The A422 is an "A" road for east–west journeys in south central
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
, connecting the county towns of
Bedford
Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population of the Bedford built-up area (including Biddenham and Kempston) was 106,940, making it the second-largest settlement in Bedfordshire, behind Luton, whilst ...
and
Worcester
Worcester may refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England
** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament
* Worcester Park, London, Engla ...
by way of
Milton Keynes
Milton Keynes ( ) is a city and the largest settlement in Buckinghamshire, England, about north-west of London. At the 2021 Census, the population of its urban area was over . The River Great Ouse forms its northern boundary; a tributary ...
,
Buckingham
Buckingham ( ) is a market town in north Buckinghamshire, England, close to the borders of Northamptonshire and Oxfordshire, which had a population of 12,890 at the 2011 Census. The town lies approximately west of Central Milton Keynes, sou ...
,
Banbury
Banbury is a historic market town on the River Cherwell in Oxfordshire, South East England. It had a population of 54,335 at the 2021 Census.
Banbury is a significant commercial and retail centre for the surrounding area of north Oxfordshire ...
and
Stratford-upon-Avon
Stratford-upon-Avon (), commonly known as just Stratford, is a market town and civil parish in the Stratford-on-Avon district, in the county of Warwickshire, in the West Midlands region of England. It is situated on the River Avon, north-we ...
. For most of its length, it is a narrow single carriageway.
Route (east to west)
The eastern end of the road is at
Bromham on the outskirts of Bedford, where it branches off the
A428
The A428 road is a major road in central and eastern England. It runs between the cities of Coventry and Cambridge by way of the county towns of Northampton and Bedford. Together with the A421, (and the A43, M40 and the A34), the eastern se ...
. Its route then crosses into the
City of Milton Keynes
The City of Milton Keynes is a unitary authority area with both borough and city status, in Buckinghamshire. It is the northernmost district of the South East England Region. The borough abuts Bedfordshire, Northamptonshire and the remainder o ...
. It briefly merges with the
A509
The A509 is a short A-class road (around long) for north–south journeys in south central England, forming the route from Kettering in Northamptonshire to the A5 in Milton Keynes, via M1 J14.
From north to south, the road begins at Wi ...
to bypass
Newport Pagnell
Newport Pagnell is a town and civil parish in the City of Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England. The Office for National Statistics records Newport Pagnell as part of the Milton Keynes urban area.
It is separated from the rest of the urban ...
. Passing over the
M1, it crosses through the northern part of Milton Keynes as a dual carriageway, known locally additionally as the H3 Monks Way.
Upon meeting the
A5 in Milton Keynes, the A422 multiplexes northbound with it for as far as
Old Stratford
Old Stratford is a village and wider civil parish in the south of the English county of Northamptonshire. The population of the civil parish (including Passenham) at the 2011 Census was 1,935. The 'Stratford' part of the village name is Anglo-Sax ...
in
Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by
two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is ...
where it regains its identity (and single carriageway status). Resuming its east–west orientation, it bypasses
Deanshanger
Deanshanger () is a village and civil parish in West Northamptonshire, west-northwest of Milton Keynes. In 2007 it was joined with the civil parish of Wicken to form Deanshanger ward, returning two councillors. The population of the civil pari ...
, goes through the centre of
Buckingham
Buckingham ( ) is a market town in north Buckinghamshire, England, close to the borders of Northamptonshire and Oxfordshire, which had a population of 12,890 at the 2011 Census. The town lies approximately west of Central Milton Keynes, sou ...
, around
Brackley
Brackley is a market town and civil parish in West Northamptonshire, England, bordering Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire, from Oxford and from Northampton. Historically a market town based on the wool and lace trade, it was built on the inters ...
, on into
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the north west of South East England. It is a mainly rural county, with its largest settlement being the city of Oxford. The county is a centre of research and development, primarily ...
just before crossing the
M40 at Junction 11 and then into
Banbury
Banbury is a historic market town on the River Cherwell in Oxfordshire, South East England. It had a population of 54,335 at the 2021 Census.
Banbury is a significant commercial and retail centre for the surrounding area of north Oxfordshire ...
