Motorway

A motorway (Republic of Ireland, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and some Commonwealth of Nations nations) is both a type of road and a classification. Motorways may also be regarded as highways designed to carry a large volume of traffic where a normal road would not suffice or would be unsafe, usually between cities. In the UK they are predominantly dual carriageway roads, usually with three lanes in each direction although four-lane and two-lane carriageways are also common, and all have grade separation Road junction. Equivalent terms in other countries include autoroute, Autobahn, freeway, autostrada, autopista, motorvej, motorv�g and autoput. ==Regulations== Rush_hour_M25_motorway_">Image:Motorway.m25.arp.750pix.jpg|thumb|250px|A Sunday in April 2004 at 5 pm local time on the Rush hour M25 motorway For a road to be classified as motorway a number of conditions must be fulfilled. The following conditions generally apply: * Motorways must be accessed at junctions by slip roads off the sides of the main thorough-fare; * Separate motorways are joined by link-roads at an Road_junction#Interchanges, the object of which is to allow traffic to change route without stopping or slowing significantly; * Traffic lights are not permitted (except at toll booths and certain small interchanges); * The start and end of a motorway must have signposted entry and exit points; * Certain types of transport are banned, typically: pedestrians, bicycles, Driver's licenses, horses, tractor, underpowered vehicles (e.g. small scooters, invalid carriages). In the UK and the Republic of Ireland there are further restrictions: * The central reservation must remain unbroken (a noted exception being the A38(M) motorway in Birmingham, which has none); * Emergency phones must be provided at a regular distance; * A 'minimum speed limit' may apply. ''Note that these only apply to roads directly designated as motorways. Roads may also be indirectly designated as such, see #Inheritance below.'' The construction and surfacing of motorways is generally of a higher standard than conventional roads, and maintenance is carried out more frequently; in particular, motorways drain water very quickly to reduce hydroplaning (road vehicle). Many roads of near-motorway quality, but are not classified as such (generally for breaking one or more of the above rules). These are referred to as dual carriageways, which in Britain usually have the same 70 mph (110 km/h) limit (the limit in Ireland and New Zealand is the regular 100 km/h (65 mph) limit). They may be subject to a lower speed limit (e.g. in urban areas). road_accident_on_the_M4_motorway">Image:Motorway.m4.arp.750pix.jpg|thumb|left|250px|Queues after an road accident on the M4 motorway In Ireland and the UK, motorways are denoted by blue signage (and an M-prefixed road number). Speed limits are generally higher than on ordinary roads, with an overall limit of 70 mph (110 km/h) for cars in the UK. Some types of vehicle may be subject to a lower limit, while often sections of motorway are subject to lower speed limits due to local driving conditions. Lanes closest to the edge of the road are intended for general driving – these are hence the "inside" lanes, while the lanes closest to the median are intended for overtaking (passing) slower moving vehicles – hence they are termed "outside" lanes. Roads in the Republic of Ireland have had metric speed limits since 20 January 2005 to conform both to European convention and to existing directional signage (which has long shown metric distances). The new speed limit introduced for motorways is 120 km/h (75 mph). In New Zealand motorways were historically distinguished from other roads with green signage. This changed with the establishment of Transit New Zealand which extended the use of green signs to the entire state highway network. The speed limit on motorways is fixed at the top limit for state highways, 100 km/h (65 mph). This rule is most in evidence in Wellington where Centennial Highway in the Ngauranga Gorge is not designated as a motorway because of the steep gradiant and consequent low speed limit, despite leading directly into the Johnsonville-Porirua motorway. The Conservative Party (UK) had proposed increasing the UK motorway speed limit to 80 mph (130 km/h), should they have gotten into power at the past election. Many road safety groups feel this would be a good idea, as it more closely represents the normal (and, they claim, safe) driving practice of the majority of motorway users. As in Germany but unlike in some other countries, drivers are not permitted to pass on an inside lane (a lane farther from the median) unless traffic in the 'faster' lanes is stationary. With a touch of black humour, the practice is popularly known as ''undertaking''. ==Features== Republic_of_Ireland_road_markings.">Image:Ireland road lanes.png|frame|Diagram showing lanes and road layout, with Republic of Ireland road markings. The road surface is generally asphalt ('black top') or concrete ('white top'). White dashed lines denote the lane