Longest numbered road in each country

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ChrisH
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Longest numbered road in each country

Post by ChrisH »

Here's an interesting map from Reddit / Maps on the web:

Interestingly the longest numbered road in any European country is not in Russia but is actually the E6 in Norway at a chunky 2628km. Spain's N340 is surprisingly long at over 1200km. Our own A1 clocks in at a mere 660km.
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Re: Longest numbered road in each country

Post by crazyknightsfan »

Australia is fairly unique having a single numbered route that almost circumnavigates the island (I say almost as it is not signed in NW QLD)

Do any other countries have something similar?
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Re: Longest numbered road in each country

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crazyknightsfan wrote: Tue Jul 20, 2021 09:57 Australia is fairly unique having a single numbered route that almost circumnavigates the island (I say almost as it is not signed in NW QLD)

Do any other countries have something similar?
Yes, Iceland's route 1 is a ring road around the whole island. It's visible on the map posted in the OP.
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Re: Longest numbered road in each country

Post by Vierwielen »

crazyknightsfan wrote: Tue Jul 20, 2021 09:57 Australia is fairly unique having a single numbered route that almost circumnavigates the island (I say almost as it is not signed in NW QLD)

Do any other countries have something similar?
I did a few random checks using Google Earth - The road appears to be sealed along it's entire length, is also appears to be quite quiet (am I surprised!)
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Re: Longest numbered road in each country

Post by exiled »

In terms of a named route, the Trans Canada Highway at 7800 km could be one of the longest, but falls down by its number changes at each provincial boundary, sometimes with more than one number within the same province.

The map also shows the N7 in France, does that still count as it has been declassified to RD status for large sections.
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Re: Longest numbered road in each country

Post by Euan »

ChrisH wrote: Mon Jul 19, 2021 15:01 Here's an interesting map from Reddit / Maps on the web:

Interestingly the longest numbered road in any European country is not in Russia but is actually the E6 in Norway at a chunky 2628km. Spain's N340 is surprisingly long at over 1200km. Our own A1 clocks in at a mere 660km.
Very fascinating map. From what I can see, Germany and Denmark is the only pair of countries whose longest numbered roads connect with each other (the German A7 and the Danish part of the E45). Might there be any other pairs of countries in the world with this property?

I think Norway’s longest numbered road being longer than that of Russia is somewhat understandable given the challenging terrain that the E6 passes through in Norway on top of the fact that long distance routes in Russia such as the Trans-Siberian Highway have more than just one number along their length.

If you were to exclude numbers originating from the European system then I think Russia’s P297 would come out as the longest numbered “national” route in a European country, or Iceland’s ring road if staying within geographical Europe.
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Re: Longest numbered road in each country

Post by Peter Freeman »

Chris5156 wrote: Tue Jul 20, 2021 10:31
crazyknightsfan wrote: Tue Jul 20, 2021 09:57 Australia is fairly unique having a single numbered route that almost circumnavigates the island (I say almost as it is not signed in NW QLD)

Do any other countries have something similar?
Yes, Iceland's route 1 is a ring road around the whole island. It's visible on the map posted in the OP.
And the AU road is, like Iceland's circumferential, #1 (variously M1, A1 or B1).
Last edited by Peter Freeman on Wed Jul 21, 2021 06:40, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Longest numbered road in each country

Post by Peter Freeman »

Vierwielen wrote: Tue Jul 20, 2021 16:05 I did a few random checks using Google Earth - The road appears to be sealed along it's entire length, is also appears to be quite quiet (am I surprised!)
Also perhaps uniquely, AU's Route 1 varies from being virtually deserted to carrying over 200,000 AADT.
Last edited by Peter Freeman on Mon Aug 02, 2021 09:49, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Longest numbered road in each country

Post by crazyknightsfan »

Vierwielen wrote: Tue Jul 20, 2021 16:05
crazyknightsfan wrote: Tue Jul 20, 2021 09:57 Australia is fairly unique having a single numbered route that almost circumnavigates the island (I say almost as it is not signed in NW QLD)

Do any other countries have something similar?
I did a few random checks using Google Earth - The road appears to be sealed along it's entire length, is also appears to be quite quiet (am I surprised!)
The section between Borroloola (NT) and Normanton (QLD) is still mostly unsealed and generally treated as an outback adventure journey, with open river crossings etc. There is some old Street View coverage between Normanton and Burketown showing one of the better river crossings. This section of 'Highway 1' isn't really important strategically, with almost all regular road passenger and freight movements going via the Barkly Highway through Mount Isa.

Otherwise the rest of the route is mostly fairly good quality rural highway, and almost completely freeway standard between Sydney and Brisbane.
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Re: Longest numbered road in each country

Post by Owain »

ChrisH wrote: Mon Jul 19, 2021 15:01 Here's an interesting map from Reddit / Maps on the web:

Interestingly the longest numbered road in any European country is not in Russia but is actually the E6 in Norway at a chunky 2628km. Spain's N340 is surprisingly long at over 1200km. Our own A1 clocks in at a mere 660km.
That's a nice map, but they've got the Italian entry wrong!

