The A201 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 ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, England running from Kings Cross to

Bricklayer's Arms Bricklayers Arms is the road intersection of the A2 and the London Inner Ring Road where Bermondsey meets Walworth and Elephant & Castle in south London. It is the junction of Tower Bridge Road, Old Kent Road, New Kent Road and Great Dover S ...

London Inner Ring Road The London Inner Ring Road, or Ring Road as signposted, is a route with an average diameter of , formed from a number of major roads that encircle Central London. The ring road forms the boundary of the London congestion charge zone, although ...

A small stretch of the road between Bricklayer's Arms and Elephant and Castle (

New Kent Road New Kent Road is a road in the London Borough of Southwark. The road was created in 1751 when the Turnpike trust, Turnpike Trust upgraded a local footpath. This was done as part of the general road improvements associated with the creation o ...

) forms part of the

London Congestion Charge zone

Apart from this section, the road is entirely in the

London congestion charge zone London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. The route is managed by

Transport for London Transport for London (TfL) is a local government body responsible for most of the transport network in London, United Kingdom. TfL is the successor organization of the London Passenger Transport Board, which was established in 1933, and His ...

(TfL).

Thameslink

The Thameslink rail route roughly follows that of the A201 between

St Pancras International St Pancras railway station (), officially known since 2007 as London St Pancras International, is a major central London railway terminus on Euston Road in the London Borough of Camden. It is the terminus for Eurostar services from Belgium, F ...

and

Elephant & Castle Elephant and Castle is an area of South London, England, in the London Borough of Southwark. The name also informally refers to much of Walworth and Newington, due to the proximity of the London Underground station of the same name. The nam ...

Route

London Borough of Islington

Beginning to the east of

King's Cross St Pancras tube station King's Cross St Pancras (; also known as King's Cross & St Pancras International) is a London Underground station on Euston Road in the London Borough of Camden, Central London, Central London. It serves and main line stations in List of stat ...

, the route runs south from

Pentonville Road Pentonville Road is a road in Central London that runs west to east from Kings Cross to City Road at The Angel, Islington. The road is part of the London Inner Ring Road and part of the boundary of the London congestion charge zone. The road ...

(the Ring Road) along King's Cross Road. It leaves the main King's Cross gyratory near the Clink78 hostel, signposted towards the

City of London The City of London, also known as ''the City'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and Districts of England, local government district with City status in the United Kingdom, city status in England. It is the Old town, his ...

. The road passes the

Mount Pleasant Mail Centre The Mount Pleasant Mail Centre (often shortened as Mount Pleasant, known internally as the Mount and officially known as the London Central Mail Centre) is a mail centre operated by Royal Mail in London, England. The site has previously operated ...

, situated on the western side of the road, reaching Clerkenwell at a junction with the A401/

Rosebery Avenue Rosebery Avenue is a major thoroughfare in the boroughs of Camden and Islington, Central London. It starts southwest from the intersection with Theobald's Road, Holborn, and ends northeast at St John Street, Clerkenwell. Finsbury Town Hall ...

. Continuing south, the route becomes

Farringdon Road Farringdon Road is a road in Clerkenwell, London. Route Farringdon Road is part of the A201 route connecting King's Cross to Elephant and Castle. It goes southeast from King's Cross, crossing Rosebery Avenue, then turns south, crossing C ...

, passing Farringdon station as it leaves the

London Borough of Islington The London Borough of Islington ( ) is a London borough, borough in North London, England. Forming part of Inner London, Islington has an estimated population of 215,667. It was formed in 1965, under the London Government Act 1963, by the amalg ...

City of London

The A201 enters the City of London at a junction with

Charterhouse Street Charterhouse Street is a street on the north side of Smithfield in the City of London. The road forms part of the City’s boundary with the neighbouring London Boroughs of Islington and Camden. It connects Charterhouse Square and Holborn C ...

(which leads to

Holborn Circus Holborn Circus is a five-way junction at the western extreme of the City of London, specifically between Holborn (St Andrew) and its Hatton Garden (St Alban) part. Its main, east–west, route is the inchoate A40 road (Great Britain), A40 road. ...

, the A4, and the A40). It passes underneath the A40/

Holborn Viaduct Holborn Viaduct is a road bridge in London and the name of the street which crosses it (which forms part of the A40 road, A40 route). It links Holborn, via Holborn Circus, with Newgate Street, in the City of London, England financial distri ...

as it slopes downhill towards

Ludgate Circus Ludgate Circus is a road junction in the City of London where Farringdon Street/New Bridge Street (the A201) crosses Fleet Street/Ludgate Hill. (Ludgate Hill is a gentle rise to St Paul's Cathedral.) Fleet Street was the only direct road betw ...

. Crossing Ludgate Circus, the road passes

Blackfriars station Blackfriars (), also known as London Blackfriars, is a central London railway station and connected London Underground station in the City of London. It provides Thameslink services: local (from North to South London), and regional (Bedford ...

