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The A12 is a major road in Eastern England. It runs north-east/south-west between London and the coastal town of
Lowestoft Lowestoft ( ) is a coastal town and civil parish in the East Suffolk (district), East Suffolk district of Suffolk, England.OS Explorer Map OL40: The Broads: (1:25 000) : . As the List of extreme points of the United Kingdom, most easterly UK se ...
in the north-eastern corner of
Suffolk Suffolk () is a ceremonial county of England in East Anglia. It borders Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south; the North Sea lies to the east. The county town is Ipswich; other important towns include ...
, following a similar route to the
Great Eastern Main Line The Great Eastern Main Line (GEML, sometimes referred to as the East Anglia Main Line) is a major railway line on the British railway system which connects Liverpool Street station in central London with destinations in east London and the ...
until
Ipswich Ipswich () is a port town and borough in Suffolk, England, of which it is the county town. The town is located in East Anglia about away from the mouth of the River Orwell and the North Sea. Ipswich is both on the Great Eastern Main Line ...
. A section of the road between Lowestoft and
Great Yarmouth Great Yarmouth (), often called Yarmouth, is a seaside town and unparished area in, and the main administrative centre of, the Borough of Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, England; it straddles the River Yare and is located east of Norwich. A pop ...
became part of the A47 in 2017. Between the junctions with the M25 and the A14, the A12 forms part of the unsigned Euroroute E30 (prior to 1985, it was the E8). Unlike most
A road A roads may be *motorways or freeways, usually where the local word for motorway begins with A (for example, ''Autobahn'' in German; ''Autostrada'' in Italian). * main roads or highways, in a system where roads are graded A, B and sometimes lower c ...
s, this section of the A12, together with the A14 and the A55, has junction numbers as if it were a motorway. The section of the A12 through Essex has sections of dual two lanes and dual three lanes, with eight changes in width between the M25 to Ipswich. It was named as Britain's worst road because of "potholes and regular closures due to roadworks" in a 2007 survey by
Cornhill Insurance Allianz ( , ) is a German multinational financial services company headquartered in Munich, Germany. Its core businesses are insurance and asset management. The company is one of the world's largest insurers and financial services groups. The ...
. The A12 is covered by
Highways England National Highways, formerly the Highways Agency and later Highways England, is a government-owned company charged with operating, maintaining and improving motorways and major A roads in England. It also sets highways standards used by all f ...
's A12 and A120 Route Management Strategy. Starting just north of the Blackwall Tunnel, where it connects end on to the A102, it heads north through Bow and
Hackney Wick Hackney Wick is a neighbourhood in east London, England. The area forms the south-eastern part of the district of Hackney, and also of the wider London Borough of Hackney. Adjacent areas of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets are sometimes a ...
, then north-east through
Leyton Leyton () is a town in east London, England, within the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It borders Walthamstow to the north, Leytonstone to the east, and Stratford to the south, with Clapton, Hackney Wick and Homerton, across the River L ...
and
Romford Romford is a large town in east London and the administrative centre of the London Borough of Havering. It is located northeast of Charing Cross and is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan. Historically, Romfo ...
, then into
Essex Essex () is a Ceremonial counties of England, county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the Riv ...
, passing Brentwood and
Colchester Colchester ( ) is a city in Essex, in the East of England. It had a population of 122,000 in 2011. The demonym is Colcestrian. Colchester occupies the site of Camulodunum, the first major city in Roman Britain and its first capital. Colch ...
. In
Suffolk Suffolk () is a ceremonial county of England in East Anglia. It borders Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south; the North Sea lies to the east. The county town is Ipswich; other important towns include ...
, it passes
Ipswich Ipswich () is a port town and borough in Suffolk, England, of which it is the county town. The town is located in East Anglia about away from the mouth of the River Orwell and the North Sea. Ipswich is both on the Great Eastern Main Line ...
and Saxmundham, then follows the coast through
Lowestoft Lowestoft ( ) is a coastal town and civil parish in the East Suffolk (district), East Suffolk district of Suffolk, England.OS Explorer Map OL40: The Broads: (1:25 000) : . As the List of extreme points of the United Kingdom, most easterly UK se ...
before entering Norfolk, passing through Gorleston-on-Sea and ending at
Great Yarmouth Great Yarmouth (), often called Yarmouth, is a seaside town and unparished area in, and the main administrative centre of, the Borough of Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, England; it straddles the River Yare and is located east of Norwich. A pop ...
. In February 2017, the route was renumbered between
Great Yarmouth Great Yarmouth (), often called Yarmouth, is a seaside town and unparished area in, and the main administrative centre of, the Borough of Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, England; it straddles the River Yare and is located east of Norwich. A pop ...
and
Lowestoft Lowestoft ( ) is a coastal town and civil parish in the East Suffolk (district), East Suffolk district of Suffolk, England.OS Explorer Map OL40: The Broads: (1:25 000) : . As the List of extreme points of the United Kingdom, most easterly UK se ...
to become the A47, so the road now terminates at the
Bascule Bridge A bascule bridge (also referred to as a drawbridge or a lifting bridge) is a moveable bridge with a counterweight that continuously balances a span, or leaf, throughout its upward swing to provide clearance for boat traffic. It may be single- o ...
south of
Lowestoft Lowestoft ( ) is a coastal town and civil parish in the East Suffolk (district), East Suffolk district of Suffolk, England.OS Explorer Map OL40: The Broads: (1:25 000) : . As the List of extreme points of the United Kingdom, most easterly UK se ...
town centre.