The longest numbered route in that country is the SS16 from Padova to Otranto, which is almost precisely 1000km: Strada Statale 16 Adriatica
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Re: Longest numbered road in each country

Post by Vierwielen »

crazyknightsfan wrote: Wed Jul 21, 2021 07:11
Vierwielen wrote: Tue Jul 20, 2021 16:05
crazyknightsfan wrote: Tue Jul 20, 2021 09:57 Australia is fairly unique having a single numbered route that almost circumnavigates the island (I say almost as it is not signed in NW QLD)

Do any other countries have something similar?
I did a few random checks using Google Earth - The road appears to be sealed along it's entire length, is also appears to be quite quiet (am I surprised!)
The section between Borroloola (NT) and Normanton (QLD) is still mostly unsealed and generally treated as an outback adventure journey, with open river crossings etc. There is some old Street View coverage between Normanton and Burketown showing one of the better river crossings. This section of 'Highway 1' isn't really important strategically, with almost all regular road passenger and freight movements going via the Barkly Highway through Mount Isa.

Otherwise the rest of the route is mostly fairly good quality rural highway, and almost completely freeway standard between Sydney and Brisbane.
A note to anybody visiting Oz - if you hire a vehicle while you are there, check where you are allowed to drive it - the car that I hired in 2013 could not be taken onto unsealed roads, so no circumnavigating Oz Sabre-style.
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Re: Longest numbered road in each country

Post by Peter Freeman »

Australia's Route 1 length is approx 14500 km. It rather strangely includes a dead-end branch that sticks out northwards to Darwin and an unconnected piece on the island of Tasmania. They total about 520 km. This slight artificiality was included, in 1955 when the National Route Numbering System was created, so that the road would touch each state capital.

Other long-distance single-number roads in AU are -

1420 km Seymour - Toowoomba M/A39
1580 km Perth - Port Hedland NH95
1990 km Port Augusta - Normanton B/NR83
2010 km Brisbane - Camooweel M/A2
2130 km Port Augusta - Birdum A87

The A87 is part of AU's longest single-name road: Stuart Highway, 2834 km.
Last edited by Peter Freeman on Fri Jul 23, 2021 12:40, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Longest numbered road in each country

Post by crazyknightsfan »

Peter Freeman wrote: Thu Jul 22, 2021 08:43 Australia's Route 1 length is approx 14500 km. It rather strangely includes a dead-end branch that sticks out northwards to Darwin and an unconnected piece on the island of Tasmania. They total about 520 km. This slight artificiality was included, in 1955 when the National Route Numbering System was created, so that the road would touch each state capital.

Other long-distance single-number roads in AU are -

1420 km Seymour - Toowoomba A39
1580 km Perth - Port Hedland NH95
1990 km Port Augusta - Normanton B83
2010 km Brisbane - Camooweel A2
2130 km Port Augusta - Birdum A87

The A87 is part of AU's longest single-name road: Stuart Highway, 2834 km.
Great Northern Highway is the longest highway in Australia at approx 3,199km (Midland to Wyndham, WA)

I'm not sure I'd count B83/NR83 as the ~600km section between Lyndhurst SA and Birdsville QLD is not signed with a route number.

If you're including historically allocated numbers that aren't fully signed then M79/A79/B79/NR79 from Melbourne to Longreach via Tibooburra would qualify at about 2,100km. The section between the NSW/QLD Border and Windorah is not signed, but either side of that is.
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Re: Longest numbered road in each country

Post by Peter Freeman »

crazyknightsfan wrote: Fri Jul 23, 2021 07:37 Great Northern Highway is the longest highway in Australia at approx 3,199km (Midland to Wyndham, WA).
Thanks Sam. I stand corrected.
I'm not sure I'd count B83/NR83 as the ~600km section between Lyndhurst SA and Birdsville QLD is not signed with a route number.
I'm fairly sure that section (including Birdsville Track) was and still is really route 83, even though not signed on the ground (SA policy for unsealed roads?). Both ends are 83.
If you're including historically allocated numbers that aren't fully signed then M79/A79/B79/NR79 from Melbourne to Longreach via Tibooburra would qualify at about 2,100km. The section between the NSW/QLD Border and Windorah is not signed, but either side of that is.
Wow ... I didn't realise that 79 ended up in Longreach! But a short part of that section now has a different number ...
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Re: Longest numbered road in each country

Post by Vierwielen »

At first I thought that the longest road in South Africa was the N1 (1937 km) from Cape Town to the Zimbabawe border.

