The A4 is a major road in
England from
Central London
Central London is the innermost part of London, in England, spanning several boroughs. Over time, a number of definitions have been used to define the scope of Central London for statistics, urban planning and local government. Its characteris ...
to
Avonmouth via
Heathrow Airport
Heathrow Airport (), called ''London Airport'' until 1966 and now known as London Heathrow , is a major international airport in London, England. It is the largest of the six international airports in the London airport system (the others be ...
,
Reading,
Bath
Bath may refer to:
* Bathing, immersion in a fluid
** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body
** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe
* Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities
Plac ...
and
Bristol. It is historically known as the Bath Road with newer sections including the Great West Road and
Portway. The road was once the main route from London to Bath, Bristol and the west of England and formed, after the
A40, the second main western artery from London.
Although most traffic is carried by the
M4 motorway
The M4, originally the London-South Wales Motorway, is a motorway in the United Kingdom running from west London to southwest Wales. The English section to the Severn Bridge was constructed between 1961 and 1971; the Welsh element was largely ...
today, the A4 still acts as the main route from
Bristol to
London for non-motorway traffic.
History
Turnpikes
The A4 has gone through many transformations through the ages from pre-Roman routes,
Roman roads (such as
the one passing Silbury Hill), and basic wagon tracks. During the Middle Ages, most byways and tracks served to connect villages with their nearest market town. A survey of Savernake Forest near Hungerford in 1228 mentions "The King's Street" running between the town and
Marlborough. This street corresponded roughly with the route of the modern A4. In 1632,
Thomas Witherings was appointed Postmaster of Foreign Mails by Charles I. Three years later, the king charged him with building six "Great Roads" to aid in the delivery of the post, of which the Great West Road was one.
It was not until the 17th century that a distinct route between London and Bristol started to resemble today's road. During the 17th century, the A4 was known as the Great Road to Bristol. When
Queen Anne started patronising the spa city of
Bath
Bath may refer to:
* Bathing, immersion in a fluid
** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body
** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe
* Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities
Plac ...
, the road became more commonly known as Bath Road. Over the years, the direction of the road has taken many detours depending on such factors as changes in tolls or turnpike patronage. For example, in 1750 the toll road from London was altered to go through
Melksham; and in 1695 the map maker, John Ogilby, produced a map of the Hungerford area of the Great West Road showing two possible routes.
As Bath became more popular with the wealthy and famous, it was inevitable that
turnpike trusts would be set up under the terms of the Turnpike Acts to pay for maintenance and improvements to the road. The first turnpike on this road was between
Reading and
Theale in 1714. Due to increasing traffic, sections of the road between
Kensington
Kensington is a district in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in the West End of London, West of Central London.
The district's commercial heart is Kensington High Street, running on an east–west axis. The north-east is taken up b ...
, over Hounslow Hill, to
Twyford were turnpike by 1717 with the remaining sections placed under turnpike trusts.
As turnpike trusts were individually run, there was the possibility for greatly differing road conditions, especially over the
London Clay basin of
Kensington
Kensington is a district in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in the West End of London, West of Central London.
The district's commercial heart is Kensington High Street, running on an east–west axis. The north-east is taken up b ...
,
Brentford
Brentford is a suburban town in West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the Thames, west of Charing Cross.
Its economy has diverse company headquarters buildings whi ...
,
Hounslow and
Slough
Slough () is a town and unparished area in the unitary authority of the same name in Berkshire, England, bordering west London. It lies in the Thames Valley, west of central London and north-east of Reading, at the intersection of the M4 ...
, where winter conditions left the way muddy and uneven. This was not always the case with the Bath Road, as many of the wealthy landowners along the route co-operated informally and exercised a large amount of control over feeder roads. As a result, control of the Bath Road was easy to maintain and many inns and towns became prosperous.
Tollhouses were established at
Colnbrook,
Maidenhead
Maidenhead is a market town in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in the county of Berkshire, England, on the southwestern bank of the River Thames. It had an estimated population of 70,374 and forms part of the border with southern Bu ...
