The road played a crucial role in offering development opportunities during the early 20th century, at a time when slum housing was being cleared in Liverpool City Centre and land was sought for new housing.

Construction of the road began in the early 20th century[3] and was designed by civil engineer John Alexander Brodie.

[4] Initially conceived with tram tracks running along the centre of the road, it was ultimately decided that a dual-carriageway formation was necessary in order to handle the anticipated increased traffic volumes.

[3] Extensive parts of the carriageway were planted with uniformly spaced out trees along lengthy sections, long before any planned built development in the surrounding area.

The road played a significant role during the 1920s and 1930s, when new areas for housing development were required to rehouse people from slum clearances in the city centre.