The A146 is an

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 ...

that connects Norwich in Norfolk and

Lowestoft Lowestoft ( ) is a coastal town and civil parish in the East Suffolk district of Suffolk, England.OS Explorer Map OL40: The Broads: (1:25 000) : . As the most easterly UK settlement, it is north-east of London, north-east of Ipswich and sou ...

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 Lowes ...

, two of

East Anglia East Anglia is an area in the East of England, often defined as including the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire. The name derives from the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the East Angles, a people whose name originated in Anglia, in ...

's largest population centres. It is around in length and has primary classification along its entire route. It is mainly single carriageway throughout its route, with the exception of a section of dual carriageway on the southern edge of Norwich.

Route description

The A146 begins in Norwich before passing through a mainly rural area on its route to the eastern edge of

Norwich

The A146 starts to the south of Norwich city centre as part of the city ring road. It begins at a junction with the

A140 The A140 is an A roads in Great Britain, 'A-class' road in Norfolk and Suffolk, East Anglia, England partly following the route of the Roman Pye Road. It runs from the A14 road (Great Britain), A14 near Needham Market to the A149 road, A149 so ...

Ipswich RoadBing maps – Norwich
Microsoft, 2015. Retrieved 2015-11-17. and forms a section of the ring road which is approximately long, running to the east where it reaches a junction with the A1054.''Landranger Sheet 134 – Norwich & the Broads'', Ordnance Survey 1:50 000 sheet, 2012.Google maps
Google, 2015. Retrieved 2015-11-17. The A146 then runs south-easterly out of the city, a direction it generally continues in for the rest of its route, initially as a section of dual carriageway around in length, crossing the main Norwich to London railway line and the River Yare and bypassing the village of

Trowse Trowse (pronounced by those from Norwich and by elderly residents of the village), also called Trowse with Newton, is a village in South Norfolk which lies about south-east of Norwich city centre on the banks of the River Yare. It covers an ...

. The road passes under the A47 southern bypass with junctions controlled by traffic lights allowing access to and from the A47 and reaches a junction with the B1332, the former northern terminus of the A144.Ordnance Survey One-inch to the mile, Seventh Series, 1955–1961
available at the

National Library of Scotland The National Library of Scotland (NLS) ( gd, Leabharlann Nàiseanta na h-Alba, sco, Naitional Leebrar o Scotland) is the legal deposit library of Scotland and is one of the country's National Collections. As one of the largest libraries in the ...

. Retrieved 2015-11-17. Before the construction of the southern bypass the A146 began in the centre of Norwich and ran through Trowse.

Norwich to Beccles

The Stockton Stone - Glacial Erratic - geograph

After leaving Norwich the A146 returns to a single carriageway and runs through a rural section towards the town of Beccles on the Norfolk-

border. It passes through the parish of Hellington before reaching the village of Thurton where a speed limit is in force. After passing the grounds of Langley School it then bypasses the village of

Chedgrave Chedgrave is a village and civil parish in English county of Norfolk. Chedgrave is separated from nearby Loddon by the River Chet. History Chedgrave's name is of Anglo-Saxon origin and likely derives from the Old English for Ceatta's pit or grov ...

and the market town of

Loddon Loddon may refer to: *Loddon, Norfolk in England, UK *Shire of Loddon in Victoria, Australia (since 1995) **Bridgewater On Loddon, Victoria in Australia *River Loddon, flows into the River Thames near Reading *Loddon River, flows north from south of ...

, crossing the

River Chet The River Chet is a small river in South Norfolk, England, a tributary of the River Yare. It rises in Poringland and flows eastwards through Alpington, Bergh Apton, Thurton and Loddon. At Loddon it passes under the A146 through Loddon Mill and ...

in the process. The route formerly passed through both of these settlements. The road then passes the edge of the village of Hales at the roundabout leading to the B1136 for

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 ...

