 The road currently begins at junction 7 (Rainhill Stoops) of the M62 motorway in Merseyside, and runs in a northerly direction as a dual carriageway through the centre of St Helens, meeting the A58 road, then the A580 road to the north of the town.The road continues in a north-westerly direction, bypassing Rainford to dual carriageway standard.It crosses the border into Lancashire, before reaching junction 3 of the M58 motorway.