page_title: Snake Pass
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Snake Pass / History
caption_attribution_description: English: Snake Pass Inn.
context_page_description: Snake Pass is a hill pass in the Derbyshire section of the Peak District, crossing the Pennines between Glossop and the Ladybower Reservoir at Ashopton. The road was engineered by Thomas Telford and opened in 1821. The pass carries the A57 road between Manchester and Sheffield, but it is no longer the main signposted route between those two cities.
  Like several other roads that cross the Pennines, Snake Pass has a poor accident record compared with roads in the UK generally, although more favourable compared with other roads in the area. It is regularly closed in winter because of snow, and has seen several longer-term closures owing to subsidence following heavy rain. The road remains a popular route for tourists and motorcycles, however, and sections have been used for semi-professional cycling races such as the Tour of Britain.
context_section_description: The first road between Glossop and Ashopton was the Doctor's Gate, that follows the Shelf Brook between Shelf Moor and Coldharbour Moor. It is marked on some maps as a Roman Road, though this is disputed. The route is now popular with walkers and mountain bikers. In 1932, an Iron Age axe thought to be more than 2,000 years old was found near the site of this road.
  The current road further south was designed as a toll road by Thomas Telford to improve communications east of Glossop, which was expanding as an industrial town. It was originally called the Sheffield to Glossop Turnpike and run by a turnpike trust, the Sheffield and Glossop Trust. An act of parliament to build the road was passed in 1818, and construction was financed by the Duke of Norfolk and the Duke of Devonshire. The road opened in 1821, having cost £18,625 to build. Upon opening, it was the highest turnpike road in England. The road was immediately popular and increased toll collections of traffic heading to Glossop. Tolls were abolished on the road in June 1870.
  The eastern end of the pass is by the River Derwent. The river is bridged by the Ashopton Viaduct, built as part of the Ladybower Reservoir project between 1935 and 1945.
  Although Snake Pass is still the shortest route between Manchester and Sheffield, the more northerly Woodhead Pass, which is less steep and at a lower altitude, is now the primary road link between the two cities. Unlike Snake Pass, the Woodhead route is a trunk road. Traffic levels on both passes remained similar until the 1980s, but the Woodhead Pass route is now favoured as it connects directly to the M1, while Snake Pass leads into the centre of Sheffield. Despite Sheffield and Manchester being among the largest UK cities by population, there is no direct motorway link between the two. A Manchester to Sheffield motorway was first proposed in 1966, and a small section bypassing Denton and Hyde has been built, now the M67. In 1979, the Department for Transport considered closing the road with traffic to be diverted to use the A628. The Woodhead Tunnel was closed in 1981 in anticipation of a road replacement, but linking the cities would have meant constructing many costly tunnels and viaducts across the Peak District. Consequently, the plans were shelved, but reports in December 2014 announced a revival of the scheme.
  The road remains popular with drivers. In 2008, a survey by Caterham Cars rated Snake Pass the best driving road in the UK. The following year, it was listed as one of the best roads for driving in Britain by Auto Trader magazine, who described it as "offering unparalleled views over Manchester".
caption: The Snake Pass Inn was originally called the Snake Inn, but is now named after the pass itself, which in turn was named after the pub.
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