. Between Hales and

Stockton Stockton may refer to: Places Australia * Stockton, New South Wales * Stockton, Queensland, a locality in the Cassowary Coast Region New Zealand *Stockton, New Zealand United Kingdom *Stockton, Cheshire *Stockton, Norfolk *Stockton, Chirbu ...

several old stretches of the route can be seen in what are now laybys. It then reaches the A143 at a roundabout with the route to

Bungay Bungay () is a market town, civil parish and electoral ward in the English county of Suffolk.OS Explorer Map OL40: The Broads: (1:25 000) : . It lies in the Waveney Valley, west of Beccles on the edge of The Broads, and at the neck of a meand ...

going west. The road briefly becomes the A143 for around before another roundabout on the northern edge of Gillingham where the A143 continues to the north-east towards Great Yarmouth. A service station and fast food restaurant are located at this junction. The road then bypasses Gillingham and crosses the River Waveney, passing into Suffolk, before reaching the northern edge of the market town of Beccles at a roundabout. It formerly passed through Gillingham and crossed the Waveney at the narrow Beccles Old Bridge before passing through the town and Worlingham to the east.

Beccles to Lowestoft

The road passes to the north of Beccles and crosses the Lowestoft to Ipswich railway line at a level crossing. It passes Beccles Common and to the north of Worlingham, travelling now in a more easterly direction before rejoining its original route near the villages of

North Cove North Cove is a village and civil parish in the north of the English county of Suffolk. It is part of the East Suffolk district, located around east of Beccles and west of Lowestoft. It merges with the village of Barnby and the villages shar ...

, where there is a roundabout junction with the A145, and Barnby. Both villages are bypassed to the south by the modern road before it reaches the edge of the Lowestoft built up area at Carlton Colville. A relief road, the A1145, links Carlton Colville with the centre of Lowestoft whilst the A146 continues east. The road terminates at a junction with the A1117 in Oulton Broad, just to the south of

Oulton Broad South railway station Oulton Broad South railway station is on the East Suffolk Line in the east of England, and is one of two stations serving Oulton Broad, Suffolk. The other is on the Wherry Lines. Oulton Broad South is the next station along from on the line t ...

.Bing maps – Oulton Broad
Microsoft, 2015. Retrieved 2015-11-17. The road previously ended at a junction with the A12 in the centre of Lowestoft.

History

The A146 formerly started in Norwich city centre and ran into the centre of

. A range of improvements, including straightening of bends, have taken place over the years.

and

were bypassed in the 1970s.Loddon
Welcome to Norwich, visitoruk. Retrieved 2015-11-18. Beccles, Worlingham and Gillingham are also bypassed with the River Waveney crossed by Beccles New Bridge, replacing a 19th-century iron bridge which traffic used to have to cross in Beccles. The completion of the A47 Norwich southern bypass in 1992 created the dual carriageway section of the A146 on the edge of the city and bypassed the village of

.Trowse with Newton Conservation Area Character Appraisal and Management Plan
South Norfolk District Council, September 2012. Retrieved 2015-11-18.A history of the A47
''Norwich Evening News'', 2013-09-17. Retrieved 2015-11-17. The A146 historically ran from Oulton Broad into the centre of Lowestoft along the route of what is today the B1531.''Landranger Sheet 134 – Norwich & the Broads'', Ordnance Survey 1:50 000 sheet, 1997. The route ran to the south of

Lake Lothing Lake Lothing is a saltwater lake located in Lowestoft in the English county of Suffolk. The lake, which is believed to be the remnant of medieval peat cutting,

and terminated just to the south of the bascule bridge at a junction with the A12 immediately to the south of the entrance to the

Port of Lowestoft The Port of Lowestoft is a harbour in Lowestoft in the English county of Suffolk owned by Associated British Ports. It is the most easterly harbour in the United Kingdom and has direct sea access to the North Sea. The harbour is made up of two ...

. In 2018 a roundabout was built to replace the Hales junction of the B1136 for

Transport links

The route of the A146 passes near to Norwich railway station on 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 t ...

and both

Beccles railway station Beccles railway station is on the East Suffolk Line in the east of England, serving the town of Beccles, Suffolk. It is down the line from and measured from London Liverpool Street; it is situated between and stations. Its three-lette ...

and

on the East Suffolk Line. All stations are operated by Abellio Greater Anglia The

First Norfolk & Suffolk First Eastern Counties is a bus operator providing services in Norfolk and Suffolk in eastern England. It is a subsidiary of FirstGroup. It has seven depots which are part of five operating areas spread out across East Anglia. The five operatin ...

X2 bus route also follows the road for much of its journey between Norwich and Lowestoft, serving all population centres on the route.X2
, First Norfolk & Suffolk. Retrieved 2015-11-18.

References

External links

SABRE Roads by Ten – A146
{{DEFAULTSORT:1-0146 Roads in England Roads in Norfolk Roads in Suffolk