A12 Widening Chelmsford-Colchester

In 2021, plans for the widening of the A12 from Chelmsford to Colchester was approved by local residents after design tweaks. There are 3 different plans in place, as some require new sections and some do not.


History

The A12 was formed in 1922 as part of the
Great Britain road numbering scheme The Great Britain road numbering scheme is a numbering scheme used to classify and identify all roads in Great Britain. Each road is given a single letter (which represents the road's category) and a subsequent number (between 1 and 4 digits). ...
, and initially the route went from Stratford to
Gallows Corner Gallows Corner is a major road junction in Romford in Greater London, England. It was the site of the gallows of the Liberty of Havering, hence the name. History During the 18th century, Gallows Corner was a copse-sided part of the road and, ...
along the present
A118 road The A118 is a road in east London, England which links Bow Interchange with Gallows Corner in Romford via Stratford and Ilford. The section from Bow Interchange to Gallows Corner formed the original route of the A12 until the designation ...
before continuing to Great Yarmouth. This section in London was rerouted to run on Eastern Avenue by the mid-1940s, and extended to follow the current route from Blackwall Tunnel along the
East Cross Route East Cross Route (ECR) is a dual-carriageway road constructed in east London as part of the uncompleted Ringway 1 as part of the London Ringways plan drawn up the 1960s to create a series of high speed roads circling and radiating out from cen ...
, (previously the
A102(M) A102, A.102 or A-102 may refer to : * A102 road (England), a road connecting Clapton in the north London Borough of Hackney and Kidbrooke in the south London Borough of Greenwich * AS-102 AS-102 (also designated SA-7) was the seventh flight of th ...
& A106), the M11 link road in 1999. The route from London to Essex has long been important, with
Old Ford Old Ford is an area in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets that is named after the natural ford which provided a crossing of the River Lea. History Administration and boundaries Historically, Old Ford was a cluster of houses and a mill, aroun ...
being the location of an ancient Celtic crossing of the River Lea. The route was altered slightly by the Romans who created a paved road from London to
Colchester Colchester ( ) is a city in Essex, in the East of England. It had a population of 122,000 in 2011. The demonym is Colcestrian. Colchester occupies the site of Camulodunum, the first major city in Roman Britain and its first capital. Colch ...
, which was part of ''Inter V'' on the
Antonine Itinerary The Antonine Itinerary ( la, Itinerarium Antonini Augusti,  "The Itinerary of the Emperor Antoninus") is a famous ''itinerarium'', a register of the stations and distances along various roads. Seemingly based on official documents, possibly ...
, and parts of this were used by a turnpike road, the Great Essex Road. The crossing of the Lea moved to its current location at Bow around 1110 when Matilda, wife of Henry I, ordered a distinctively bow-shaped, three-arched bridge to be built over the river. A map from 1766 shows a route from London to
Lowestoft Lowestoft ( ) is a coastal town and civil parish in the East Suffolk (district), East Suffolk district of Suffolk, England.OS Explorer Map OL40: The Broads: (1:25 000) : . As the List of extreme points of the United Kingdom, most easterly UK se ...
