A38 road
Length (miles)	292
Length (km)	470
Direction	South-North
Start	Bodmin
End	Mansfield
Roads joined

A38 passing under M50 in Worcestershire

The A38 is a major trunk road in England. A mile is a unit of Length, usually used to measure Distance, in a number of different systems including Imperial units United States The kilometre ( American spelling: kilometer) symbol km is a unit of Length in the Metric system, equal to one thousand Bodmin (Bosvenegh is a Town in Cornwall, United Kingdom, with a population of 12778 (2001 census Mansfield is a town in Nottinghamshire, England. It is the largest town in the County, lying on the River Maun, from which the name of the town A trunk road, trunk highway, or strategic road is a major Road &mdashusually connecting two or more cities, Ports Airports England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Though formally known as the Exeter - Leeds Trunk Road, it actually runs from Bodmin in Cornwall to Mansfield in Nottinghamshire. Bodmin (Bosvenegh is a Town in Cornwall, United Kingdom, with a population of 12778 (2001 census Cornwall ( Kernow ˈkɛɹnɔʊ is the most southwesterly county of England, on the Peninsula that lies to the west of the River Tamar Mansfield is a town in Nottinghamshire, England. It is the largest town in the County, lying on the River Maun, from which the name of the town Nottinghamshire (abbreviated Notts) is an English county in the East Midlands, which borders South Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, Leicestershire At 292 miles (470 km) long it is the longest 'A' road entirely within England, and in the United Kingdom as a whole second only to the A1. A mile is a unit of Length, usually used to measure Distance, in a number of different systems including Imperial units United States The kilometre ( American spelling: kilometer) symbol km is a unit of Length in the Metric system, equal to one thousand The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located It was formerly known as the Leeds - Exeter Trunk Road, when this description also included the A61. The A61 is a major Trunk road in England. It runs from Derby to Thirsk in North Yorkshire.

Route description

Main article: Settlements on the A38

Bodmin to Birmingham

Starting from Bodmin, at a junction with the A30, the road runs through the Glynn Valley, then past Liskeard, Tideford and Saltash (through the Saltash Tunnel), into Devon at the Tamar Bridge, through Plymouth (named 'The Parkway') and Ashburton to Exeter. The A38 is a major Trunk road running from the south-east of Bodmin in Cornwall to Mansfield in Nottinghamshire. Bodmin (Bosvenegh is a Town in Cornwall, United Kingdom, with a population of 12778 (2001 census The A30 is an old Trunk road (main road which runs from central London to Land's End, the westernmost point of the mainland of southern Great Britain ( though Liskeard ( IPA /lɪˈskɑd/ — correctly stressed on the second syllable but often wrongly on the first (Lys Kerwyd or Lyskerrys is an ancient stannary and Tideford is a small village in east Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. Saltash (Essa is a town in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The Saltash Tunnel is a road tunnel on the A38 at Saltash in Cornwall, UK. Devon is a large county in the South West of England. The county is also referred to as Devonshire, but that is an entirely unofficial name The Tamar Bridge is a major Road Bridge in southwest England carrying traffic between Devon and Cornwall. Plymouth ( is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England about south west of London. Ashburton is a small town on the edge of Dartmoor in Devon, adjacent to the A38 Devon Expressway Exeter ( (IPA ˈeksɪtər is a city, district and County town of Devon, England. The section from Plymouth to Exeter is called the 'Devon Expressway', and serves as a southern extension of the M5 motorway. This article is about the M5 motorway in England See M5 for other roads numbered "M5" The current route just north of Plymouth, the 'Plympton bypass', was the location for the first stage of the Tour de France held in England, in 1974 before it was opened to traffic. Plympton, or Plympton Maurice or Plympton St Maurice or Plympton Erle, in south-western Devon, England is an ancient Stannary A bypass is a Road or Highway that avoids or "bypasses" a built-up area town or village to let through Traffic flow without interference from History See also:CategoryTour de France by year The dominant sports newspaper in France England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland

Exeter represents a second meeting point of the A38 with the A30 (historically they crossed each other in the city centre), a rare anomaly amongst major A-roads. A driver going from Bodmin to Exeter can therefore travel the entire route on either the A38 or the A30, although since the 1990s the latter is the usual choice as it involves more dual carriageway and avoids the city of Plymouth.