,
Twyford, Castle Street
Reading, Thatcham and
Benham. During the 1820s, the employment of good surveyors improved the condition of the road and aided an increased flow of wealthy travellers. The tolls raised from such clientele ensured that when the turnpike trusts handed over the route to local highway boards, they had no financial liabilities. Justices of the Peace were empowered by the 1862 Rural Highways Act to combine turnpike trusts into Highways Districts. This meant that by the late 1860s trusts were either not renewing their powers or were being terminated by General Acts of Parliament. For example, most turnpikes in Berkshire, including the Bath Road, were officially wound up by 1878 when legislation transferred responsibility for dis-enturnpiked roads to the new county councils. The tollgate on the Bath Road west of Reading was removed in 1864 as the outward pressure of urban development made rates a more acceptable way of financing the maintenance of what was now a suburban road.
Postal service and coaching
With the improvement being made to the road systems, the business of moving mail became easier and thus more profitable as volumes were able to increase. In Bristol, a postal office had been well established by the 1670s. The journey time to London at this period was about 16 and three quarter hours. A letter from Bath in 1684 took about 3 days going via a postal office in
Marshfield on the Bristol Road. (The route to Bristol did not yet go through Bath at this time). Journey times during the Turnpike era fell with the improvements from 2 days in 1752 to 38 hours in 1782 and 18 hours by 1836. Royal Mail coaches in 1836 were able to do the trip in 12 to 13 hours.
Further improvements to regional post services were made between 1719 and 1763 due to contracts with the London Inland Letter Office negotiated by
Ralph Allen, the postmaster of Bath.
In the early part of the 19th century, coaching was at its height with six
stagecoaches
A stagecoach is a four-wheeled public transport coach used to carry paying passengers and light packages on journeys long enough to need a change of horses. It is strongly sprung and generally drawn by four horses although some versions are draw ...
each day carrying passengers to and from London along the Bath Road in 1830, rising to ten by 1836.
Hungerford is at about the midway point of the journey between London and Bristol and was ideally positioned to take advantage of the increase in coaching. In 1836, five companies operated a coaching service through Hungerford.
This peak was to be short-lived following the construction of the
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament on 31 August 1835 and ran ...
. The decline in coaching traffic in Hungerford coincided with the building of the Great Western Railway from London to Bath and Bristol, and the subsequent
Berks and Hants Railway line from Newbury to Hungerford itself in 1847.
By 1843, it was reported that the stage coaches had ceased running between Bristol and London.
Route
Holborn Circus to Westminster (0.4 miles)
The A4 begins as
New Fetter Lane in the
City of London at
Holborn Circus on the
A40. It goes in a southerly direction to join
Fleet Street
Fleet Street is a major street mostly in the City of London. It runs west to east from Temple Bar at the boundary with the City of Westminster to Ludgate Circus at the site of the London Wall and the River Fleet from which the street was na ...
where many British national newspapers at one time had their head offices.
Westminster to Hammersmith via Kensington (4.6 miles)
The road heads west through the City of Westminster via the
Strand, passing notable landmarks such as the
Royal Courts of Justice, the
Savoy
Savoy (; frp, Savouè ; french: Savoie ) is a cultural-historical region in the Western Alps.
Situated on the cultural boundary between Occitania and Piedmont, the area extends from Lake Geneva in the north to the Dauphiné in the south.
Savo ...
and
Adelphi theatres, and
Charing Cross railway station.
From Charing Cross station to
Green Park, the westbound and eastbound routes of the A4 are considerably different, due to one-way systems. Westbound, the A4 continues along the Strand up to
Charing Cross
Charing Cross ( ) is a junction in Westminster, London, England, where six routes meet. Clockwise from north these are: the east side of Trafalgar Square leading to St Martin's Place and then Charing Cross Road; the Strand leading to the City; ...
itself, then along
Cockspur Street and into
Pall Mall, the location of many exclusive
gentlemen's clubs as well as the
Institute of Directors, before turning right along St James's Street to reach
Piccadilly
Piccadilly () is a road in the City of Westminster, London, to the south of Mayfair, between Hyde Park Corner in the west and Piccadilly Circus in the east. It is part of the A4 road that connects central London to Hammersmith, Earl's Court, ...
.