which follows much of the current A12. The "Ipswich to South Town and Bungay Turnpike Trust" was established in 1785, operating between Ipswich and Great Yarmouth. The trust was wound up in 1872 following the arrival of the East Suffolk Line which was fully operational between the two towns in 1859. Following the demise of the Turnpike trust, responsibility reverted to parish responsibility until the new county councils took over in 1889. A new section of the A12, known as the "M11 link road" or "A12 Hackney-M11 Link Road", was built in the early 1990s in the face of the major M11 link road protest and finally opened in October 1999. The section of road had originally been proposed in 1903 in a Royal Commission on London Traffic. A public inquiry had been held in September 1961 and a further three public inquiries, a Parliamentary Bill and a High Court challenge had been required before the work started. Initiated in 2000, the London to Ipswich Multi-modal study reported its conclusions late in 2002. In 2008 improvements were made to the junction between the A12 and the M25 to increase slip-road capacity, in particular for clockwise M25 traffic turning north onto the A12, and to ease congestion on the Brook Street Roundabout (serving the M25, A12 and local Brentwood traffic as the A1023). The
bascule bridge A bascule bridge (also referred to as a drawbridge or a lifting bridge) is a moveable bridge with a counterweight that continuously balances a span, or leaf, throughout its upward swing to provide clearance for boat traffic. It may be single- o ...
in
Lowestoft Lowestoft ( ) is a coastal town and civil parish in the East Suffolk (district), East Suffolk district of Suffolk, England.OS Explorer Map OL40: The Broads: (1:25 000) : . As the List of extreme points of the United Kingdom, most easterly UK se ...
was built in 1972, and was refurbished in spring 2008. Essex County Council carried out its own inquiry into the road in 2008. Work on a £12.4m scheme for the a new junction on the A12 at Cuckoo Farm,
Colchester Colchester ( ) is a city in Essex, in the East of England. It had a population of 122,000 in 2011. The demonym is Colcestrian. Colchester occupies the site of Camulodunum, the first major city in Roman Britain and its first capital. Colch ...
adjacent to the
Colchester Community Stadium Colchester Community Stadium, known for sponsorship reasons as the JobServe Community Stadium, is a football stadium in Colchester, England. It is the home of Colchester United Football Club. It has a capacity of 10,105 and opened in August 20 ...
started in December 2009. It was promoted by Essex County Council who prepared plans in 2001. and received funding from the
Community Infrastructure Fund Community Infrastructure Fund (CIF) is a UK government initiative created as a joint venture by the Department for Transport and the Department for Communities and Local Government., it was created following the recommendation of the Barker Review ...
. It opened on 16 December 2010. The section of A12 between Brentwood and
Ipswich Ipswich () is a port town and borough in Suffolk, England, of which it is the county town. The town is located in East Anglia about away from the mouth of the River Orwell and the North Sea. Ipswich is both on the Great Eastern Main Line ...
is classed as a major trunk road, managed by
Highways England National Highways, formerly the Highways Agency and later Highways England, is a government-owned company charged with operating, maintaining and improving motorways and major A roads in England. It also sets highways standards used by all f ...
. The section between
Ipswich Ipswich () is a port town and borough in Suffolk, England, of which it is the county town. The town is located in East Anglia about away from the mouth of the River Orwell and the North Sea. Ipswich is both on the Great Eastern Main Line ...
and
Lowestoft Lowestoft ( ) is a coastal town and civil parish in the East Suffolk (district), East Suffolk district of Suffolk, England.OS Explorer Map OL40: The Broads: (1:25 000) : . As the List of extreme points of the United Kingdom, most easterly UK se ...
was de-trunked in 2001, with control passing to
Suffolk County Council Suffolk County Council is the administrative authority for the county of Suffolk, England. It is run by 75 elected county councillors representing 63 divisions. It is a member of the East of England Local Government Association. History Est ...
. This section is primarily single carriageway. In 2011, at Junction 33 (Copdock Interchange) the junction was widened and improved to ease the increasing traffic flow along the road. Works ended in 2012.