The A38 Gloucester Road at Horfield, Bristol

The modern A38 is concurrent with the M5 south of Exeter before re-emerging from junction 27, 10 miles (16 km) north of Exeter. A concurrency, overlap, or coincidence in a road network is an instance of one physical road bearing two or more different Highway, Motorway The former route of the A38 on this stretch, passing through Cullompton, is now the B3181. Cullompton is a town in Devon, England in the district of Mid Devon, lying from Exeter on the River Culm and close to the M5 B roads are numbered routes in Great Britain of lesser importance than A roads See the article Great Britain road numbering scheme for the rationale behind From junction 27 the A38 heads north via Wellington, Taunton, Bridgwater, Bristol, Gloucester, Tewkesbury, Worcester, Bromsgrove and Birmingham. Wellington is a small industrial town in rural Somerset, England, situated seven Miles south west of Taunton in the Taunton Deane district Taunton is the County town of Somerset, England. The Unparished area (or former Municipal borough) of Taunton has a Population Bridgwater in Somerset, England, is a Market town, the administrative centre of the Sedgemoor district, and the leading industrial Bristol ( ˈbrɪstəl is a city, Unitary authority and ceremonial county in South West England, west of London Gloucester (ˈɡlɒstɚ) is a city, district and County town of Gloucestershire in the South West region of England. Tewkesbury (ˈtjuːksbri is a Town in Gloucestershire, England. Worcester (ˈwʊstə is a city and County town of Worcestershire, in the West Midlands of England. Bromsgrove is a Town in Worcestershire, West Midlands, England. Birmingham ( ˈbɜːmɪŋəm Ber -ming-um From Exeter to Birmingham, the road is paralleled by the M5, where the A38 has reverted to taking local traffic only. Near Bristol the road was diverted to cater for an extension of the runway at Bristol International Airport. Bristol International Airport is the commercial Airport serving the city of Bristol, England and the surrounding area

Between Worcester and Birmingham the A38 follows the course of a Roman road (Icknield Street), or perhaps even a Celtic road, although the construction of bypasses around some towns means the modern-day route deviates somewhat from the original dead-straight road. The Roman Roads were essential for the growth of the Roman Empire, by enabling the Romans to move armies and trade goods and to communicate news Icknield Street or Ryknild Street is a Roman road in Britain that runs from the Fosse Way at Bourton on the Water in Gloucestershire Celts (ˈkɛlts or /ˈsɛlts/, see Names of the Celts The Roman encampment at Metchley Fort (near the Queen Elizabeth Hospital) was not far from the course of the road. Metchley Fort was a Roman Fort in what is now Birmingham, England. The Queen Elizabeth Hospital is an NHS Hospital in the Edgbaston area of Birmingham situated very close to the University of Birmingham ^[1]

A38 Bristol Road running through Bournbrook, Birmingham

In Birmingham a section of the road becomes the Aston Expressway A38(M) motorway, running from the north-eastern side of the Inner Ring Road through Aston to the junction with the M6 motorway at Gravelly Hill Interchange, better known as 'Spaghetti Junction'. The A38(M is a Motorway in Birmingham, England. It is 2 miles (3 The A4540 is a Ring Road in Birmingham, England, also known as the Middle Ring Road or the Middleway Aston is an area of the City of Birmingham, in the West Midlands of England. This article concerns the M6 motorway in England There are also M6 motorways in Russia (see Caspian Highway) Hungary (see M6 motorway Gravelly Hill Interchange, better known as Spaghetti Junction, is junction 6 of the M6 motorway where it meets the A38(M Aston Expressway in