Eastbound from Green Park, the A4 runs along the full length of Piccadilly to
Piccadilly Circus, before turning right along
Haymarket. It bears left along Pall Mall East, then right along the west side of
Trafalgar Square, past the
National Gallery and
Canada House, to Charing Cross. Finally, it bears left along the east side of the Square, past
South Africa House, then right along Duncannon Street to reach Charing Cross station.
The first part of
Regent Street
Regent Street is a major shopping street in the West End of London. It is named after George, the Prince Regent (later George IV) and was laid out under the direction of the architect John Nash and James Burton. It runs from Waterloo Place ...
, from Waterloo Place to Piccadilly Circus, is also signed as the A4; all traffic here runs in a northbound direction.
From Green Park, the A4 enters a short tunnel under
Hyde Park Corner, where
Wellington Arch is located. Afterwards, the road continues along the first part of
Knightsbridge, before bearing left onto
Brompton Road. This is an affluent area of London, in which the
Harrods
Harrods Limited is a department store located on Brompton Road in Knightsbridge, London, England. It is currently owned by the state of Qatar via its sovereign wealth fund, the Qatar Investment Authority. The Harrods brand also applies to other ...
and
Harvey Nichols department stores are located as well as numerous
embassies. At this point, the road enters the
Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea
The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea is an Inner London borough with royal status. It is the smallest borough in London and the second smallest district in England; it is one of the most densely populated administrative regions in the ...
.
At the
Brompton Oratory, the road bears right along Thurloe Place and Cromwell Gardens, past the
Victoria and Albert Museum and the
Ismaili Centre, and onto
Cromwell Road, past the
Natural History Museum. At
Earls Court, the A4 becomes
dual carriageway
A dual carriageway ( BE) or divided highway ( AE) is a class of highway with carriageways for traffic travelling in opposite directions separated by a central reservation (BrE) or median (AmE). Roads with two or more carriageways which are ...
, and continues along West Cromwell Road, over the
West London Line into
West Kensington and the
Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham
The London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham () is a London borough in West London and which also forms part of Inner London. The borough was formed in 1965 from the merger of the former Metropolitan Boroughs of Hammersmith and Fulham. The borou ...
.
A section of the road from Knightsbridge to the
Chiswick Flyover was the first section of
Clearway designated in London. It introduced no stopping on the road during rush hours on 21 August 1961.
Hammersmith to Heathrow Airport (10.7 miles)
The A4 continues along
Talgarth Road
Talgarth Road in West London, view towards Hammersmith
Talgarth Road is a dual carriageway in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham and is a designated part of the A4, running through West London, England on the road to Heathrow Airpor ...
past the
London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art
The London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) is a drama school located in Hammersmith, London. It is the oldest specialist drama school in the British Isles and a founding member of the Federation of Drama Schools.
LAMDA's Principal is ...
. The road becomes elevated at the
Hammersmith Flyover and heads towards
Heathrow Airport
Heathrow Airport (), called ''London Airport'' until 1966 and now known as London Heathrow , is a major international airport in London, England. It is the largest of the six international airports in the London airport system (the others be ...
as the Great West Road, passing Hammersmith's two churches of
St Paul
Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...
and
St Peter
) (Simeon, Simon)
, birth_date =
, birth_place = Bethsaida, Gaulanitis, Syria, Roman Empire
, death_date = Between AD 64–68
, death_place = probably Vatican Hill, Rome, Italia, Roman Empire
, parents = John (or Jonah; Jona)
, occupation ...
. At this point the road is close to the
River Thames.
The road enters
Chiswick
Chiswick ( ) is a district of west London, England. It contains Hogarth's House, the former residence of the 18th-century English artist William Hogarth; Chiswick House, a neo-Palladian villa regarded as one of the finest in England; and Full ...
and the
Borough of Hounslow, passing
Fuller's Brewery
Fuller's Brewery in Chiswick in the west of London was a family-run business from its foundation in 1845 until 2019. In that year, the brewing division of Fuller, Smith & Turner PLC was sold to the Japanese international beverage giant Asahi.
J ...
. After
Hogarth Roundabout
The Hogarth Roundabout sees the merger of two of the nine direct feeders to the main radial roads to or from London. Namely the A316 Great Chertsey Road and the A4 Great West Road in Chiswick. In addition Dorchester Grove, becoming Chiswick Lan ...