Bypasses

The Eastern Avenue was built in the 1920s as a bypass for the section between
Romford Romford is a large town in east London and the administrative centre of the London Borough of Havering. It is located northeast of Charing Cross and is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan. Historically, Romfo ...
and Ilford, meeting what was the A11 at
Leytonstone Leytonstone () is an area in east London, England, north-east of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Waltham Forest, a local authority district of Greater London. It adjoins Wanstead to the north-east, Forest Gate to the south-east, ...
. It was numbered A106 until the 1930s when it became part of the A12. The long Brentwood bypass was opened in November 1965. A bypass for Chelmsford was first included in the roads programme in 1968. Draft orders for the southern bypass were published in 1974, however the public inquiry in 1975 suggested that the government should re-examine the appropriateness of a "central route" and the government delayed the road. In 1979 the government announced that it would proceed with the southern dual two lane route which opened in 1986. The
Wickham Market Wickham Market is a large village and electoral ward situated in the River Deben valley of Suffolk, England, within the Suffolk Coastal heritage area. It is on the A12 trunk road north-east of the county town of Ipswich, north-east of Woodbr ...
bypass opened in July 1976, providing a much needed improvement to avoid the narrow, one-lane wide section of road through Wickham Market. Ipswich's "Southern by-pass" via the Orwell Bridge was opened in 1982. This section, when first numbered, was part of the A45 and later designated as part of the A14. The Martlesham bypass (previously known as the
Kesgrave Kesgrave is a town in the English county of Suffolk on the eastern edge of Ipswich. Kesgrave forms part of the wider Ipswich Built-up area. History The area was recorded as ''Gressgrava'' in the Domesday Book, by the late 15th century its name ...
and Martlesham Bypass) was completed in 1987/1988 as was the Saxmundham bypass. A
white paper A white paper is a report or guide that informs readers concisely about a complex issue and presents the issuing body's philosophy on the matter. It is meant to help readers understand an issue, solve a problem, or make a decision. A white paper ...
, ''
Roads for Prosperity ''Roads for Prosperity'' (often incorrectly called Road to Prosperity) was a controversial white paper published by the Conservative government in the United Kingdom in 1989; detailing the 'largest road building programme for the UK since the Rom ...
'', published in 1989, proposed to widen the Chelmsford Bypass and the section from Hatfield Peverel to Witham to dual 3 lane; it also proposed widening the section from Saxmundham to Lowestoft and from Wickham Market to Farnham to dual 2 lanes. It also included a 'new route from the M25 to Chelmsford' as a dual two lane road following the proposed route of the M12 motorway. The Department for Transport published ''Trunk roads, England, into the 1990s'' in May 1990 which included ten proposed developments for the A12 between the M25 and Lowestoft including the M12 motorway between M25 and the Chelmsford bypass, Chelmsford bypass widening and improvements on the sections from Hatfield Peverel to Marks Tey, Four Sisters to Stratford St. Mary, Martlesham to Wickham Market, Wickham Market to Saxmundham, the bypass around Saxmundham, Saxmundham to south of Wrentham, South of Wrentham to Kessingland and the Lowestoft relief road. A public inquiry in the "Saxmundham to Wickham Market bypass" was held in 1995 but this road has not been built.


