Step back in time with fascinating old images of Stamford in Lincolnshire.
Stamford Bypass Opens 1960
In 1960, the opening of the 4.5 mile Stamford Bypass, three months ahead of schedule, attracted the attention of the newsreels.
It cost £1.5 million, and was part of the £50 million Great North Road modernisation scheme.
In addition to images of the completely deserted bypass, we see the traffic thundering round the streets of Stamford, controlled by a traffic policeman perlilously standing in the middle of the road.
Lorries and a car transporter drive down the narrow road surrounded by beautiful, historic buildings.
Ernest Marples, the Minister for Transport, meets some of the workmen before he cuts the ribbon and officially opens the bypass.
He’s then seen in a car driving up the bypass, followed by a lorry from Walton Motors, Haulage Contractors. Within seconds there’s a busy flow of traffic emerging out of the fog on both sides of the road.
The final shots are back in the centre of Stamford, where daily life continues but the lorries have disappeared.
Stamford Gets New Bypass (1960) – British Pathé (YouTube)