, the road passes
Hogarth's House and is called Hogarth Lane, then Ellesmere Road and Cedars Road. It becomes the Great West Road again just a few yards short of the start of
Chiswick Flyover, which is junction 1 of the M4.
Gunnersbury's Russian Orthodox Cathedral is clearly visible on the right.
The next major intersection is
Chiswick Roundabout
Chiswick Roundabout is a major roundabout, with flyover, in Chiswick, West London. It was opened in 1959, and is the meeting point of three roads which terminate here, the A205 South Circular, A315 Chiswick High Road, A406 North Circular; and ...
, which is the junction for both the
North and
South Circular Roads. The road then passes the Glaxo-Smith Kline premises in
Brentford
Brentford is a suburban town in West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the Thames, west of Charing Cross.
Its economy has diverse company headquarters buildings whi ...
where it follows underneath its successor the M4 as far as the bridge over the
River Brent. The stretch between Chiswick's western border to Syon Lane (Gillette Corner) is known as the
Golden Mile with some notable Art Deco factories. The road remains as the Great West Road through
Osterley and
Hounslow where it splits with the
A30, which is known as the Great South West Road. Between the two world wars, the Great West Road was built as a bypass to relieve traffic congestion in Brentford and Hounslow.
After the A30, the A4 changes its name to Bath Road, enters
Cranford, and crosses the
River Crane into the
Borough of Hillingdon. It then passes along the northern boundary of
Heathrow Airport
Heathrow Airport (), called ''London Airport'' until 1966 and now known as London Heathrow , is a major international airport in London, England. It is the largest of the six international airports in the London airport system (the others be ...
, before leaving the London suburbs over the
M25 towards the west.
Heathrow Airport to Slough (6.7 miles)
After leaving Heathrow Airport, still the A4, it becomes the
Colnbrook Bypass and climbs over the M25 motorway. This bypass for the narrow main road of
Colnbrook was built after the Second World War across farmland between
Harmondsworth and the outskirts of
Langley.
The next major intersection is junction 5 of the M4 (Slough-East) known as the Langley junction. At this point the A4 loses its
trunk road classification.
Continuing towards
Slough
Slough () is a town and unparished area in the unitary authority of the same name in Berkshire, England, bordering west London. It lies in the Thames Valley, west of central London and north-east of Reading, at the intersection of the M4 ...
town centre, the road, now named London Road, passes Kedermister Park on the right. Changing into Sussex Place, the architecturally impressive St Bernard's former convent is on the right. Becoming the dual carriageway Wellington Street (a late 1960s bypass for the High Street), Tesco's massive "aircraft hangar" supermarket is on the right and the Queensmere and Observatory Shopping Centres on the left.
The end of this section of the Great Western Road is in the centre of Slough at the junction of William Street and Wellington Street. This spot was formerly the site of Slough's largest roundabout on the south-east corner of Thames Valley University. Nearby is
Slough railway station
Slough railway station, in Slough, Berkshire, England, is on the Great Western Main Line, halfway between London Paddington and Reading. It is down the line from the zero point at Paddington and is situated between to the east and to the w ...
, served by Great Western Railway.
The roundabout was removed in 2011 and the university's Slough campus closed in 2011 after planning permission was granted for 1,598 flats.
Slough to Maidenhead (6.0 miles)
Continuing from the William Street / Wellington Street junction, in the centre of
Slough
Slough () is a town and unparished area in the unitary authority of the same name in Berkshire, England, bordering west London. It lies in the Thames Valley, west of central London and north-east of Reading, at the intersection of the M4 ...
, the road heads westwards towards Maidenhead. The short stretch of dual carriageway is Wellington Street, then briefly on the most western end of the High Street, over the railway bridge for the line between Slough and
Windsor Central Station.
The Bath Road begins on the west side of the bridge. On the left is Slough's 1936 Town Hall, now abandoned by the local council, and on the right
Salt Hill Park.
The next major road intersection is by the Three Tuns Pub where the A4 crosses the
A355. This road goes north towards Farnham Royal, Farnham Common, Beaconsfield and the
M40 at junction 2. To the south, it goes towards the
M4 (junction 6, Slough Centre) and
Windsor.