M12 motorway

During the 1940s, there were plans for a motorway between South Woodford and Brentford, initially dubbed Radial Route 7, which later became the
M12 motorway The M12 is a length of spur motorway in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. It was opened in 1970. It leads off the main M1 motorway, to Portadown, part of the conurbation of Portadown- Craigavon-Lurgan, and forms most of the route between junc ...
in the 1960s. This would have run from the North Circular Road in London, at the base of the current M11 motorway, joining the A12 north of Brentwood. The North Circular was to be upgraded to motorway-standard as part of Ringway 2 and be designated as the M15 motorway. The M11 was to have provided a motorway standard road into central London past Ringway 1, terminating at the Angel in
Islington Islington () is a district in the north of Greater London, England, and part of the London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's High Street to Highbury Fields, encompassing the ...
. The M12 motorway was never built, although the junction of the M11 with the North Circular was designed to accommodate it. The scheme was revived in the late 1980s, and extended the northern section to the A12 near Chelmsford. Plans for the M12 motorway were withdrawn in March 1994, following a review of the trunk roads programme.


Route


London

The A12 starts just north of the Blackwall Tunnel at a junction with the A102 and the A13. From here to past Ipswich (including the entire section through London) the road is a
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 ...
. North of the junction, the A12 heads northwards as a 2/3 lane dual carriageway mostly at street level. This stretch of road is known as the Blackwall Tunnel Northern Approach. This stretch ends at the triple-layer interchange with the A11 at Bow Road where it becomes the
East Cross Route East Cross Route (ECR) is a dual-carriageway road constructed in east London as part of the uncompleted Ringway 1 as part of the London Ringways plan drawn up the 1960s to create a series of high speed roads circling and radiating out from cen ...
. This is mainly a 3/4 lane dual carriageway built mainly on flyovers and
underpass A tunnel is an underground passageway, dug through surrounding soil, earth or rock, and enclosed except for the entrance and exit, commonly at each end. A pipeline is not a tunnel, though some recent tunnels have used immersed tube constr ...
es and was built in the late 1960s, previously called the A102(M). The road turns North Eastwards at the unfinished Hackney Wick Interchange where the carriageways split and the northbound carriageway has a right hand entrance. When the
London Ringways The London Ringways were a series of four ring roads planned in the 1960s to circle London at various distances from the city centre. They were part of a comprehensive scheme developed by the Greater London Council (GLC) to alleviate traffic con ...
plan was being proposed, a motorway ( North Cross Route) was to end here and the M11 was meant to extend from its current terminus on the
A406 The North Circular Road (officially the A406 and sometimes known as simply the North Circular) is a ring road around Central London in England. It runs from Chiswick in the west to Woolwich in the east via suburban North London, connecting ...
through this junction and to
Angel In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God. Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles ...
. The A12 heads to Lea. The section from the Lea Interchange to Leytonstone, also known as the M11 Link road, was built in the 1990s in the face of a major road protest. During this work the old section as far as
Wanstead Wanstead () is a town in East London, England, in the London Borough of Redbridge. It borders South Woodford to the north, Redbridge to the east and Forest Gate to the south, with Leytonstone and Walthamstow to the west. It is located 8 mi ...
was rebuilt as a dual carriageway. Prior to that, the A12 started at the Green Man Roundabout at Leytonstone, and was single carriageway west of Wanstead Underground station. It now has an underpass at that roundabout, which again is a junction with the old A11. East of Wanstead, the A12 runs roughly due east. It is known as Eastern Avenue, then Eastern Avenue West and Eastern Avenue East, built in the 1920s as a bypass for the section of the
Roman road Roman roads ( la, viae Romanae ; singular: ; meaning "Roman way") were physical infrastructure vital to the maintenance and development of the Roman state, and were built from about 300 BC through the expansion and consolidation of the Roman Re ...
from
Colchester Colchester ( ) is a city in Essex, in the East of England. It had a population of 122,000 in 2011. The demonym is Colcestrian. Colchester occupies the site of Camulodunum, the first major city in Roman Britain and its first capital. Colch ...
to London running through Ilford and
Romford Romford is a large town in east London and the administrative centre of the London Borough of Havering. It is located northeast of Charing Cross and is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan. Historically, Romfo ...
(today's A118). The eastern end of the Eastern Avenue is
Gallows Corner Gallows Corner is a major road junction in Romford in Greater London, England. It was the site of the gallows of the Liberty of Havering, hence the name. History During the 18th century, Gallows Corner was a copse-sided part of the road and, ...
in the
London Borough of Havering The London Borough of Havering () in East London, England, forms part of Outer London. It has a population of 259,552 inhabitants; the principal town is Romford, while other communities are Hornchurch, Upminster, Collier Row and Rainham. ...
, just east of Romford. The junction also marks the start-point of the A127 Southend Arterial Road, also 1920s vintage. At the roundabout, an extemporised two-lane flyover still provides priority for A12 eastbound to A127 traffic (and vice versa). However, the A12 now veers roughly north-eastward, because it starts to follow the course of the Roman road; the Romans started building this road from Colchester, their original capital for the province. However, the stretch from Gallows Corner to the junction with the
M25 motorway The M25 or London Orbital Motorway is a major road encircling most of Greater London. The motorway is one of the most important roads in the UK and one of the busiest. Margaret Thatcher opened the final section in 1986, making the M25 the lon ...
, called Colchester Road, is still perfectly straight. The M25 junction is number 28; it also marks where the A12 crosses the boundary from London to Essex.


