Gallows Corner
{{Short description|Road junction in Romford, Greater London, England}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2015}}
{{Use British English|date=September 2015}}
{{Infobox UK place
| official_name = Gallows Corner
| static_image_name = File:Gallows Corner, Romford, Essex - geograph.org.uk - 20184.jpg
| static_image_caption = Gallows Corner in 2005
| coordinates = {{coord|51.592|0.217|display=inline,title}}
| os_grid_reference = TQ535905
| charingX_distance_mi = 15.8
| charingX_direction = WSW
| london_borough = Havering
| region = London
| country = England
| post_town = ROMFORD
| postcode_area = RM
| postcode_district = RM2, RM3
| dial_code = 01708
| constituency_westminster = Romford
}}
Gallows Corner is a major road junction in Romford in Greater London, England. It was the site of the gallows of the Liberty of Havering, hence the name.
History
{{Annotated image
| image = Map_of_Essex_Sheet_066,_Ordnance_Survey,_1872-1890.jpg
| image-width = 4400
| image-left = -4150
| image-top = -1800
| width = 250
| height = 250
| float = right
| annotations =
| caption = Map of the former T-junction in about 1880.Map_of_Essex_Sheet_066,_Ordnance_Survey,_1872-1890
}}
During the 18th century, Gallows Corner was a copse-sided part of the road and, approachable by meagre path only from the south or various small lanes in other directions, a favourite spot for waylaying coaches. It was close to the site for the gallows, thought to be north of what is now Eastern Avenue (west), on a grassy stretch below Masefield Crescent. Several entries in the Romford registers of burials of felons confirm many of those executed there in the 16th and 17th centuries. In grounds of Ravensbourne School is where the small jail stood where the condemned were held.{{citation needed|date=March 2021}}
The former name of Straight Road was Gallows Lane.https://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/#zoom=17&lat=51.59&lon=0.21&layers=168&b=7 National Library of Scotland: old Ordnance Survey maps with interactive open-source maps superimposable.
Junction
The current junction is a large roundabout with five exits and a flyover. The exits are:
- Westbound: A12 (Eastern Avenue), towards central London.
- South-westbound: A118 (Main Road), towards Romford.
- South-eastbound: A127 (Southend Arterial Road), towards Southend-on-Sea.
- North-eastbound: A12 (Colchester Road), towards East Anglia.
- Northbound: Straight Road, a minor road towards Harold Hill.
Flyover
The flyover links Eastern Avenue (East) with the Southend Arterial Road. According to the Romford Recorder it was erected in 1970 by Terry and Co; it takes the form of a system of prefabricated units (called the Braithwaite FliWay) that was cheaper and quicker to build than a conventional underpass or cast in-situ flyover.{{cite news |title=It's quicker and safer by the Braithwaite FliWay |author=Braithwaite & Co. Structural Limited |url=http://www.ciht.org.uk/download.cfm/docid/373AC4B0-BA17-49EB-ABEE8DB3F41FF267 |newspaper=The Journal of the Institution of Highway Engineers |date=November 1971 |access-date=23 November 2011 |page=2}} It is notorious for being angular, with sudden changes of slope rather than a smooth arch. The flyover was closed for several months in 2008 for remedial work carried out to the road deck, with several sections replaced. It was found in final inspection that the bridge parapets had suffered severe corrosion. The bridge was fitted with emergency barriers which meant that traffic was restricted to one lane in the London-bound (westbound) direction only. It re-opened to two-way traffic in 2009.{{cite web|url=http://www.tfl.gov.uk/static/corporate/media/newscentre/archive/12274.html |title=Gallows Corner flyover to open today - five weeks early |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120425181747/http://www.tfl.gov.uk/static/corporate/media/newscentre/archive/12274.html |archive-date=25 April 2012 |df=dmy }}
Roundabout
{{Update|section|date=September 2024}}
The junction has an above-average number of collisions. Transport for London has put forward proposals to make the junction safer by changing the roundabout layout, adding new white lines and guidance markings, and extending the reduced speed limits on the approaches to the junction. Works were expected to start during spring 2018.{{cite web|title=Gallows Corner Consultation Report|url=https://consultations.tfl.gov.uk/roads/gallows-corner-road-safety/}}
Works did not, however, commence in 2018; the local radio station Time 107.5 reported in July 2021 that TfL was planning to submit a bid to the Department of Transport in Spring 2022 to access £50m of Government funding to address the issues with the junction.{{cite web|title=TfL to submit case to DfT |date=23 July 2021 |url=https://www.time1075.net/170647-2-tfl-business-case-gallows-corner-spring/}} In 2025 work began to make improvements to the roundabout. It is expected it will be totally closed from June - September for work to be done.
In media
The junction is referred to in the film Layer Cake.