , created in 2006. The Welsh Government has had responsibility for trunk roads in Wales since its establishment in 1998 . England has 4,300 miles (6,900 km), Scotland has 1,982 miles (3,190 km) and Wales has 1,048 miles (1,687 km) of trunk roads, inclusive of motorways. National Highways publishes
232-602: A special, slightly larger budget. However, they are not signed in any special way. Therefore, there is no difference in signage, numbering, road standard or map marking from other national roads. Some national roads are only considered trunk for part of their length. National Roads 73 and 75 are both built to motorway standard and have high traffic, but are not considered trunk. European routes are always trunk in Sweden, and are more visible with special numbering. In Ireland, major roads were previously classified under an old system as "trunk roads", and had route numbers prefixed by
261-585: Is a major road in Scotland that runs from Dumfries to Edinburgh . The A701 leaves Dumfries and travels north to meet the A74(M) east of Beattock . It then passes beneath the A74(M) before continuing to the north-east towards Moffat and ultimately Edinburgh. The road can be an alternative to the A7 or A702 routes to Edinburgh from the A74(M) and M6 . It is signposted as a scenic route to Edinburgh from
290-528: Is a traffic-light controlled roundabout and the traffic problems of forcing all through A720 traffic to halt is worsened by the importance of the roads which intersect here – the A7 which leads north to the city centre and south to Carlisle , the former A68 which now leads to Dalkeith and the A68, and the A6106. Traffic jams are common at most times of day. The junction was not built with grade separation because of
319-639: Is one of those roads. The A720 forms part of European route E15 , which runs from Inverness , in northern Scotland, to Algeciras , in southern Spain. North of Gogar, the E15 runs towards the A90 and the Queensferry Crossing; and south of Old Craighall on the A1 . A720 was built in sections between 1980 and 1989. The first section built was the Colinton section (A702 to Baberton) opened in 1981, with
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#1732783078147348-659: Is sometimes used more generically to refer to other categories of major highway. In the United Kingdom, trunk roads were first defined for Great Britain in the Trunk Roads Act 1936 ( 1 Edw. 8. & 1 Geo. 6 . c. 5). Thirty major roads were classed as trunk roads, and the Minister of Transport took direct control of them and the bridges across them. The Trunk Roads Act came into force in England and Wales on 1 April 1937, and in Scotland on 16 May 1937. This development did not extend to Northern Ireland , which has always had
377-604: Is still subject to controversy. This is a small junction which is for the A772, that used to be the A7 until the mid-1990s. This road leads to Cameron Toll shopping centre as well as the A701 and the city centre. There is evidence that western slip-roads were considered at the roundabout to join the A772. This junction offers only connections to and from the west on the A720. Just shortly after
406-571: The A1(M) in England, and the A74(M) in Scotland. It is possible for roads to be "de-trunked" – for example, when superseded by a motorway following a similar route – in which case they normally become ordinary "A" roads . When a road is de-trunked, signposts are often replaced, and sometimes route numbers are changed, making the original route of the road harder to follow. Roads are formally and legally detrunked by statutory instruments named 'Detrunking (or sometimes De-Trunking ) Orders' which include
435-598: The A74(M) to Carlisle and the M6 . This junction primarily provides access to the only services on the bypass. Local roads including the B701, and Dreghorn Barracks are also accessed from this junction. This junction was the original western terminus of the road. It provides direct access to the suburb of Baberton and indirect access to the A70 , for Lanark, or the centre of Edinburgh. This junction offers only connections to and from
464-613: The A8 leading to the M9 for Stirling and the Queensferry Crossing . The road is dual carriageway standard throughout, including emergency laybys and hard shoulders in areas. The road is classed as a special road in legal terms. Every motorway in the UK is termed a special road in that specific regulations govern its use. Not every special road is classed as a motorway and this bypass
493-675: The national highways and expressways in India . The term "trunk road" sometimes appears in the names of specific routes, most famously the Grand Trunk Road . In Canada, core national routes are part of the National Highway System , which receive some funding and strategic planning from the federal government, but are managed by the provinces. In China, major national roads are part of China National Highways and Expressways of China . A701 road The A701