Essex

Originally, the A12 followed the route of the Roman road closely and so was fairly straight, but there are now several town bypasses, so the road through Essex now has several
meander A meander is one of a series of regular sinuous curves in the channel of a river or other watercourse. It is produced as a watercourse erodes the sediments of an outer, concave bank ( cut bank) and deposits sediments on an inner, convex ban ...
s. The A12 formerly went through Brentwood,
Mountnessing Mountnessing is a village and civil parish in the Borough of Brentwood in south Essex, England. It is situated to the north-east of Brentwood, south-west of Ingatestone. A large proportion of the houses are situated on the Roman Road (formerly ...
, Ingatestone, Margaretting,
Chelmsford Chelmsford () is a city in the City of Chelmsford district in the county of Essex, England. It is the county town of Essex and one of three cities in the county, along with Southend-on-Sea and Colchester. It is located north-east of Londo ...
,
Boreham Boreham is a village and civil parish, in Essex, England. The parish is in the City of Chelmsford and Chelmsford Parliament constituency. The village is approximately northeast from the county town of Chelmsford. History Boreham is listed ...
,
Hatfield Peverel Hatfield Peverel is a village and civil parish at the centre of Essex, England. It is located 6 miles (10 km) north-east from Chelmsford, the nearest large city, which it is connected by road and rail. The parish includes the hamlets of ...
, Witham, Kelvedon, Copford, Stanway and
Colchester Colchester ( ) is a city in Essex, in the East of England. It had a population of 122,000 in 2011. The demonym is Colcestrian. Colchester occupies the site of Camulodunum, the first major city in Roman Britain and its first capital. Colch ...
, but these are all now bypassed, and the A12 is a dual carriageway with mostly grade-separated junctions for its whole length in Essex. It is this stretch of the A12, particularly between Chelmsford and Colchester, which has led to the poor reputation for surface quality of the A12. This is mainly for its bumpy or potholed surface, mostly due to worn concrete surfaces. In an ongoing process these sections are being relaid with tarmac, however some sections including the Kelvedon bypass, and between Copford and Stanway have yet to be resurfaced. Built in 1982, the A12 Colchester bypass provides an uninterrupted dual carriageway where the national speed limit of 70 mph applies. Before 1982, the A12 took a route much closer to Colchester itself, and although still a bypass it consisted of urban single carriageways with roundabouts and pedestrian crossings. The old bypass is still in existence – the western half now forms part of the A1124 and the eastern half part of the A133.


