Information AboutA5 Road |
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ROUTE London to Milton Keynes Starting at Marble Arch , the A5 runs north-west up the Edgware Road . The A5 as numbered disappears near Edgware , but continues as the A5183 from through Elstree , Borehamwood , Radlett , St Albans and Redbourn , to junction 9 of the M1 , where it becomes numbered as the A5 again. The road passes through the village of Markyate , then travels through the main shopping precinct of Dunstable , where there is a campaign for a bypass. North of Dunstable, there is a roundabout for nearby Woburn and a little later the road enters the borough of Milton Keynes at Little Brickhill , where there is large roundabout with the A4146 (for Leighton Buzzard and Aylesbury ). Milton Keynes to the A43 at Towcester Little Brickhill is bypassed at the start of the long Grade Separated Dual-carriageway section through Milton Keynes . This £24m, ten mile, landscaped diversion opened in October 1980, taking a route east of the former road (which has reverted to being Watling Street). The road crosses the River Ouzel and Grand Union Canal , makes a spur junction with the A421 beside the new Denbigh Stadium and passes under the West Coast Main Line . It runs alongside the track, between the National Bowl and Milton Keynes Central Railway Station . At this point, it Multiplexes with the A422 from Bedford . This section bypasses Stony Stratford and crosses the River Great Ouse , which is where the road enters Northamptonshire . The dual carriageway ends at a five-way roundabout with the A422 from Buckingham , the A508 from Northampton , and "the old A5" back through Old Stratford and Milton Keynes (as Watling Street). The next section to Towcester is very straight and passes Potterspury . At Towcester it passes alongside Towcester Race Course then goes straight through the busy town, passing the Sponne School and crossing the River Tove , before meeting the A43 at a roundabout. This roundabout is very busy at peak times and the junction design is not suited to the volume of traffic on the A43. A43 to Watford Gap North of here, the road is less straight with three-lane " at Weedon . North of Weedon, the road follows the West Coast Main Line for many miles. It crosses the Grand Union Canal again twice just before the junction with the B5385 for the village of Watford . This is close to Watford Gap Service Station on the M1 . The West Coast Main Line passes under the road and the road is crossed by the Jurassic Way . One mile further north is Watford Gap itself, where the road also deviates to the west, away from the course of Watling Street over the M45 , adjacent to the M1/M45 intersection. The complex design here seems intended to force southbound traffic onto the motorway and it can be difficult for non-motorway traffic to find the A5. Watford Gap to Hinckley After Kilsby , where the A361 joins, the road returns to the course of the Roman road near an Eddie Stobart depot and the M1 junction with the A428 . The road crosses the West Coast Main Line again, at this point in two cuttings because of the Northampton Loop split. The road then technically enters Warwickshire , although the boundary of Warwickshire at Nuneaton (and Leicestershire at Hinckley ) follows the route of the A5 for many miles until Atherstone . The A5 passes to the east of Rugby where there is a large petrol station and Transport Café as well the remaining four masts of the Rugby VLF Transmitter . (These have reduced in number since June 2004, though still distinctive at night with numerous aircraft warning lights). The road passes near the ancient '', the road is a few feet inside Leicestershire. Near Hinckley, at High Cross (''Venonae''), it crosses the Roman road Fosse Way , now the B4455, though once the A46 . In Roman times this intersection was one of the most important in Britain, being almost the dead centre of the country. Today it is a very open rural area. The road alternates every few miles between single and dual carriageway, though it does allow plenty of opportunities for overtaking which is not possible south of Rugby. The road intersects with the M69 (and B4109) at junction 1. Further north is the Three Pots Service Station. Hinckley to Tamworth At Hinckley, the road crosses the Ashby De La Zouch Canal , goes under the Birmingham To Peterborough Line and meets the A47 at a roundabout and staggered junction. The road is now a few feet inside Warwickshire . Near Caldecote and the staggered junction for the A444 is the entrance of the testing ground of MIRA . The road crosses the at junction 10 and the Tamworth Service Area . Tamworth to Cannock The next section, in . This new section crosses the which is accessible from the A5127 (north). The next dual-carriageway section of road goes under the , before entering Staffordshire again. There is a roundabout with the B4154, close to the Norton Canes Service Area and the Turf Inn pub. The road is now next to the M6 Toll for a couple of miles, where there is a junction for Norton Canes , near a Little Chef and Fleur de Lys pub on the left. CANNOCK TO TELFORD At Cannock , it crosses over the M6 Toll at a junction with the A34 and A460. The dual-carriageway A460 heading north has access to the Orbital Centre retail park, which has a Sainsburys . To the south on the A34 is Great Wyrley . From the A449 roundabout there is another garage. The road passes under the Shropshire Union Canal aqueduct and past Belvide Reservoir , and then runs along part of the northern boundary of Weston Park , at which point the road is heading due west. The road enters Shropshire at the A41 roundabout. At Telford, it deviates from the old route and meets the A442 and the M54 at junction 5. This is very close to the shopping area of Telford. Telford to the Welsh Border From Telford, it multiplexes with the M54 for a short stretch. The old route is now B5061 and towards Shrewsbury , B4380. At junction 7 of the M54, the A5 resumes. The A5/ A49 seventeen-mile £79m dual-carriageway Telford-Shrewsbury Bypass opened in August 1992. Here the road passes close to ten-mile £18m Oswestry Bypass opened in December 1986. After this Shropshire section, the A5 enters Wales just west of Chirk and leaves the A483 multiplex. English Border to Holyhead It continues through the middle of the towns of Llangollen , Corwen , and the village of Betws-y-Coed and then ascends through Capel Curig and reaches its maximum height at 312 metres shortly before passing Llyn Ogwen . The road then descends between some of Snowdonia 's greatest peaks before passing through Bethesda and through Bangor before crossing the Menai Strait on the Menai Suspension Bridge near Bangor . The A5 then crosses Anglesey in parallel to the A55 , bypassing Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch , before arriving at the port of Holyhead, where it has traditionally ended at Admiralty Arch ( 1821 , designed by Thomas Harrison to commemorate a visit by King George IV en route to Ireland). ALTERNATIVE ROUTES Parts of the A5 have been replaced by sections of the M1 north of London , the M54 through Telford , the M6 , and the M6 Toll . The A55 route in North Wales is now the conventional way to get from Chirk to Holyhead , avoiding the mountainous A5 route through Snowdonia and instead going via the much gentler Cheshire Gap and then along the coast. EXTERNAL LINKS OTHER A5 ROADS Northern Ireland There is also an A5 road in Northern Ireland . It runs from Derry south, via Strabane and Omagh , to join the N2 Road at the border with the Republic Of Ireland . Isle of Man The Isle Of Man has a further A5 road that runs from Douglas , through Castletown to Port Erin . |