2017 at Stapleton Road station - viaduct south side

Stapleton Road is a major thoroughfare in the English city of

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

, running through the districts of

Lawrence Hill Lawrence Hill (born January 24, 1957) is a Canadian novelist, essayist, and memoirist. He is known for his 2007 novel '' The Book of Negroes,'' inspired by the Black Loyalists given freedom and resettled in Nova Scotia by the British after the ...

and Easton. It is known for being very culturally diverse with many esoteric shops. However since the mid 20th century it has gained a reputation for having a high crime rate.

Route

The road is on the former route into Bristol from

Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean to the west, east of Monmouth and east ...

, it becomes the B4058 at its southern end parts of which are today known as the Old Gloucester Road. The road starts at the junction between Lawford's Gate and Trinity Road in the St Jude's area of Bristol and also marks the start of the A432. While there is still a shopping area here, today only one side of the road is mostly pre war, the other side has mostly now housing estates. This part has been severely affected by the building of the A4320 which completely bisected the road in the 1970s causing a large gap. The road was originally meant to be part of a much grander ring road around inner Bristol, but these plans were eventually shelved although the road was extended to the A4 in the 1990s. The large gap is connected by both

pedestrian crossing A pedestrian crossing (or crosswalk in American English) is a place designated for pedestrians to cross a road, street or avenue. The term "pedestrian crossing" is also used in the Vienna and Geneva Conventions, both of which pertain to road sig ...

s and a subway, however the road is further disjointed by the fact that through traffic - apart from buses, taxis and bikes - cannot continue along the Stapleton Road here and must travel to the M32 Junction 1 roundabout to get back on to the A432. From here on most of the road is pre war on both sides. This area has been particularly notable for its crime rate. Further along it is crossed by the

Cross Country Route A cross is a geometrical figure consisting of two intersecting lines or bars, usually perpendicular to each other. The lines usually run vertically and horizontally. A cross of oblique lines, in the shape of the Latin letter X, is termed a sa ...

railway line next to

Stapleton Road railway station Stapleton Road railway station is on the Severn Beach Line and Cross Country Route, serving the inner-city district of Easton in Bristol, England. It is from . Its three letter station code is SRD. The station has two platforms, four runnin ...

. The station is on the

between and , and on the Severn Beach Line from Bristol Temple Meads to . After the railway line a short section of the River Frome runs close to the road. It used to be open, but was culverted around the time the M32 was built, and a footpath runs coherently with the route of the river and there is now a small park called Fox Park on the location. The Stapleton Road

TOTSO Terminology related to road transport—the transport of passengers or goods on paved (or otherwise improved) routes between places—is diverse, with variation between dialects of English. There may also be regional differences within a single co ...

s at the junction with the Fishponds Road in Eastville Coherently the A432 continues along the Fishponds road as the main street, still with some shops, and the cultural change towards Fishponds occurs further on where it meeds the Muller road. From here on the road changes character. Following on the Stapleton Road becomes a less grand affair and is mainly residential. Also, since the building of the M32 the road has become much narrower and one side has become lost to the M32 and traffic can only head northbound. A small section of the road was obliterated for building of the M32 Junction 2 in the 1970s. After the roundabout the road is once again two way and gains the number B4058 shortly before dives once again under the M32 and crosses over the river Frome, becoming Bell Hill at the junction with Glenfrome Road, finally having reached Stapleton.

References

{{coord, 51.466, -2.568, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title Streets in Bristol