The A57, known as Snake Pass, is a scenic road connecting Greater Manchester and Sheffield through the Peak District. However, its beauty comes with challenges as constant movement due to shale landslip deposits and frequent winter closures pose persistent headaches for Derbyshire County Council.
It's one of the country's most notorious roads - linking Greater Manchester with another major northern city. But officials have now painted a perilous picture over the future of Snake Pass .
The road is constantly moving, having been built on historic shale landslip deposits. It is often the first route to close and last to reopen each winter due to bouts of snow on the higher reaches of the peaks, with laborious diversions then required for the road, which is used by 30,000 vehicles a week.
The Snake Pass route will be temporarily closed again from October 14 to 25 for surface repairs to the Gillott Hey and Alport landslip sections. This will involve raised sections of the rippling road being trimmed off and a new top layer being added, in a tentative bid to avoid adding more weight. Mr Gould said: "Not knowing the specific details of the Pennine Tunnel, I am sure if it was carried out properly it could give some benefits but I am not sure it would negate the need for this cross-Pennine route - but I would need to look at it in more detail. It is not something we have particularly considered because it is not something that is immediately available to us, but anything that gives relief to this route would be welcome.
Brackets holding up the infrastructure, which are supposed to point upwards, now lean backwards and sideways. Mr Gould said: "Long-term these fixes are not cost-effective. We are doing our best to manage it within the constraints of the budget we have got and are doing our best to retain access.
Snake Pass Derbyshire Highways Climate Change Road Maintenance
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