The route at this point runs parallel to both the
Great Western Main Line
The Great Western Main Line (GWML) is a main line railway in England that runs westwards from London Paddington to . It connects to other main lines such as those from Reading to Penzance and Swindon to Swansea. Opened in 1841, it was the or ...
and the M4. The road continues past the southern fringe of
Slough Trading Estate.
On Slough's western boundary is the Huntercombe Spur roundabout linking the A4 to junction 7 of the M4 motorway. Here the dual carriageway ends. The road bends right at
Taplow and passes under a high railway bridge, then over the River Thames flood prevention channel.
The road then goes over Maidenhead's old bridge
Maidenhead Bridge, spanning the
River Thames, and into the eastern outskirts of Maidenhead.
Along Bridge Road, St Cloud Way and Bad Godesberg Way respectively. The centre of Maidenhead is reached at the roundabout that forms the junction with the
A308
The A308 is a road in England in two parts. The first part runs from Central London to Putney Bridge. The second part runs from just beyond Putney Heath to Bisham, Berkshire. It traces four, roughly straight lines, to stay no more than fr ...
. Turning northwards on the A308 would lead to the
A404 towards
Marlow and
High Wycombe. Southwards, the A308 heads towards Windsor and provides an opportunity to branch off for junction 8/9 of the M4.
Maidenhead to Reading (12.3 miles)
Heading out of Maidenhead town centre, the road follows Castle Hill and then Bath Road. At the outskirts, the road forms part of junction 9b of the A404(M)/A404, which links junction 8/9 of the M4 with junction 4 of the M40 at Handy Cross. The A4 crosses open countryside before following New Bath Road on the outskirts of
Twyford. This is a bypass, built in 1929, that deviates from the old route of the A4, and crosses the
River Loddon on its way into the suburbs of
Reading via the village of Charvil.
The A4 passes the King George's Field in
Sonning, which are used as playing fields, and the Reading Cricket and
Hockey Club. As it enters Reading, along the London Road again, it crosses the junction of the A3290 next to
Palmer Park, which leads to Junction 10 of the M4.
The A4 goes over the intersection with the
A329 Cemetery Junction which links
Wokingham with
Pangbourne, passing the Royal Berkshire Hospital and the London Road Campus of the
University of Reading. At London Street and again at Southampton Street, the A4 meets the
A327 twice, since the latter loops round on two branches which meet at Whitley Street. Between the two junctions, the A4 becomes Crown Street for approximately 150 metres.
Reading to Newbury (16.7 miles)
On the other side of the intersection the A4 follows Pell Street and continues westward. Here it crosses the
River Kennet, the
Holy Brook
Sacred waters are sacred natural sites characterized by tangible topographical land formations such as rivers, lakes, springs, reservoirs, and oceans, as opposed to holy water which is water elevated with the sacramental blessing of a cleric. ...
and the
A33 relief road, which goes towards
Basingstoke
Basingstoke ( ) is the largest town in the county of Hampshire. It is situated in south-central England and lies across a valley at the source of the River Loddon, at the far western edge of The North Downs. It is located north-east of Southa ...
. In
West Reading, the A4 becomes Berkeley Avenue, and then the Bath Road. It passes
Prospect Park, and the suburbs of
Southcote, Horncastle and
Calcot, before reaching Junction 12 of the M4. The A4 heads south westerly through
Theale and over the roundabout connecting it to the
A340
The Airbus A340 is a long-range, wide-body passenger airliner that was developed and produced by Airbus.
In the mid-1970s, Airbus conceived several derivatives of the A300, its first airliner, and developed the A340 quadjet in parallel with ...
which heads towards Pangbourne.
Heading towards
Thatcham, the road passes
Aldermaston Wharf
Aldermaston Wharf is a small multi-parish settlement centred north-northwest of Aldermaston (where according to the Post Office the majority of the population taken at the 2011 Census was included) in West Berkshire, England. The Kennet and Avo ...
next to the
Kennet and Avon Canal
The Kennet and Avon Canal is a waterway in southern England with an overall length of , made up of two lengths of navigable river linked by a canal. The name is used to refer to the entire length of the navigation rather than solely to the cent ...
and through the villages of
Woolhampton and
Midgham
Midgham is a village and civil parish occupying slopes and the flood plain on the north side of the River Kennet. It is centred east of Newbury and east of Thatcham. The north of the parish is south of the M4 motorway. Midgham Lock is on the ...