separation, while an unbroken white line is painted alongside the median (usually known as the 'central reservation'). A white line (or in the Republic of Ireland, a yellow line) on the edge of the slow lane marks the edge of the hard shoulder. The hard shoulder is not used for traffic and is reserved for breakdowns or emergency manoeuvres. Generally lanes closer to the centre of the road (passing lanes) are used for overtaking, while lanes near the edge of the road (inner lanes) are used for slower traffic (see diagram on right). In the UK lanes in a given direction are numbered from left to right as lane 1, lane 2, lane 3, etc. Other features are crash barriers, Cat's eye (road)s and increasingly, textured road markings (a similar concept to rumble-strips). In the UK it is a requirement that all motorways have emergency telephone at regular (usually one-mile) intervals which connect directly to the police. The most basic motorway junction is a two-lane flyover with four slip-roads, two on each side of the motorway to exit or enter. A simple crossroads or roundabout is present on either end of the flyover. A rather large version of a roundabout, using two curved flyovers is sometimes used to present a single large junction for users of the slip-roads or crossing road. The slip roads leading off the motorway are known as 'exit sliproads', those leading onto the motorway as 'entry sliproads'. The precise sliproad at any junction may be identified by reference to the direction of the carriageway, for example 'northbound entry slip'. An Irish invention is the signal-controlled roundabout which is often used in these situations. A further degree of complexity is present in Britain with varying types of Spaghetti Junction (england) style interchanges. ==Location and construction== Major intercity or national routes are often built or upgraded to motorway standard. Motorways are also commonly used for ring roads around cities or bypasses of built-up areas. Examples of ring-road motorways are the M25 motorway around London and the M50 motorway (Ireland) around Dublin. In Britain there are plans to improve many motorways as well as to upgrade some roads to motorway status. In the Republic of Ireland, the National Roads Authority has been connecting cities in Ireland with motorways as part of a six-year National Development Plan. The European Union has part-funded many motorway projects in the past, as part of a Trans-European Transport Networks, and there are plans to invest billions of euro in such projects in the next ten years. [[Image:M6Toll.jpg|thumb|250px|Toll charges for the M6 Toll]] The newest UK motorway is the M6 Toll bypassing Birmingham and Wolverhampton, which opened in 2004 and is the only completely toll motorway in England. There are two other tolled sections of motorway (on the M4 motorway and M48 motorway), but only where these motorways cross the Severn Bridges. ==Inheritance== In the United Kingdom, certain types of traffic are not permitted on motorways. Thus, to avoid people being forced to travel illegally, there are a number of rules about stretches of road which must be designated as motorways. In all cases, there must be an escape route for traffic not wishing or not permitted to enter the motorway. As a result, the motorway technically begins as soon as the escape route has diverged from it; e.g. at a grade-separated junction, the motorway starts at the junction with the exiting slip road, and the opposite slip road is also part of the motorway for this and the following reason. As a result, this creates a less-restrictive set of rules for the ''standard'' of the road. Roads whose only destination is a motorway must be assigned motorway status, notwithstanding the possibility of them not being built to normal motoway standards. For example, the A48(M) motorway outside Cardiff begins after the last exit to St Mellons, since by staying on the dual carriageway you cannot get anywhere other than the M4 motorway eastbound; however, the A48(M) is a motorway-grade highway. On the other hand, there are roads such as the A6144(M), a 1.2 mile (2 km) long single-carriageway road, which are classified as such since they lead inescapably to the motorway (in this case, the M60 motorway). ==See also== * List of motorways in the United Kingdom * Roads in Ireland * Freeway (includes links to motorways around the world) * UK topics ==External links== *[http://www.dft.gov.uk/ Department of Transport] (United Kingdom) *[http://www.nra.ie/ National Roads Authority] (Republic of Ireland) *[http://www.europa.eu.int/comm/transport/index_en.html European Union Transport Policy] *[http://www.cbrd.co.uk/motorway/ CBRD Motorway Database] *[http://www.uk-roads.org.uk/ UK Roads Portal] *[http://pathetic.org.uk/ Pathetic Motorways] *[http://web.tiscali.it/archenzo/motorway/enmotor_way.html New concept in motorway design] * of "inheriting" motorway status - the A6 road between the Tramway Lane roundabout and the M61/M65 junction. (Zoom out to see it in motorway colour.) Road transport Transportation in Europe Rights of way zh-cn:高速公路

