A500

The A500 is a very strange road. It's an urban access road for Stoke-on-Trent which continues north-westward to serve Crewe. What really makes it distinctive, though, is that it's such a clever idea.

In a rare and alarming outbreak of joined-up planning, the important M6 is spared the trouble (suffered when passing through the populous areas near Birmingham and Manchester) of multiple local access points. Instead, it has from the outset taken a decorous sweep past the Potteries, connecting only to the A500 at junctions 15 and 16, and otherwise clocking up the miles without being distracted.

The A500 itself does all the work in between, forming an arc around the east side of the motorway. The two of them form the shape of a capital D, and for that reason the A500 is sometimes nicknamed the Stoke "D-road".

Since 2006, it's been entirely grade-separated between its terminal roundabouts. And hurrah for that. Unlike almost any other urban area in the UK, Stoke-on-Trent has a fast arterial route zooming traffic in, out and through the city. The A50 cross-country route was plugged in to the A500 at Sideway in the late 1990s, as if to confirm that this is the backbone of the whole road network in the Potteries.

Stoke-on-Trent is, of course, no ordinary city. It's not really a city at all, rather a coalition of towns and villages that add up to something the size of a city but without a real central point. The railway station, lying alongside the A500, often looks a bit lost, and the nominal centre of Stoke is actually at Hanley. Motorists are advised to treat signs on the A500 for "city centre" with caution.

Since it was first created in the mid-1960s, the A500 has been extended west from junction 16 to reach Crewe more easily, and in recent years, further still to bypass Hough and Shavington. Everything west of the M6 is of a much lower standard (in fact, it's downright disappointing in comparison to the D-road) and so does not appear in the exit list or factfile here.

The number A500 is not, of course, native to these parts: its closest relative around Stoke is probably A519. It started life in central London, running from the A5 near Marble Arch towards Finchley, including what was then the spanking-new Hendon Way. The A41 requisitioned this route, freeing up the A500 number, at which point it donned its hat and coat, and went to start a new life in Staffordshire.

You're not looking at the whole A500

This page is about the parts of the A500 that are designated a motorway or that have motorway characteristics. Other sections of this road will not be featured here and will not count towards the length of the road as shown below.

Start

Barthomley

End

Hanchurch

Passes

Stoke-on-Trent, Newcastle-under-Lyme

Connects to

M6, A50

Length

11 miles

Exit list

Symbols and conventions are explained in the key to exit lists. You can click any junction to see its full details.

Junction   Northbound               Southbound  
M6 J16
18.6 km
The SOUTH
Stafford
M6 Link
Crewe
Nantwich
A500
The NORTH WEST
Manchester
Liverpool
Preston
M6 Link
Alsager
B5078















M6 (S)
NORTH
A500














B5078
M6 (N)
N/A
LanesLanesLanesLanes LanesLanesLanesLanes
1 mile, 2 lanes 1 mile, 2 lanes
16.8 km Audley Audley
LanesLanesLanesLanes LanesLanesLanesLanes
2.5 miles, 2 lanes 2.5 miles, 2 lanes
13.3 km Congleton
A34
A34 A34 Newcastle-under-Lyme
Congleton
A34
LanesLanesLanesLanes LanesLanesLanesLanes
1 mile, 2 lanes 1 mile, 2 lanes
11.5 km Kidsgrove
A527
Longbridge Hayes
Ind Est
A527 Kidsgrove
A527
Longbridge Hayes
Ind Est
LanesLanesLanesLanes LanesLanesLanesLanes
1 mile, 2 lanes 1 mile, 2 lanes
9.6 km Tunstall A5271
Burslem
(B5051)
Porthill B5370
B5370 A5271
(B5051)
Tunstall
A5271
Burslem
(B5051)
LanesLanesLanesLanesLanes LanesLanesLanesLanesLanes
0.5 miles, 3 lanes 0.5 miles, 3 lanes
8.7 km Newcastle-under-Lyme
A527
A527 Newcastle-under-Lyme
A527
Retail Park
LanesLanesLanesLanesLanes LanesLanesLanesLanesLanes
1 mile, 2 lanes 1 mile, 2 lanes
7.2 km Newcastle-under-Lyme
Hanley
Leek
A53
A53 A53 Newcastle-under-Lyme
Hanley
Leek
A53
LanesLanesLanesLanes Signs LanesLanesLanesLanes Signs
0.5 miles, 2 lanes 0.5 miles, 2 lanes
6.1 km Newcastle-under-Lyme
Etruria
B5045
B5045 B5045
LanesLanesLanesLanesLanes LanesLanesLanesLanesLanes
0.5 miles, 3 lanes 0.5 miles, 3 lanes
5.3 km


A5006

A5006



A5006
Stoke-on-Trent
City Centre
Hanley
Fenton
A5006 (A52)
LanesLanesLanesLanesLanes LanesLanesLanesLanesLanes
0.5 miles, 2 lanes  
4.5 km A52 A52
  0.5 miles, 2 lanes
4.1 km Stoke-on-Trent
City Centre
Hanley
A52 (A5006)
LanesLanesLanesLanesLanes LanesLanesLanesLanesLanes
0.5 miles, 3 lanes 0.5 miles, 3 lanes
3.1 km Uttoxeter
Derby
A50 Link
Sideway
Britannia Stadium
A5006


A5006
A50



Uttoxeter
Derby
A50 Link
Sideway
Britannia Stadium
A5006
LanesLanesLanesLanesLanes LanesLanesLanesLanesLanes
1 mile, 2 lanes 1 mile, 2 lanes
1.7 km Stone
Hanford
A34
A34 A34 Stone
Hanford
A34
LanesLanesLanesLanes Signs LanesLanesLanesLanes Signs
1 mile, 2 lanes 1 mile, 2 lanes
M6 J15
0.0 km
N/A A519

M6 (N)












SOUTH
A519
(A5182)

M6 (S)











Northwood
Whitchurch
A519 (A5182)
The SOUTH
Stafford
M6 Link
The NORTH WEST
Manchester
Liverpool
Preston
M6 Link
LanesLanesLanesLanes LanesLanesLanesLanes Signs
Routes

Picture credits

With thanks to Peter Edwardson for information on this page.

In this section

What's new

Oxford's Ground Zero

Oxford's Zero Emission Zone is just a trial, but transport policy in Oxford has become the catalyst for pitched battles and drawn in protestors from across the UK. What's happening to this genteel university town?

2023 end of year message

It’s been a quiet year for Roads.org.uk, but we will be back to our usual schedule soon.

London’s other forgotten motorways

We’ve spent years documenting the unbuilt urban motorway network planned for London. Today we’re unveiling more new routes that have never been seen before!

Share this page

Have you seen...

Queensway Tunnel

The engineering marvel of its day, much altered and maligned ever since: this is the original Mersey Tunnel in all its glory.

About this page

Published

Last updated