. Leaving the City, the route crosses the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, s ...

via

Blackfriars Bridge Blackfriars Bridge is a road and foot traffic bridge over the River Thames in London, between Waterloo Bridge and Blackfriars Railway Bridge, carrying the A201 road. The north end is in the City of London near the Inns of Court and Temple C ...

London Borough of Southwark

The road continues south through the

London Borough of Southwark The London Borough of Southwark ( ) in South London forms part of Inner London and is connected by bridges across the River Thames to the City of London and the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It was created in 1965 when three smaller council ...

, passing

Southwark tube station Southwark () is a London Underground station in the London Borough of Southwark at the corner of Blackfriars Road and The Cut. It is on the Jubilee line between Waterloo and London Bridge stations, and is located in Travelcard Zone 1. The stati ...

. At

St George's Circus St George's Circus is a road junction in Southwark, London, England. At its centre, which is now a traffic roundabout, is an historic obelisk, designed by Robert Mylne (1733–1811), in his role as surveyor and architect of Blackfriars Bridge. ...

, southbound traffic may continue towards Elephant and Castle along London Road. With the exception of buses and cycles, northbound traffic is routed along the A302/

St George's Road St George's Road is a one-way road in Southwark, London running between Westminster Bridge Road to the northwest and Elephant and Castle to the southeast. The direction of the vehicular traffic is from Elephant and Castle to Westminster Brid ...

and A3202/

Westminster Bridge Road Westminster Bridge Road is a road in London, England. It is on an east–west axis, and passes through the northern extremities of the boroughs of Lambeth and Southwark. Between 1740 and 1746, the Commissioners of Westminster Bridge bought lan ...

between Elephant and Castle and St George's Circus. The route turns east at Elephant and Castle, becoming

(the Ring Road eastbound towards

Lewisham Lewisham ( ) is an area of southeast London, England, south of Charing Cross. It is the principal area of the London Borough of Lewisham, and was within the Historic counties of England, historic county of Kent until 1889. It is identified in ...

). The route ends at Bricklayer's Arms at a junction with the A100/

Tower Bridge Road The London Inner Ring Road, or Ring Road as signposted, is a route with an average diameter of , formed from a number of major roads that encircle Central London. The ring road forms the boundary of the London congestion charge zone, although ...

and the A2/ Great Dover Street. Traffic continuing on the main carriageway joins the A2/

Old Kent Road Old Kent Road is a major thoroughfare in South East London, England, passing through the London Borough of Southwark. It was originally part of an ancient trackway that was paved by the Romans and used by the Anglo-Saxons who named it Wæcel ...

. New Kent Road was created in 1751 when the

Turnpike Trust Turnpike trusts were bodies set up by individual Acts of Parliament in the United Kingdom, Acts of Parliament, with powers to collect road toll road, tolls for maintaining the principal roads in Kingdom of Great Britain, Britain from the 17th ...

upgraded a local footpath.

Landmarks

Cycleway 6

Cycleway 6 (C6) runs alongside the A201 between Farringdon and Elephant and Castle. C6 joins the A201 near Farringdon station, heading south on traffic-free

cycle track A cycle track or cycleway (''British'') or bikeway (''mainly North American''), sometimes historically referred to as a sidepath, is a separate route for cycles and not motor vehicles. In some cases cycle tracks are also used by other users such ...

on either side of Farringdon Road. Southbound cyclists cross Farringdon Road to the south of the Holborn Viaduct, where the route continues as a two-way

bike freeway A bicycle highway, also known as a cycling superhighway, fast cycle route or bike freeway, is an informal name for a bicycle path that is meant for long-distance traffic. There is no official definition of a bicycle highway. The characteristics ...

towards Blackfriars Bridge. On the northern side of Blackfriars Bridge, there is a junction between C6 and

Cycleway 3 Cycleway 3 (C3) is a bicycle highway, cycle route in London, England. It is part of the List of cycle routes in London, Cycleway network coordinated by Transport for London, TfL. It runs from Barking, London, Barking in the east to Lancaster Ga ...

(CS3). The segregated cycle route continues south from Blackfriars towards St George's Circus, after which it turns west towards St George's Street. C6 meets Cycle Superhighway 7 (CS7) near the Elephant and Castle junction. North from Farringdon, C6 runs unbroken and signposted to

Kentish Town Kentish Town is an area of northwest London, England, in the London Borough of Camden, immediately north of Camden Town, close to Hampstead Heath. Kentish Town likely derives its name from Ken-ditch or Caen-ditch, meaning the "bed of a waterw ...

, via

Bloomsbury Bloomsbury is a district in the West End of London, part of the London Borough of Camden in England. It is considered a fashionable residential area, and is the location of numerous cultural institution, cultural, intellectual, and educational ...

, St Pancras, and

Camden Town Camden Town () is an area in the London Borough of Camden, around north-northwest of Charing Cross. Historically in Middlesex, it is identified in the London Plan as one of 34 major centres in Greater London. Laid out as a residential distri ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:2-0201a Roads in England Streets in the London Borough of Camden Streets in the City of London Streets in the London Borough of Islington Streets in the London Borough of Southwark