. A large industrial estate is on the left as the road enters Thatcham. At the roundabout after the industrial Estate the route follows London Road and passes Thatcham towards Benham Hill and
Newbury. At the Benham Hill roundabout it goes along Bath Road where it deviates from Turnpike Road. Bath Road is the original turnpiked road and the road now confusingly called Turnpike Road was originally called The Shaw Road. The turnpike then continues along London Road as it enters the outskirts of Newbury.
Heading towards the centre of Newbury, the route passes the
West Berkshire Community Hospital on the right. To the North of the town centre the road becomes part of an unusual junction with the
A339 that links the new
A34 by-pass to the north with
Basingstoke
Basingstoke ( ) is the largest town in the county of Hampshire. It is situated in south-central England and lies across a valley at the source of the River Loddon, at the far western edge of The North Downs. It is located north-east of Southa ...
to the south. The junction is a combination of a figure of eight roundabout with an elevated section that used to be the old route of the A34.
Newbury to Marlborough (18.8 miles)
After the junction, the road heads out of town through
Speenhamland along Western Avenue and Bath Road to the junction with the A34
Newbury bypass, which was opened, after some controversy, on 17 November 1998, at a cost of £104 million. The route heads over undulating countryside in a fairly straight westward direction towards
Hungerford, parallel to the
Kennet and Avon Canal
The Kennet and Avon Canal is a waterway in southern England with an overall length of , made up of two lengths of navigable river linked by a canal. The name is used to refer to the entire length of the navigation rather than solely to the cent ...
and crossing the
River Kennet on the outskirts of the town at the same time as intersecting with the
A338. The route does not enter the town centre, but continues through the northern part of town on its way to
Marlborough, via the village of
Froxfield and the northern edge of
Savernake Forest.
On entering the outskirts of Marlborough the road follows London Road. Crossing the River Kennet again it briefly shares the highway with the
A346 which connects northwards to
Swindon
Swindon () is a town and unitary authority with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Wiltshire, England. As of the 2021 Census, the population of Swindon was 201,669, making it the largest town in the county. The Swindon un ...
. It splits again at a roundabout along New Road and Oxford Street into the town centre on the High Street. The High Street is a traditional main thoroughfare for an English market town, in that it is wide, with space for market stalls on either side and in the middle, though these spaces are usually marked for car parking.
Until the late 1980s most of this section, and some of the following Wiltshire section, was configured as three lanes, with the central lane available for overtaking traffic in either direction. This is no longer considered safe so the road now has one wider-than-normal lane in each direction, with
ghost islands at junctions to discourage overtaking at these points.
Marlborough to Chippenham (18.9 miles)
The A4 continues along the High Street on its way out of Marlborough via Bridewell Street and Bath Road. The road passes underneath a covered bridge that links Morris House of
Marlborough College
Marlborough College is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English Independent school (United Kingdom), independent boarding school) for pupils aged 13 to 18 in Marlborough, Wiltshire, England. Founded in 1843 for the sons of Church ...
to the North Block of the same establishment. The college is an independent boarding school established in 1843 using some of the buildings that remained after the demise the coaching trade, which saw the original Castle Inn Coaching House close.
The route continues westward through the village of
Fyfield, across
Overton Hill where there is a parking area at the start of the
Ridgeway National Trail and through the village of
West Kennett
West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass
The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is pri ...
. On leaving West Kennett there are some lay-bys where visitors can walk a short distance from the road to the Neolithic
West Kennet Long Barrow, which forms part of the Avebury World Heritage Site. One mile further along the A4 is
Silbury Hill, which is also part of the Avebury World Heritage Site. A purpose built car park is located beyond the hill on the right travelling westward. As the route approaches the
Beckhampton roundabout, which forms the intersection with the
A361, it passes by the Waggon & Horses Inn, built in 1669 to profit from the increasing trade along the old Bath Road. It is mentioned in ''
The Pickwick Papers'' by
Charles Dickens.
