Ware and Hertford bypass opens

Traffic congestion in Ware High Street had been a problem for a while and in the 1960s, many old buildings were under threat from the controversial ‘inner relief road’.

Instead, a flyover was planned over the King’s meads.  At 716 metres long, the 19 span viaduct is 65ft high at one point, cost £3.6m and used 42,000 tons of concrete.

The contractor was Kier Ltd and work started in November 1973 to a design approved by the Royal Fine Arts Commission.  It was not an easy task due to the soil, the river and the railway. On Tuesday 17th August 1976, it was finally opened by the Chairman of the County Highways Committee, Brian Hall.  According to the Mercury, Ware High Street was ‘becalmed in minutes’