Motorway

==speed limits== Nice article, but one comment/correction - contrary to what is claimed, British motorway speed limits (at least for cars) are no higher than those on any other unrestricted dual carriageway (70mph). I didn't edit, since I don't know the situation in Ireland.... User:Cambyses 06:03, 11 Mar 2004 (UTC) ---- Thanks, the absolute speed limits here in Ireland are 70mph for motorway, 60mph for National Primary Routes - even if dual-carriageway. (There is some consternation at this). Speed limits will be changing soon to km/h, with slight variations on existing limits, date to be announced sometime in September. All road signs in the country will be updated overnight!!! I don't know the situation with speed limits in Britain, hence my error. If you can clarify the U.K. situation better, please do. I have amended the phrasing to say "generally" higher than ordinary roads. Also mentioned dual-carriageways being lower speeds in Ireland. User:Zoney 15:12, 11 Mar 2004 (UTC) ==Merge flag== I'm not quite sure why the merge flag was put on here (to merge with Freeway as, SFAICT, there are enough different concepts involved that it seems sensible to keep them apart. Freeway is very much a US-only term, 'motorway' however is translated exactly within Europe (autostrad, autobahn, etc)). Disgree with merge therefore --User:VampWillow 22:24, 25 Jun 2004 (UTC) :More Americano-centrism. I've been in the US. None of the various concepts there (freeway, expressway, etc.) entirely co-incide with the British/Irish Motorway. Also the article quite rightly focusses on the British/Irish road classification side of things. Merging? Crazy people. Bah! User:Zoney 19:04, 27 Jun 2004 (UTC) ::You missed the discussion (all on merge page!) and removal of the merge flag ... I did all the merging and separating out earlier today... I'll remove the bit you added about Europe and put it over into the correct articles if you don't mind. --User:VampWillow 19:31, 27 Jun 2004 (UTC) == Inside/outside lanes == So there is apparently inconsistent usage about whether the near-median lanes are the inside or outside. So, I've avoided using that language in this article entirely, to avoid confusion. -- User:Beland 21:36, 17 Oct 2004 (UTC) :Not an option, inside and outside lanes are the terms in use. I'll attempt to better introduce them. User:Zoney ♣ User talk:Zoney 22:15, 17 Oct 2004 (UTC) :Near-median lanes are always termed "outside" lanes, and the others "inside" lanes. In the US, I believe the situation is reversed (I may be wrong), but this article does not apply to the US. (see Freeway). User:Zoney ♣ User talk:Zoney 22:21, 17 Oct 2004 (UTC) ::I further clarified, since the first time I read this article, I ended up asking my English friends why on earth they would be required to pass on the ''shoulder'' side. Personally, I consider the outside lane to be the one closest to the edge (outside) of the roadway, but apparently some Californians consider it to be the other way around as well. Given the difference of opinion on this side of the Atlantic, are you sure that everyone in the UK uses the convention indicated? (Actually, the California driver's handbook says that lanes are officially ''numbered'', lane 1 being the one closest to the median, and that's how the Highway Patrol and traffic reports generally call things, or Nth from the left/right.) -- User:Beland 05:18, 18 Oct 2004 (UTC) :::Standard in the UK and Ireland, possibly elsewhere too. Non-motorists or the un-informed might not be aware of the distinction of course, so it does need explained well! User:Zoney ♣ User talk:Zoney 09:18, 18 Oct 2004 (UTC) ::::Funnily enough, driving manuals in the UK identify the lane ''furthest'' from the central reservation as lane 1, and count up from there. Where traffic is forced onto the hard shoulder, they are on "Lane 0". Besides that, they are numbered from 1-5 (AFAIK, no motorway actually has more than 5 lanes in any one direction). == Feeder routes == I've clipped the following for the moment: :''Other times, the feeder routes are simply classified with the same number as the main motorway.'' I'm not aware of any instances where this is actually the case for something longer than a slip road. The one exception I can think of is the infamous Heathrow spur to the M4 motorway at junction 4, however this doesn't lead inescapably to the motorway - Heathrow Airport is on one side and Hayes is on the other - you could feasibly drive the length of the spur from Hayes to the airport without being forced to join the M4. User:Chriscf 01:17, 10 Mar 2005 (UTC) :Interesting, I think that's the case I had remembered. If it doesn't join the M4, why is it a motorway? They just wanted to ban bikes from it? What's used however when there's a motorway parallel to a road, with a short connector road joining them? Is that designated as a separate highway? --User:SPUI (User talk:SPUI) 00:25, 4 Jan 2003 (UTC) ::There are many short spurs given the same number as the main motorway - other examples to the one given would be on the M1 at junction 10 near Luton, the M1 at Junction 21A near Leicester, the A627(M) has a spur at the central junction, the Gatwick Spur on the M23... == Motorway translations == Besides the Autobahn and autostrada, which are fairly well-known in English-speaking contexts, do the other translations of motorway differ from the average European motorways? User:Karmosin ^{User talk:Karmosin} 19:17, May 26, 2005 (UTC) Autoroute is French. Freeway might have more, not sure. --User:SPUI (User talk:SPUI) 23:16, 26 May 2005 (UTC) ==Service stations== In the UK, at least, service stations are a notable feature of motorways. Could someone write about them, please? User:Pigsonthewing 09:05, 17 Jun 2005 (UTC) : Stub now at Motorway service station. See also :Category:Motorway service stations in the UK.User:Pigsonthewing 13:42, 20 Jun 2005 (UTC)

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Words begining with Motorway:

Motorway
Motorway
Motorways
Motorways_and_highways_of_Pakistan
Motorways_in_Switzerland
Motorways_in_the_Netherlands
Motorway_(Ireland)
Motorway_alphabet
Motorway_Incident_Detection_and_Automatic_Signalling
Motorway_junction
Motorway_service_station
Motorway_service_stations_in_the_UK