The A590 is a trunk road in southern Cumbria, in the north-west of England. It runs north-east to south-west from M6 junction 36, through the towns of Ulverston and Barrow-in-Furness to terminate at Biggar Bank on Walney Island. The road is a mixture of dual carriageway and single carriageway, with the section east of Low Newton, Cumbria to the M6 being mainly dual. Further dual sections are south of Newby Bridge, south of Greenodd and south of Ulverston. The road is the main route for tourists entering the southern Lake District. It has often humorously been described as "the longest cul-de-sac in the world".

Route

M6 to Ulverston

thumb|left|A590 by-pass at High and Low Newton

From east to west, the A590 originally terminated at the A6 road at Levens Bridge. with an extension of the A590 also being constructed to join this as part of the wider Lancashire expressways plans. This improvement to the A590 also included a realignment and dualling of the road to the west as far as High Newton, by-passing Lindale. In the mid-1990s the A590 was extended eastward through a re-numbering of the A591 between Sizergh and the M6, providing a single road between Barrow-in-Furness and the M6. This new stretch of road was constructed to a high environmental standard and achieved a CEEQUAL Award following its opening in Spring 2008. It connects to the original route to the east of Newby Bridge. The A590 reaches its most northern point at the foot of Windermere, before following the route of the River Leven to its estuary at Greenodd. The road continues westward over the Jubilee Bridge onto Walney Island and terminates at the Irish Sea

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