Suffolk

The Suffolk stretch of the A12 starts with the
Capel St Mary Capel St. Mary – commonly known as Capel – is a village in Suffolk, England. It is about south-west of Ipswich and from Dedham Vale, which is a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. History Early history The village was listed in ...
bypass. Originally the route from the Northern end of this bypass ran through the villages of Washbrook and Copdock and into
Ipswich Ipswich () is a port town and borough in Suffolk, England, of which it is the county town. The town is located in East Anglia about away from the mouth of the River Orwell and the North Sea. Ipswich is both on the Great Eastern Main Line ...
. When Ipswich's Southern by-pass was built in the early 1980s, the route picked up from the northern Capel St Mary junction (now numbered 32b), to pass to the West of the original line – this allowed the relevant ground works and interchanges to be completed with minimal traffic disruption. The old
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 ...
through Washbrook and Copdock is blocked off at White's Corner and was renumbered to be the C475. A footpath still exists which enables passage underneath the A14. The old route through Ipswich was renumbered as the A1214 following construction of the Ipswich Southern By-pass. The old route is more locally known by the road names, notably "London Road" to the Town Centre and Woodbridge Road out the other side. The Ipswich Southern By-pass allows the A12 to overlap the A14 to Seven Hills Interchange, from the Copdock junction, where the A12 reappears and heads North. As the A14 the road passes over the large Orwell Bridge with total length of 1,287 metres. This has a summit at 43 metres above the river giving a humped feel with reduced visibility for traffic. There are at-grade roundabout junctions past BT Adastral Park at Martlesham and around the Woodbridge bypass. For most of its remaining length through Suffolk the A12 is a mostly
single carriageway A single carriageway (British English) or Undivided highway (American English) is a road with one, two or more lanes arranged within a one carriageway with no central reservation to separate opposing flows of traffic. A single-track road has a s ...
road, and in many places its speed limit is less than the national limit, for example as it passes through towns and villages. During 2003/2004 some of these speed restrictions were further reduced from to . There are, though, a few stretches of dual carriageway between the Woodbridge bypass and Lowestoft (at Wickham Market, Saxmundham, Wangford and Kessingland). This section of the A12 was detrunked in 2001 as part of the Highways Agency's streamlining of its Trunk Road Network. Control was therefore passed to the local authorities. Just south of Blythburgh, the old
milestone A milestone is a numbered marker placed on a route such as a road, railway line, canal or boundary. They can indicate the distance to towns, cities, and other places or landmarks; or they can give their position on the route relative to so ...
shows it is to London. The A12 ran through Lowestoft for about on urban limited roads. However, as of June 2006, the A12 now follows the course of the new single carriageway Southern Relief Road that joins the original A12 at Lowestoft bascule bridge. A further impediment is the harbour bridge, which has three lanes, the centre lane operating as a one-way addition to whichever direction of flow is deemed greater. The presence of these bridge choke points can cause serious disruption to north–south trunk traffic, especially when local traffic is added during rush hours. An adequate bypass for Lowestoft would need to be well to the west, even to the west of Oulton Broad (the body of water), and its route would have to consider the great areas of marshland in that area. As of 2021 a
new bridge New Bridge may refer to: Bridges * Chester New Bridge, County Durham, England * Most Slovenského Národného Povstania (called the Nový Most, for New Bridge, until 2012), over the Danube in Bratislava, Slovakia * New Bridge (Dublin), over the ...
is under construction in Lowestoft. It is due to be designated part of the A12 on its completion in mid to late 2023, carrying traffic onto the exsisting A1117 northern relief road (which will also become the A12) to the A47 north of the town.


Norfolk

From February 2017, the A12 no longer reaches Norfolk as it terminates in Lowestoft at . Before February 2017, From a point just south west of the mouth of the
River Yare The River Yare is a river in the English county of Norfolk. In its lower reaches it is one of the principal navigable waterways of The Broads and connects with the rest of the network. The river rises south of Dereham to the west to the v ...
, northwards to the point where it crosses the River Yare in
Great Yarmouth Great Yarmouth (), often called Yarmouth, is a seaside town and unparished area in, and the main administrative centre of, the Borough of Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, England; it straddles the River Yare and is located east of Norwich. A pop ...
, the A12 followed the route originally used by the railway line from Lowestoft to its terminus north of Breydon Bridge at Vauxhall Roundabout where the A47 previously terminated.


Proposed Improvements


2023 Lowestoft Gull Wing Bridge

A new 8 span bridge is being constructed over the river in Lowestoft (Suffolk). On completion in 2023, it will carry the A12 over the river from the exsisting A12 roundabout at Tom Crisp Way. From there, Peto Way and the A1117 (Peto Way & Millennium Way) will become part of the A12, leaving it to terminate at the towns northern roundabout which acts as a junction onto the A47.


