A666 road

The A666 is a major road in Greater Manchester and Lancashire, England. Known as Manchester Road, Bolton Road, or Blackburn Road, depending on which area it is in, it runs from its junction with the A6, M61 and A580 at the Irlams o' th' Height boundary with Pendlebury near Manchester, through Pendlebury, Clifton, Kearsley, Farnworth, Bolton, Darwen and Blackburn before meeting the A59 at Langho. Along the route are the West Pennine Moors, the Turton and Entwistle reservoir and the Entwistle reservoir forest.

Anchor Hotel on the A666 Blackburn Road in Darwen

A666
A666 near Farnworth
Major junctions
South end	Pendlebury 53.5025°N 2.3103°W
	A6 A6044 M60 A667 M61 A6053 A575 A579 A676 A673 A6099 A58 A675 M65 A6062 A6078 A6119 A59
North end	Langho 53.8086°N 2.4448°W
Location
Primary destinations	Bolton Blackburn
Road network
Roads in the United Kingdom Motorways A and B road zones

It is sometimes referred to as the Devil's Highway[1] or the Devil's Road because of Biblical associations of its number 666, and its high accident rate on the moors between Egerton and Darwen. Officially, a short length from the M61 Kearsley spur and bypassing Farnworth to central Bolton is called St. Peter's Way.

Because of a crash rate that was three times higher than other motorways in the borough, with 26 vehicle collisions and crashes a year and 40 people injured, road works and other changes were introduced, including the speed limit changed from 70 mph to 50 mph, speed cameras, better safety fencing, banning cyclists from the road, and slip road changes. Finished at the start of 2000, these reduced road accidents by 60%.[1]

See also

• List of highways numbered 666

References

1. "No longer the Devil's highway". Bolton Evening News. Newsquest Media Group. 13 February 2002. Archived from the original on 11 September 2014. Retrieved 11 April 2008.

External links

• SABRE A666 page