Birmingham to Mansfield

From Birmingham the road bypasses Sutton Coldfield and Lichfield, before taking up the route of the Roman Ryknild Street (also spelt Icknield or Rykneld) as far as Derby. Sutton Coldfield ( is a town within the City of Birmingham, in the West Midlands of England Lichfield is a city and Civil parish in Staffordshire, England. Icknield Street or Ryknild Street is a Roman road in Britain that runs from the Fosse Way at Bourton on the Water in Gloucestershire The £4. 1m Sutton Coldfield Bypass opened in 1974, and the £2. 6m Lichfield Eastern Bypass in 1972. The further section of the route was improved to dual carriageway standard, including the 2. 5 miles (4. 0 km) from Barton Turn to Branston in February 1964, bypassing Burton upon Trent in June 1967 (costing £2. Barton Turn is a village in Staffordshire, England. Burton upon Trent, also known as Burton-on-Trent or simply Burton, is a large town straddling the River Trent in the east of Staffordshire, 6m, which stretched from Branston to Clay Mills and actually shortened the route by one mile), and in recent years many of the at-grade junctions have been upgraded or stopped-up. Branston is a village in Staffordshire, England. Branston was originally a small village beside the River Trent which has been brewing pickle for several years Later in June 1968, the section from the Staffordshire boundary at Clay Mills to the proposed Mickleover link was dualled - completing the dual-carriageway from Lichfield to Findern. Findern is a village in south Derbyshire. ( Grid reference:) Although a Railway runs through it there is no station the nearest stations are At Barton Turn, near the B5016 junction, the road runs right alongside the Cross Country Route for around 1 mile (1. The North-East/South-West route (sometimes simply The Cross-Country Route) is the major British rail route running from South West England via Bristol, Birmingham 6 km). This railway line follows the line of the A38 from Derby to Plymouth.

Originally terminating in Derby at the junction of Babington Lane with St Peter's Street (formerly the A6), further improvements in the late 1960s and 1970s saw construction of the £5. Derby (pronounced "dar-bee" /dˈɑːbɪ/ is a city in the East Midlands of England. 2m Mickleover by-pass to the south-west of Derby opened on 19 February 1975. Mickleover is located two miles (3 km west of the city centre and is the most westerly Village of the City of Derby in the United Kingdom. Events 197 - Roman Emperor Septimius Severus defeats usurper Clodius Albinus in the Battle of Lugdunum Year 1975 ( MCMLXXV) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Although the government had approved the section through Allestree as early as 1974, before the Mickleover bypass had been completed, this section had a lot of objections from nearby residents, delaying its construction (from the A52 to the A6). Allestree is a Suburb and ward of the City of Derby, a Unitary authority area, in Derbyshire, England. The A52 is a major road in the East Midlands, England. It runs east from the junction with the A53 at Newcastle-under-Lyme near Stoke-on-Trent It was opposed directly by Derby Borough Council and the former Derby Higher Education College. The University of Derby is a University in the city of Derby, England. The £17m road was eventually opened on 7 September 1983, known as Queensway. Events 1251 BC - A Solar eclipse on this date might mark the birth of legendary Heracles at Thebes Greece. Year 1983 ( MCMLXXXIII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1983 Gregorian calendar) An extension of the A38 northwards, crossing the M1 at Junction 28, and ending in Mansfield was built. The M1 is a major south – north Motorway in England primarily connecting London to Leeds, where Mansfield is a town in Nottinghamshire, England. It is the largest town in the County, lying on the River Maun, from which the name of the town The £3m Little Eaton-Holbrook Improvement opened on October 3, 1977. Little Eaton is a village in the English county of Derbyshire. Holbrook is a village in Derbyshire at the southern end of the Pennines around five miles north of Derby, England Events 42 BC - First Battle of Philippi: Triumvirs Mark Antony and Octavian fight an indecisive battle with Caesar's Also 1977 (album by Ash. Year 1977 ( MCMLXXVII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays The £12m ten-mile Ripley-Swanwick Bypass was opened by Eric Varley (MP for Chesterfield) on October 21, 1977, although the section from Alfreton to the Hartshay Hill roundabout with the A610 had been opened unofficially since September 5, 1977. Ripley is a small town in the Amber Valley area of Derbyshire in England. Swanwick is a village in Derbyshire, England, an urban district of Alfreton, part of the Amber Valley district with a Population Events 1512 - Martin Luther joins the theological faculty of the University of Wittenberg. Also 1977 (album by Ash. Year 1977 ( MCMLXXVII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays List of A roads beginning with 6 in Great Britain starting east of the A6 and A7 roads and west of the A1. Events 1590 - Alexander Farnese 's army forces Henry IV of France to raise the siege of Paris. Also 1977 (album by Ash. Year 1977 ( MCMLXXVII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays The section from Alfreton to the M1 opened as the A615 in the late 1960s.

