The A33 is a major road in the counties of

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Ber ...

and

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English cities on its south coast, Southampton and Portsmouth, Hampshire ...

in southern England. The road currently runs in three disjoint sections.

Route

Reading–Basingstoke

The first stretch of the A33 is a relatively new road, built as the A33 relief road, which starts on the

Inner Distribution Road The Inner Distribution Road or IDR is a mostly dual carriageway ring road that encircles the town centre of Reading, Berkshire, England. It forms part of the A329 that runs from Wentworth in Surrey to Thame in Oxfordshire. History The Inner ...

and bypasses most of suburban Reading, servicing the Kennet Island residential development,

Madejski Stadium The Madejski Stadium (currently known as the Select Car Leasing Stadium for sponsorship reasons) is a Association football, football stadium in Reading, Berkshire, Reading. It is the home of Reading F.C., Reading Football Club, who play in the E ...

and

Green Park Business Park Green Park is a business park near junction 11 of the M4 motorway on the outskirts of the English town of Reading. The park opened in 1999, and is currently owned by Mapletree. It covers and comprises 19 office buildings arranged around the ...

, towards the M4, where it connects at junction 11. The first stretch of this road follows the route of the old Coley branch railway, including a passage under the railway era bridge carrying Berkeley Avenue. A two-year redevelopment scheme ran from early 2008 until late 2010, widening the northern section of the dual carriageway and significantly expanding and improving the motorway junction. The Mereoak Roundabout south of the motorway was replaced with two separate junctions with traffic lights. The section south of the M4 is dual carriageway up to the county boundary with

, where it reverts to single carriageway 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 ...

Basingstoke–Winchester

The second section of the A33 starts near Popham, southwest of

at a junction with the A30. The road from here to

Winchester Winchester is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs Nation ...

is a scenic mix of single and dual carriageway, that was progressively improved in the late 1960s. The route runs through much of the borough of

Basingstoke and Deane Basingstoke and Deane is a local government district and borough in Hampshire, England. Its primary settlement is Basingstoke. Other settlements include Bramley, Tadley, Kingsclere, Overton, Oakley, Whitchurch and the village of Deane, som ...

. At Kings Worthy, the road diverts onto part of the original Winchester Bypass, constructed in the late 1930s, up to the A34.

Southampton

The third section of A33 starts at the Chilworth Roundabout, a junction with the A27 amd M3, and runs south into the centre of

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

and further south to Ocean Village. It then turns west and into dual carriageway at a roundabout near the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight ( ) is a county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the largest and second-most populous island of England. Referred to as 'The Island' by residents, the Is ...

ferry terminal, past the docks and through Town Quay to run along West Quay Road, continuing past Leisure World and Ikea (which is partially responsible for congestion on the road and immediate surroundings due to its popularity, particularly on weekends). The A33 then bears left slightly to carry on along the Millbrook Road West dual carriageway to meet the M271 and A35 at Redbridge Flyover.

History

The A33 originally started at a junction with what was the A32 at Riseley Common and was a continuous route to Southampton Between Basingstoke and Southampton, it mostly followed the course of the historic

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 ...

between these towns. This section of the route became part of the London–Southampton Trunk Road. The road was progressively detrunked as the M3 was extended. The Winchester Bypass was constructed in the mid-1930s. While a significant improvement at the time, as other parts of the road were improved around it, it became increasingly ineffective and dangerous. The bypass was subsequently replaced by the completion of the M3 over

Twyford Down Twyford Down is an area of chalk downland lying directly to the southeast of Winchester, Hampshire, England next to St. Catherine's Hill and close to the South Downs National Park. It has been settled since pre-Roman times, and has housed a f ...

, which generated a significant road protest.

References

External links

*
A33 route on OpenStreetMap
{{DEFAULTSORT:3-0033 Roads in England Roads in Berkshire Roads in Hampshire Transport in Hampshire