Words by a volunteer
If you have ever travelled westbound on the city centre section of the M8, you may have noticed a junction just before junction 17 that leads to a dead end. This ‘ghost’ junction is shown in the photograph below. Naturally, you may have wondered why such an, ostensibly, superfluous addition to the motorway had been constructed?
The answer to this question is directly linked to Maryhill.
The ‘ghost’ junction on the M8 (The Scotsman)
The origins of the M8 motorway lie in the Bruce Report (or the First Planning Report to the Highways and Planning Committee of the Corporation of the City of Glasgow), which was published in 1945. The Bruce report was essentially a plan for the development of Glasgow which made several recommendations. Had it been implemented fully, central Glasgow would be very different from the central Glasgow that we know today.
For instance, the report recommended the demolition of Central Station, the Royal Infirmary, Glasgow City Chambers, and the Kelvingrove Museum, which did not go forward. However, one of the plan’s recommendations which was implemented was slum clearances and the construction of housing estates (such as Castlemilk, Drumchapel, and Easterhouse) on the periphery of Glasgow’s boundary.
Another of the plan’s recommendations, which was ultimately only partially implemented, was the construction of a box shaped inner Glasgow ring road (encircling Glasgow city centre) connected to several arterial motorways that were to run through four corners of the city.
Completed in 1972, the city centre section of the M8 forms the first half of the circumference of the proposed ring road. One of the arterial motorways was to connect the ring road to a motorway that would run through west of the city. This motorway would have run through Maryhill and was to be named the M81. The now ghost junction would have been the connection between the M8 and Maryhill.
When the plans for the Maryhill motorway were being drawn up, the Forth and Clyde canal was closed to navigation. Part of the route the Maryhill Motorway was to be built on the route of the canal, with the canal being diverted through underground pipes so that local industrial activity that relied of the water suppled by it could continue.
The two images below show the southern portion of the proposed motorway and the northern section of the proposed motorway respectively. The southern section was to connect with the city centre section of the M8 between junction 16 and 17. The plans for the southern section include slip roads on Possil Road and Bilsland Drive. The northern section would have left the route of the canal of Stockingfield lock. It also curved around the, then in the planning stage, Summerston residential development.
Southern Section (Glasgow Motorway Archive)
Northern Section (Glasgow Motorway Archive)
Consultation with the local public took place during the design phase of the Maryhill motorway. For example, a public meeting took place at Woodside Hall on the 26th of October 1972 that was attended by officials from Glasgow Corporation and elected representatives, whilst a public exhibition took place in Methodist Central Hall between the 24th of October 1972 and 28th of October 1972 that was attended by more than 3,300 people.
This public participation influenced the design of the motorway. However, strong opposition to the Maryhill Motorway from residents of Maryhill resulted in plans for its construction to be cancelled in 1975. Interestingly, the local protests included songs, protest marches and public petitions.
Do you have any memories of the Maryhill motorway plan? Were you in favour or did you take part in any protests?
Much more information about the Maryhill Motorway can be found on the website of the Scottish Roads Archive here.