. From the A422/
B4525 roundabout, on the western edge of
Middleton Cheney
Middleton Cheney is a village and civil parish in West Northamptonshire, England. The village is about east of Banbury in Oxfordshire and about west-northwest of Brackley. The A422 road between Banbury and Brackley used to pass through Middle ...
(east of Junction 11), the road is dualled until it meets the
A423
The A423 road is a primary A road in England in two sections. The main section leads from central Banbury to the A45 near Coventry.
Route
It starts in Banbury town centre as Southam Road and goes through the Southam Road Industrial Estat ...
and resumes as a single carriageway. From there to
Stratford-upon-Avon
Stratford-upon-Avon (), commonly known as just Stratford, is a market town and civil parish in the Stratford-on-Avon district, in the county of Warwickshire, in the West Midlands region of England. It is situated on the River Avon, north-we ...
, it is a minor road crossing into
Warwickshire
Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Avon an ...
at the
Battle of Edgehill
The Battle of Edgehill (or Edge Hill) was a pitched battle of the First English Civil War. It was fought near Edge Hill and Kineton in southern Warwickshire on Sunday, 23 October 1642.
All attempts at constitutional compromise between K ...
site, where it descends steeply down the Sunrising Hill
escarpment
An escarpment is a steep slope or long cliff that forms as a result of faulting or erosion and separates two relatively level areas having different elevations.
The terms ''scarp'' and ''scarp face'' are often used interchangeably with ''escar ...
and then across the
Fosse Way
The Fosse Way was a Roman road built in Britain during the first and second centuries AD that linked Isca Dumnoniorum (Exeter) in the southwest and Lindum Colonia (Lincoln) to the northeast, via Lindinis (Ilchester), Aquae Sulis ( Bath), Corini ...
.
From the western side of Stratford-upon-Avon, the road multiplexes with the
A46 until its junction with the
A435
List of A roads in Great Britain, A roads in List of A roads zones in Great Britain, zone 4 in Great Britain starting north of the A4 road (Great Britain), A4 and south/west of the A5 road (Great Britain), A5 (roads beginning with 4).
__TOC__ ...
trunk road at Oversley on the outskirts of the historic market town of
Alcester
Alcester () is a market town and civil parish of Roman origin at the junction of the River Alne and River Arrow in the Stratford-on-Avon District in Warwickshire, England, approximately west of Stratford-upon-Avon, and 7 miles south of Redditc ...
. At that roundabout junction, the A422 heads briefly north to cross the
River Arrow before heading west into the village of Arrow. In the village the road takes a right hand turn at the old Toll House, heading for the border with Worcestershire and passing through the village of
Inkberrow
Inkberrow is a village in Worcestershire, England, often thought to be the model for Ambridge, the setting of BBC Radio 4's long-running series ''The Archers''. In particular, The Bull, the fictional Ambridge pub, is supposed to be based on The ...
, said to be the village that was the inspiration for
Ambridge Ambridge may refer to:
* Ambridge (''The Archers''), a fictional place in the UK radio programme, ''The Archers''
* Ambridge, Indiana, a former neighborhood, now part of Ambridge Mann, Indiana, US
** Ambridge station, a former railway station in A ...
, the centre of the world for fans of the long-running BBC radio series ''
The Archers
''The Archers'' is a BBC radio drama on BBC Radio 4, the corporation's main spoken-word channel. Broadcast since 1951, it was famously billed as "an everyday story of country folk" and is now promoted as "a contemporary drama in a rural settin ...
'', which began in 1951.
The last section to
Worcester
Worcester may refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England
** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament
* Worcester Park, London, Engla ...
is narrow and winding until it terminates at the
A44 A44 may refer to :
* A44 road (Great Britain), a road connecting Oxford, England and Aberystwyth, Wales
* A44 motorway (Germany), a road connecting Aachen at the German-Belgian border and Kassel
* A44 motorway (Netherlands), a motorway in the Nethe ...
just south of
M5 junction 6.
The road is long.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:4-0422
Roads in England
Transport in Bedfordshire
Transport in Buckinghamshire
Transport in Northamptonshire
Roads in Oxfordshire
Roads in Warwickshire
Roads in Worcestershire
Transport in Worcester, England
Roads in Milton Keynes