A37

From Roader's Digest: The SABRE Wiki

A37
View pictures (1)
From:	Bristol
To:	Dorchester
Length:	60 miles (96.6 km)
Meets:	A4, A361, A303
Now part of:	A354
Grid References
Start ST599719 End SY667903
Highways Authorities
Bristol • Dorset • Somerset
Counties
Dorset • Somerset
Route outline (key)
A37 Bristol - Dorchester A37 Dorchester - Portland
Related Pages
Podimore Roundabout

On this 1927 map, the A37 is shown as starting on the then-A36

This road starts on the A4 near Temple Meads station in Bristol, at the "Three Lamps" junction – so called because of the historic signpost standing there, which has three lamps at the top and hands pointing to "BATH" and "WELLS". It's still called the Wells Road, and signed "Wells (A39), Yeovil A37" - the reasons for this will become apparent later. It crosses the A4174 Outer Ring Road in Hengrove, and then there’s a stretch of dual carriageway, after which it leaves the boundaries of Bristol and comes out into what was once Somerset (now Bath and North East Somerset). This section is fairly hilly, and there are several stretches with an extra lane for traffic going uphill (though I noticed recently that some of those lanes have been closed off with white stripes; I don’t know why). It passes through the village of Pensford, fairly close to the stone circles at Stanton Drew, and then meets the A368 at a roundabout. This junction used to be known as Chelwood Bridge, and had a set of traffic lights over the top of a disused railway line; fortunately they’ve gone now. The road continues though Clutton and Temple Cloud, and then the A39 joins from the left. At Farrington Gurney there’s a junction with the A362. Then the road climbs up Rush Hill, which bends gradually round to the right until you reach Rush Hill junction, which is a TOTSO. If you continue straight on you’ll find yourself on the A39 to Wells (this explains why the road is known as the Wells Road in Bristol); you bear off to the left to continue on the A37.

The A37 originally continued to Portland

The road continues through Ston Easton and Gurney Slade. (The sign at Gurney Slade oddly says "Binegar (Gurney Slade)"; Binegar is a neighbouring village.) Near Oakhill the A367 joins from the left, and at Downside there’s a turning for Shepton Mallet. (Historically I think the A37 must have gone through the centre of Shepton Mallet, because at this point the old sign along the A37 used to say "Shepton Mallet by-pass".) It crosses the old branch of the A361 at traffic lights at Charlton crossroads, then at Cannard's Grave there are two fairly new roundabouts, one to connect with the new branch of the A361, and one with the A371 to Castle Cary. (The latter used to be another totso where you turned right to stay on the A37.) At the next junction the A37 bends sharply round to the left, and the A361 to Glastonbury carries on more or less straight ahead.

The next section of the road follows the route of the Roman Fosse Way, and is almost completely straight. It runs through Street on the Fosse, Wraxall and Lydford-on-Fosse, then there’s a kink near Charlton Adam (don’t know why this is). You then come out at a large roundabout which meets the A303 and A372. At this point the original A37 seems to have disappeared entirely! You’ll need to head along the A303 Ilchester bypass for a couple of miles, then come off at a trumpet junction which takes you round the edge of Ilchester. The next section is also fairly straight, and goes into Yeovil. There’s a short dual carriageway bypassing the centre of Yeovil, and you negotiate several roundabouts to cross the A30 and emerge out into Dorset. This is another straightish stretch, though some beautiful countryside, and with almost no villages en route; you don’t hit another settlement until Grimstone, just after the A356 junction a few miles north-west of Dorchester. Then there’s a short dual carriageway, the A352 joins from the left, and then there’s a section of bypass to the west of Dorchester which links up with the A35, where it ends.

According to the 1922 list, the A37 originally continued to Weymouth, but this road has been part of the A354 ever since I can remember. I don’t know when or why it was renumbered – it always struck me that it would be more logical to have the A37 going all the way to the coast.

Original Author(s): Guy