I then looked at the map and the N2 appears to be longer. Starting at Cape Town and travelling to the town of Ermelo by hugging the coast and then skirting the Swaziland border (apart from a section in the area known as the Transkei), the N2 is 2221 km in length. In order to find its length using viaMichelin, I had to force the optimum route through four towns (Knysna, Butterworth, Stanger and Mkuze). Once those towns were removed, the distance from Cape Town to Ermelo shrank to 1603 km via a completely route that goes straight inland.
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Re: Longest numbered road in each country

Post by booshank »

Vierwielen wrote: Wed Jul 21, 2021 17:00
crazyknightsfan wrote: Wed Jul 21, 2021 07:11
Vierwielen wrote: Tue Jul 20, 2021 16:05
I did a few random checks using Google Earth - The road appears to be sealed along it's entire length, is also appears to be quite quiet (am I surprised!)
The section between Borroloola (NT) and Normanton (QLD) is still mostly unsealed and generally treated as an outback adventure journey, with open river crossings etc. There is some old Street View coverage between Normanton and Burketown showing one of the better river crossings. This section of 'Highway 1' isn't really important strategically, with almost all regular road passenger and freight movements going via the Barkly Highway through Mount Isa.

Otherwise the rest of the route is mostly fairly good quality rural highway, and almost completely freeway standard between Sydney and Brisbane.
A note to anybody visiting Oz - if you hire a vehicle while you are there, check where you are allowed to drive it - the car that I hired in 2013 could not be taken onto unsealed roads, so no circumnavigating Oz Sabre-style.
When I went, picking up in Cairns, there were precisely specified geographical limitations. From memory it was no further west than Chillagoe for example. Basically not too far into the outback from the more populated coastal regions. I went to Undara which was a few km west of the limit which made me a bit nervous! Wasn't meant to go west of the Kennedy Develepmental Road.
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Re: Longest numbered road in each country

Post by Vierwielen »

booshank wrote: Sat Jul 24, 2021 22:57
Vierwielen wrote: Wed Jul 21, 2021 17:00
crazyknightsfan wrote: Wed Jul 21, 2021 07:11
The section between Borroloola (NT) and Normanton (QLD) is still mostly unsealed and generally treated as an outback adventure journey, with open river crossings etc. There is some old Street View coverage between Normanton and Burketown showing one of the better river crossings. This section of 'Highway 1' isn't really important strategically, with almost all regular road passenger and freight movements going via the Barkly Highway through Mount Isa.

Otherwise the rest of the route is mostly fairly good quality rural highway, and almost completely freeway standard between Sydney and Brisbane.
A note to anybody visiting Oz - if you hire a vehicle while you are there, check where you are allowed to drive it - the car that I hired in 2013 could not be taken onto unsealed roads, so no circumnavigating Oz Sabre-style.
When I went, picking up in Cairns, there were precisely specified geographical limitations. From memory it was no further west than Chillagoe for example. Basically not too far into the outback from the more populated coastal regions. I went to Undara which was a few km west of the limit which made me a bit nervous! Wasn't meant to go west of the Kennedy Develepmental Road.
Possibly a different company. I hired my car in Melbourne.
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Re: Longest numbered road in each country

Post by booshank »

Vierwielen wrote: Sat Jul 24, 2021 22:59
booshank wrote: Sat Jul 24, 2021 22:57
Vierwielen wrote: Wed Jul 21, 2021 17:00
A note to anybody visiting Oz - if you hire a vehicle while you are there, check where you are allowed to drive it - the car that I hired in 2013 could not be taken onto unsealed roads, so no circumnavigating Oz Sabre-style.
When I went, picking up in Cairns, there were precisely specified geographical limitations. From memory it was no further west than Chillagoe for example. Basically not too far into the outback from the more populated coastal regions. I went to Undara which was a few km west of the limit which made me a bit nervous! Wasn't meant to go west of the Kennedy Developmental Road.
Possibly a different company. I hired my car in Melbourne.
It was East Coast Car Rentals. They only have geographical restrictions in Queensland, Western Australia and the Northern Territory. Maybe they are the only ones they think have parts that are too remote to venture into, beyond their blanket ban on unsealed roads.
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Re: Longest numbered road in each country

Post by booshank »

The longest numbered road in South Africa is the N2, most internet searches give an unsourced length of 2255 km but a Google Maps measurement is 2230 km.

What is a little unusual about the N2 as a road number is that it isn't a sensible route to actually take between its end points in Cape Town and Ermelo either in terms of distance or time. In fact Google Maps suggests a route that doesn't involve the N2 at all. In fact it's not even a sensible route between the two largest cities it connects, Cape Town and Durban, with most traffic going N1-N5-N3 instead.
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Re: Longest numbered road in each country

Post by crazyknightsfan »

booshank wrote: Sun Jul 25, 2021 23:42 The longest numbered road in South Africa is the N2, most internet searches give an unsourced length of 2255 km but a Google Maps measurement is 2230 km.

What is a little unusual about the N2 as a road number is that it isn't a sensible route to actually take between its end points in Cape Town and Ermelo either in terms of distance or time. In fact Google Maps suggests a route that doesn't involve the N2 at all. In fact it's not even a sensible route between the two largest cities it connects, Cape Town and Durban, with most traffic going N1-N5-N3 instead.
It looks quite similar to Highway 1 (Australia) between Melbourne and Adelaide, and Sydney and Melbourne, in following the coastal area but most through traffic uses the direct route.
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