Route
Swan Street(A1017)Sible Hedingham
The A1017 mostly runs in the north of Essex. In sharp contrast to the sterotypical views of the county that can be seen on the A13, it mostly runs through quiet, and pleasant, countryside, broken by the occasional village.
It starts at a fork with the A131 north of Braintree, and follows the Roman Road ahead through Gosfield. After meeting the A1124 coming from Halstead, it follows the Colne Valley past Castle Hedingham, before a sharp fork to the left at the Essex / Suffolk boundary. The road follows the boundary up to Haverhill, which it bypasses to the south, before terminating on the A1307, which continues towards Cambridge.
History
The A1017 originally ran from the A131 to what's now the A1124. The remainder of the route is the former A604, which was detrunked and renumbered in 1997. The Haverhill bypass dates from the same time.
