The M1 motorway connects London to Leeds, where it joins the A1 near Aberford, to connect to Newcastle. It was the first inter-urban motorway to be completed in the UK; the first motorway in the count
Looking north towards junction 37 on one of the few stretches that remain three-lane, 2007
Looking north from B579 bridge at Chalton. Former cement works at Sundon to the right (May 1958)
Looking north from a similar position south of Toddington services (July 1959)
The motorway through the west of Charnwood Forest in March 2012
The Preston Bypass was the United Kingdom's first motorway, opened in 1958. It was designed and engineered by Lancashire County Council surveyor James Drake as part of a larger initiative to create a
M1 motorway
…A1(M) near Aberford, to connect to Newcastle. It was the first inter-urban motorway to be completed in the UK; the first motorway in the country was the Preston Bypass, which later became part of the M6. The motorway is 193 miles (311 km) long and was constructed in four phases. Most of the motorway was opened between…
The bypass under construction, 5 December 1958
Plaque to commemorate the opening of the bypass
The bypass being used shortly after opening, 1958