The route continues past
Cherhill. The
Cherhill White Horse
Cherhill White Horse is a hill figure on Cherhill Down, 3.5 miles east of Calne in Wiltshire, England. Dating from the late 18th century, it is the third oldest of several such white horses in Great Britain, with only the Uffington White Horse ...
can be seen to the left, and nearby the
Lansdowne Monument
The Lansdowne Monument, also known as the Cherhill Monument, near Cherhill in Wiltshire, England, is a 38-metre (125 foot) stone obelisk erected in 1845 by the 3rd Marquis of Lansdowne to the designs of Sir Charles Barry to commemorate his ancest ...
. The route then descends the Labour in Vain Hill through the village of
Quemerford
Quemerford is a southeastern suburb of the town of Calne in the county of Wiltshire, England. It is within both the Calne and Calne Without civil parishes, and lies on the A4 road towards Marlborough, which is some to the east.
The River Mard ...
and into the market town of
Calne. Heading towards the town centre, the road crosses a double mini roundabout, one exit forming the junction with the
A3102 to Melksham. It follows New Road and passes by the old
coaching inn
The coaching inn (also coaching house or staging inn) was a vital part of Europe's inland transport infrastructure until the development of the railway, providing a resting point ( layover) for people and horses. The inn served the needs of tra ...
of the Lansdowne Strand. On the way out of Calne, the road goes along Curzon Street, and then to Chilvester Hill at the roundabout where the northern part of the A3102 splits off towards
Lyneham.
The A4 descends steeply before climbing again up Black Dog Hill past the
Bowood House Estate. The old road used to pass through
Derry Hill, but the New Road, as it is called at this point, indicates that the village was bypassed. There follows a steep descent to the junction with the
A342
The A342 is an A road in England that runs from Pewsham near Chippenham, Wiltshire to Andover, Hampshire.
Route
The road begins at the A4 junction just outside the small village of Pewsham, to the east of Chippenham. It heads south past ...
Devizes road and a right turn past the Lysley Arms towards
Chippenham
Chippenham is a market town
A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village ...
.
On the outskirts of Chippenham is a large roundabout, where the A4 used to carry straight on down London Road and The Causeway into the town centre, which has since been pedestrianised. Most traffic turns left to go round the Pewsham Estate relief road called Pewsham Way, which is now the classified A4 route. After four roundabouts, the A4 turns left in a southerly direction at another roundabout. The route heads downhill over the
River Avon on the Avenue
La Fleche
LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States.
La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Music
* La (musical note), or A, the sixth note
* "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on Figure 8 ( ...
, named after one of Chippenham's twin towns, to the Bridge Centre roundabout.
Chippenham to Bath (12.7 miles)
The Bridge Centre roundabout forms a junction of the A4 with the
A420 Bristol Road. The route heads over Rowden Hill past the Chippenham Community Hospital and down to the spot where musician
Eddie Cochran was killed in a car crash on 17 April 1960. A plaque has been placed there in remembrance.
From there it passes under the railway arch built by
Isambard Kingdom Brunel in the 1830s and on to its junction with the
A350
The Airbus A350 is a long-range, wide-body twin-engine jet airliner developed and produced by Airbus.
The first A350 design proposed by Airbus in 2004, in response to the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, would have been a development of the A330 w ...
. From this point onwards it regains its
trunk road status and heads up Chequers Hill towards
Corsham. The road passes through
Pickwick, which used to be a village in its own right. Charles Dickens stayed at the Hare & Hounds Inn and used the village name for the title of his novel ''The Pickwick Papers''.
After a series of roundabouts the A4 continues uphill, past what used to be the Ministry of Defence Naval Operations site at Copenacre (now a housing development) before descending steeply to the village of
Box. From the road the
Box Tunnel, built as part of the
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament on 31 August 1835 and ran ...
