It's hard to imagine Wirral without the M53 - even though the motorway itself only celebrated its 50th birthday this year.
Officially opened to the public on February 1, 1972, the busy 18-mile mid-Wirral motorway connects the Kingsway Tunnel in Wallasey and the A55 in Chester, passing through Moreton, Woodchurch, Eastham and Ellesmere Port.
As well as being a vital part of Wirral's transport infrastructure, it has also been used as a demarcation line between the "haves" and "have nots." In 2017, an "M53 divide" was identified by Wallasey MP Angela Eagle, when she described the pattern of poverty in Wirral as "particularly stark", adding: "If a line is drawn down the M53, the difference in life expectancy between the west side and the poorest parts of the east side is 10 years."