522-639: The national roads network in Poland are similar models of nationally planned and managed major highways. In the United States, the U.S. Highway and Interstate Highway systems fulfil a similar role to trunk roads. However, individual states are responsible for actual highway construction and maintenance, even though the federal government helps fund these activities. The states of Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin designate their highways as "state trunklines" or "(state) trunk highways". In India they are
551-572: The A8. From this junction, traffic can proceed into Edinburgh City Centre by an alternative route through Corstorphine , or can head west to Edinburgh Airport and the M9 for Stirling, with connecting roads leading to all places north. Trunk road A trunk road is a major highway with a specific legal classification in some jurisdictions, notably the United Kingdom , Sweden and formerly Ireland . Trunk roads are planned and managed at
580-680: The Dreghorn junction opening circa 1985. Next up was the Sighthill section (Baberton to A8 at Gogarburn) which opened in late 1986. 1988 saw two sections open: the Burdiehouse section (A702 to A701) in the summer followed in the autumn by the section between the A68 at Sheriffhall and the A1 at Old Craighall. The last section was completed in 1989 around the Gilmerton junction. The A720 starts at
609-570: The Gilmerton junction, comes the Lasswade junction. Like the Gilmerton junction, this junction offers only connections to and from the west on the A720. This junction includes access to Straiton Retail Park, Costco, and IKEA. This junction also provides access to the A701 and southern suburbs. This junction was the original eastern terminus of the road. This is a major junction with the A702 , which provides access to western England, via Abington and
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#1732783078147638-597: The Old Craighall junction in the east where it meets the A1 , from which traffic can approach Edinburgh city centre from the east, or run past Musselburgh and Haddington on the way to England. This junction comes shortly after the eastern start of the A720, which was completed in 2008 as the Dalkeith Northern Bypass of the A68 . This is a crucial route for traffic to south-east Scotland. In 2013
667-408: The eastern stretch of the A720. The centre of these junctions are within half a mile of each other, with a tangle of inter-weaving slips roads, flyovers, and underpasses between and either side of them. The A71 meets the bypass at a roundabout over the carriageway, and the M8 terminates at a roundabout under the carriageway, along with access to Hermiston Gait retail park. The A71 provides one of
696-500: The main routes into Edinburgh via Calder Road, and west to Livingston and Kilmarnock. The M8 runs to Glasgow and provides direct access to the M9 for Stirling, and via the M90 to the Queensferry Crossing . Finally the road swings north to finish on the A8 at Gogar Roundabout. The original junction was a simple roundabout connecting both roads, and access to South Gyle and Edinburgh Park. The roundabout now has an underpass for traffic on
725-456: The motorway. The A701 is popular with motorcyclists and passes close to the edge of the Devil's Beef Tub . It runs also parallel with the former Talla Railway for several miles. A relief road for a stretch of the A701 running between Penicuik and Edinburgh has a been proposed and is being phased. The decision has been contested for many years, as the bypass will form a bottle neck back into
754-570: The national level by the National Roads Authority . Some former trunk roads, or sections of former trunk roads, became non-trunk regional roads under the new road numbering system introduced in the 1970s and 1980s. More recently, sections of former national primary routes which have been bypassed by motorways or other road improvement schemes have been downgraded to regional road status. The route nationale system in France and
783-417: The national-level, distinguishing them from non-trunk roads which are managed by local authorities. Trunk roads are important routes usually connecting two or more cities, ports, airports and other places, which is the recommended route for long-distance and freight traffic . Many trunk roads have segregated lanes in a dual carriageway , or are of motorway standard. The term trunk road, or trunk highway ,
812-493: The parliament decided upon which roads were to become national trunk roads. They are considered recommended main roads for long-distance traffic. They were also supposed to be used for movement and transport of heavy military vehicles, ordnance and logistics and during wartime were to be guarded and defended at all odds. National trunk roads are planned and managed by the national Swedish Transport Administration , as opposed to other roads, which are planned locally. They also have
841-406: The road between Millerhill and Sheriffhall was temporarily diverted for the construction of a new underbridge serving the rebuilt Edinburgh-Galashiels railway line , as the original railway had been closed and was built over when the bypass was built. About 1.5 miles further is the most congested junction on the bypass. Whereas all the other junctions on the bypass are grade separated , Sheriffhall
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