, can be seen clearly. The road bears to the right at the junction with the
A365 to
Melksham, and criss-crosses with the main railway line as far as the roundabout at
Bathford which forms a junction with the
A363 towards
Bradford-on-Avon. The road after this roundabout becomes a dual carriageway until the A4 diverts to the left down a slip road, and the remainder becomes the
A46; this section, the £45 million dual-carriageway
Batheaston/
Swainswick
Swainswick is a small village and civil parish, north east of Bath, on the A46 in the Bath and North East Somerset unitary authority, Somerset, England. The parish has a population of 265. The village name was also spelled as Sweyneswik and Sw ...
Bypass, opened in summer 1996, was highly controversial both at planning and at construction stages.
The route enters the outskirts of Bath passing by the training grounds of
Bath RFC. After a series of traffic light controlled junctions, the A4 continues straight ahead where it meets the
A36. It passes Hedgemead Park and down
The Paragon before crossing into George Street and to
Queen Square.
Bath to Bristol/Avonmouth (19.6 miles)
In the original 1922 road numbering list, the A4 ended at the junction between George Street and
Milsom Street in Bath. On 1 April 1935, it was extended over the A431 and B4044 to Newbridge, and the A36 to Avonmouth.
From Queen Square, Bath, the A4 carries on to Queen Square Place and Charlotte Street, before heading along the Upper Bristol Road by
Royal Victoria Park to Newbridge Road. The road crosses the River Avon on its way to join the A36 and becomes a dual carriageway again until the roundabout that forms the junction with the
A39 Wells Road at the Globe Inn and exit for the nearby
Bath Spa University. It continues on through the village of
Saltford
Saltford is a large English village and civil parish in the Bath and North East Somerset unitary authority, Somerset. It lies between the cities of Bristol and Bath, and adjoins Keynsham on the same route. Saltford Manor House (built about 1160 ...
towards
Keynsham
Keynsham ( ) is a town and civil parish located between Bristol and Bath in Somerset, England. It has a population of 16,000.
It was listed in the Domesday Book as ''Cainesham'' (as it is pronounced), which is believed to mean the home of Sai ...
where a roundabout splits the road and the A4 continues as a dual carriageway by-passing the town, crossing over the
River Chew in the process.
The end of the by-pass coincides with the junction of the Avon Ring Road, the
A4174. The route goes through the suburb of
Brislington, going past Arnos Court Park and
Arnos Vale Cemetery. The road runs over a bridge over the
New Cut and into Temple Gate where
Bristol Temple Meads railway station
Bristol Temple Meads is the oldest and largest railway station in Bristol, England. It is located away from London Paddington. It is an important transport hub for public transport in the city; there are bus services to many parts of the city ...
is located. The A4 no longer has a defined route from this point to the start of Anchor Road at
The Centre; originally it went along Victoria Street and Baldwin Street before turning left onto St Augustine's Parade or, later, Broad Quay, but in more recent times it followed Redcliffe Way, via Redcliffe Roundabout (junction with the
A38) across
Queen Square to
The Centre. From there it turns back towards
Bristol Harbour
Bristol Harbour is the harbour in the city of Bristol, England. The harbour covers an area of . It is the former natural tidal river Avon through the city but was made into its current form in 1809 when the tide was prevented from going out per ...
via Anchor Road past the
We The Curious science museum. After another roundabout the A4 follows along Hotwell Road and around a one-way system that merges the A4 with the
A3029.
At this point the A4 regains trunk road classification and passes under the
Clifton Suspension Bridge along the
Portway. It heads out of the city into the suburbs of
Sea Mills and
Shirehampton before going under the
M5 to end at the roundabout that feeds the motorway, the
M49 and
A403
The A403 is a main road linking Bristol with the Severn Estuary. It runs from junction 1 of the M48 at Aust to the docks at Avonmouth. After the Severn Bridge was opened in 1966, the A403 was constructed in 1969 and 1970 to provide a direct rou ...
in Avonmouth.
Junction list
References
External links
A4 roadat the
Society for All British and Irish Road Enthusiasts
{{DEFAULTSORT:4-0004a
Roads in England
Streets in London
Roads in Berkshire
Roads in Bristol
Roads in London
Roads in Somerset
Roads in Wiltshire
Elevated overpasses in London
Streets in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham
Streets in the London Borough of Hillingdon
Streets in the London Borough of Hounslow
Streets in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea
Streets in the City of Westminster