For nearly four miles, the A38 forms part of Derby's outer ring road, including three roundabouts (Kingsway or "Grand Canyon", Markeaton (which was improved in September 1964) and Little Eaton or Abbey Hill) which are infamous for causing peak time congestion. Markeaton is a Village within Derby in the East Midlands of England. Little Eaton is a village in the English county of Derbyshire. The section of road between Kingsway roundabout to just north of Markeaton is urban in nature and thus subject to a 40 mph speed limit. In March 1969, the 'Allestree Link Road', from the A6 to the former A61 was opened, crossing the River Derwent and Midland Main Line. River Derwent is the name of several Rivers in England: River Derwent Derbyshire; see also Derwent Reservoir Derbyshire, also The Midland Main Line is a major railway line in the United Kingdom, part of the British railway system.

As a 1970s upgrade to the route of the A61 north of Derby (which became the B6179), the A38 bypasses Ripley passing through former opencast mining land, before joining end-on with the former A615 Alfreton bypass at Watchorn Intersection. The A61 is a major Trunk road in England. It runs from Derby to Thirsk in North Yorkshire. Ripley is a small town in the Amber Valley area of Derbyshire in England.

To the east of Junction 28 of the M1, the alignment of the road is relatively modern as the dangerous junction with Berristow Lane was improved to grade-separated in the late 1990s, incorporating access to a busy shopping centre. Into Nottinghamshire, the road by-passes Sutton-in-Ashfield, dropping to a single carriageway configuration of 1980s construction, including multiple traffic light controlled junctions - such as the Mansfield, Ashfield Regeneration Route ("MARR"). Nottinghamshire (abbreviated Notts) is an English county in the East Midlands, which borders South Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, Leicestershire Sutton-in-Ashfield is a town in the Ashfield district of Nottinghamshire, England, with a population of around 40000

The final section of the A38 from Sutton, past King's Mill Hospital into Mansfield is purely urban in nature and is single carriageway, joining the A6009 in Mansfield Town Centre at the end of the route's epic journey through England. King's Mill Hospital (or King's Mill Centre is a Hospital situated in Sutton-in-Ashfield, UK. Mansfield is a town in Nottinghamshire, England. It is the largest town in the County, lying on the River Maun, from which the name of the town

Improvements

The bottleneck through the village of Dobwalls in Cornwall will be removed when a new village by-pass, linking the existing Liskeard by-pass to the current single carriageway section through the Glynn Valley opens in the summer of 2008. The village of Dobwalls is located in south-east Cornwall, three miles from Liskeard. Cornwall ( Kernow ˈkɛɹnɔʊ is the most southwesterly county of England, on the Peninsula that lies to the west of the River Tamar Liskeard ( IPA /lɪˈskɑd/ — correctly stressed on the second syllable but often wrongly on the first (Lys Kerwyd or Lyskerrys is an ancient stannary and ^[2] A campaign to open this road was started by villagers in Dobwalls in 1930, but planning for building the road was not granted until 2006.

See also

• A5127 — road following the former route of the A38 in north Birmingham. The A5127 is a major Road in England which runs between Birmingham and Lichfield, Staffordshire.
• Gloucester Road, Bristol
• Settlements on the A38

References

External links

• UK Roads: The A38
• A38 corridor developments in Birmingham