2008 Technology Upgrades

In November 2008 the government announced a £60 million technology package including variable message signs, CCTV, Automatic Number Plate Recognition cameras and automatic incident detection sensors embedded in the road surface to improve journey reliability, reduce delays and give better information to drivers. Work is due to start in 2011/12.


1986 Proposed Bypasses

A bypass for various villages was proposed in 1986 as part of the government's 1989
Roads for Prosperity ''Roads for Prosperity'' (often incorrectly called Road to Prosperity) was a controversial white paper published by the Conservative government in the United Kingdom in 1989; detailing the 'largest road building programme for the UK since the Rom ...
white paper A white paper is a report or guide that informs readers concisely about a complex issue and presents the issuing body's philosophy on the matter. It is meant to help readers understand an issue, solve a problem, or make a decision. A white paper ...
which detailed many road schemes across the country. Suffolk county council considered a bypass for the villages of
Farnham Farnham ( /ˈfɑːnəm/) is a market town and civil parish in Surrey, England, around southwest of London. It is in the Borough of Waverley, close to the county border with Hampshire. The town is on the north branch of the River Wey, a tri ...
, Stratford St Andrew, Glemham and
Marlesford Marlesford is a village and civil parish in the East Suffolk district, in the English county of Suffolk. The population of the civil parish at the 2011 Census was 233. Location It is about 2 miles away from the small town of Wickham Market. ...
for the 2006 Local Transport Plan. The scheme will not be implemented until after 2016. Essex county council has put forwards plans for a bypass of Chelmsford connecting Junction 19 of the A12 to the A131. Plans to upgrade additional sections of the A120 into a dual two-lane carriageway were scrapped in 2009.


2008 inquiry

In response to this increasing congestion, Essex County Council announced it would hold an A12 inquiry which was tasked with deciding how to improve the A12 and prevent the congestion. The inquiry was headed by Sir David Rowlands, KCB, a former Permanent Secretary at the Department for Transport, with Professor Stephen Glaister, Dr David Quarmby and Lord Whitty, all with significant knowledge of the transport sector. The inquiry began taking submissions in April 2008. The Inquiry, the first ever local council sponsored inquiry into a major trunk road, heard from 24 organisations and 36 witnesses over three days including
Department for Transport The Department for Transport (DfT) is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for the English transport network and a limited number of transport matters in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland that have not been devolved. The ...
and Highways Agency officials, MPs, local and regional agencies and authorities, the emergency services, business and motoring groups. Comments were also received from over two hundred members of the public and through a petition organised by the
Essex Chronicle The ''Essex Chronicle'' is a general news, weekly paper founded in 1764, as the ''Chelmsford Chronicle'', and now owned by Reach Regionals Ltd. The paper began in 1764 and made news in 2002 when operations moved from the original press locati ...
newspaper. The commissions finding were published in July 2008 and its outline recommendations are: * the A12 as far as Ipswich should be brought up to modern dual 2-lane standards (where not already dual-3), with urgent priority given to the Hatfield Peverel – Marks Tey section * substandard lay-bys should be replaced; one or more locations off but near the A12 should be identified for secure HGV parking, and an HGV overtaking ban should be trialled * a wide range of short term practical measures should be introduced to improve safety and reduce driver stress, such as selective speed limits and better information for drivers, and to improve the recovery from incidents and closures * a New Route Management Strategy should be drawn up by the Highways Agency, in collaboration with local stakeholders, and an 'A12 Alliance' should be formed to consolidate and sustain the momentum for improvement


References


External links


Society for All British Road Enthusiasts entry for the A12

Traffic flow on A12 Redbridge Roundabout (RedRag)
{{DEFAULTSORT:1-0012 Transport in Norfolk Roads in Suffolk Transport in the City of Chelmsford Transport in the Borough of Brentwood Transport in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham Transport in the London Borough of Havering Transport in the London Borough of Redbridge Transport in the London Borough of Waltham Forest Transport in the London Borough of Newham Transport in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets Roads in England Roads in Essex Roads in London Constituent roads of European route E30