Trivia: Longest road that doesn't touch a Motorway

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jabbaboy
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Trivia: Longest road that doesn't touch a Motorway

Post by jabbaboy »

Seen the thread before about the road which crosses the most motorway junctions and it got me thinking what's the longest road which doesn't cross, connect to or go under a Motorway at all (either at a junction or not).

Curious for each of the countries so England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland to make it a bit more interesting as no doubt it'll be some road in the Highlands otherwise.

Scotland - A96? (101 miles)
England - A16? (78 miles)

Don't know Wales or N. Ireland tbh.
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Re: Trivia: Longest road that doesn't touch a Motorway

Post by JohnnyMo »

I was about to say the A47, but after almost a 150 miles it reaches the M42 & M6 :(
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Re: Trivia: Longest road that doesn't touch a Motorway

Post by Herned »

The A487 in west Wales is 173.8m long according to the Sabre wiki page
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Re: Trivia: Longest road that doesn't touch a Motorway

Post by Big L »

JohnnyMo wrote: Thu Oct 01, 2020 20:38 I was about to say the A47, but after almost a 150 miles it reaches the M42 & M6 :(
It crosses the M6 where it meets the A4040 (assuming the roundabout is some kind of multiplex) but doesn't cross the M42. The A47 has a big gap between Nuneaton and the Spitfire Island in Brum. You missed that it crosses the M1 just north of Leicester Forest services, however.
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Re: Trivia: Longest road that doesn't touch a Motorway

Post by owen b »

The A149 is longer than the A16 : 89 miles according to the OS Modern map layer.
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Re: Trivia: Longest road that doesn't touch a Motorway

Post by someone »

Beaten to it, but I was going to say…

The A149, the Norfolk costal-ish road from Great Yarmouth to King's Lynn, is 86.8 miles according to the wiki. That beats the A16, which is listed at 82.8 miles, in England.
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Re: Trivia: Longest road that doesn't touch a Motorway

Post by haggishunter »

I'll raise the A96 with the A836 at 122miles.
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Re: Trivia: Longest road that doesn't touch a Motorway

Post by Micro The Maniac »

What about A259... from its start on the A27 to its end at the A20 Castle Hill Interchange (note NOT M20 J13 - that's A20 not A259 :shock: ) at Folkestone, 120-odd miles it doesn't touch a motorway?
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Re: Trivia: Longest road that doesn't touch a Motorway

Post by owen b »

Micro The Maniac wrote: Fri Oct 02, 2020 05:48 What about A259... from its start on the A27 to its end at the A20 Castle Hill Interchange (note NOT M20 J13 - that's A20 not A259 :shock: ) at Folkestone, 120-odd miles it doesn't touch a motorway?
I looked at that but according to the OS modern map layer it does end up at M20 J13 having done a convoluted loop around Folkestone. The SABRE wiki agrees : https://www.sabre-roads.org.uk/wiki/ind ... title=A259
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From the SABRE Wiki: A259 :

The A259 makes up in length what the other A25x roads lack. It starts in Folkestone, heads along the coast through Hythe, Romney and over the Sussex border to Rye. Then it goes via Hastings, Eastbourne, Brighton, Worthing, Bognor and Chichester and finally ends at Havant in Hampshire.

From Pevensey to Havant the route is effectively shadowing the A27, only going through more towns and sticking closer to the coast. The A259 forms part of the

... Read More
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Re: Trivia: Longest road that doesn't touch a Motorway

Post by someone »

owen b wrote: Fri Oct 02, 2020 18:29
Micro The Maniac wrote: Fri Oct 02, 2020 05:48 What about A259... from its start on the A27 to its end at the A20 Castle Hill Interchange (note NOT M20 J13 - that's A20 not A259 :shock: ) at Folkestone, 120-odd miles it doesn't touch a motorway?
I looked at that but according to the OS modern map layer it does end up at M20 J13 having done a convoluted loop around Folkestone. The SABRE wiki agrees : https://www.sabre-roads.org.uk/wiki/ind ... title=A259
I think Micro Maniac's point is that the dumbbell at that junction is part of the A20. So the A259 and M20 slip roads both end on the A20 (the roundabout) which insulates them from each other.

But whilst the sign for the bridge from the northern roundabout does say, perhaps unhelpfully, "Folkestone A20," the one on the southern roundabout says "Dover (A20)." And O/S maps shows the entire dumbbell as being part of the A259.

So maybe it is not entirely clear what that roundabout is part of. Though even if it is the A20, I think it is trying to find a loophole that is not in the spirit of the question.

Besides, if you accept that a road and motorway at the same roundabout do not meet, then you cannot count the full length of roads which cross roundabouts or junctions as a multiplex with another road. It would make each section count as being a separate road.

Two obvious examples without checking which would shorten the A259 are the roundabouts where it enters and leaves Chichester, as they are part of the A27, and in Bognor there is a short multiplex between two roundabouts that is part of the A29.

From the SABRE Wiki: A259 :

The A259 makes up in length what the other A25x roads lack. It starts in Folkestone, heads along the coast through Hythe, Romney and over the Sussex border to Rye. Then it goes via Hastings, Eastbourne, Brighton, Worthing, Bognor and Chichester and finally ends at Havant in Hampshire.

From Pevensey to Havant the route is effectively shadowing the A27, only going through more towns and sticking closer to the coast. The A259 forms part of the

... Read More
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Re: Trivia: Longest road that doesn't touch a Motorway

Post by jervi »

I immediately thought of the A259, but that has already been subjected to discussion.
Then I thought of the A272, its 87 miles including multiplexes, but then it continues NW of the A31 across the M3! Would be 77 miles without NW of the A31 so wouldn't beat the A16 anyway.
These are others I could think of as candidates, but clearly no winners.
A17 - 60 miles
A26 - 49 miles
A697 - 68 miles

Also by doing this I've realised that the A25 doesn't connect at all to the M25 or any other motorway directly (although it does cross the M23). But it kinda has a junction with the A21 (M?)
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Re: Trivia: Longest road that doesn't touch a Motorway

Post by Beardy5632 »

The A832 - 125 miles
British & Irish cities driven in - 48/75
England - 36/52, Scotland - 7/7, Wales - 5/6, NI - 0/5, RoI - 0/5
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Re: Trivia: Longest road that doesn't touch a Motorway

Post by AndyB »

A29 is probably the record holder in NI at 90.5 miles.

EDIT: oops. M1 J15. Could be the A5 at 53.3 miles then.
Last edited by AndyB on Fri Oct 02, 2020 23:05, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Trivia: Longest road that doesn't touch a Motorway

Post by ForestChav »

Surely this is going to be in Scotland. You need long roads and no motorways for miles...
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Re: Trivia: Longest road that doesn't touch a Motorway

Post by Micro The Maniac »

someone wrote: Fri Oct 02, 2020 21:20 I think Micro Maniac's point is that the dumbbell at that junction is part of the A20. So the A259 and M20 slip roads both end on the A20 (the roundabout) which insulates them from each other.
Indeed.
Though even if it is the A20, I think it is trying to find a loophole that is not in the spirit of the question.
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Re: Trivia: Longest road that doesn't touch a Motorway

Post by crb11 »

jervi wrote: Fri Oct 02, 2020 22:00 I immediately thought of the A259, but that has already been subjected to discussion.
Then I thought of the A272, its 87 miles including multiplexes, but then it continues NW of the A31 across the M3! Would be 77 miles without NW of the A31 so wouldn't beat the A16 anyway.
These are others I could think of as candidates, but clearly no winners.
A17 - 60 miles
A26 - 49 miles
A697 - 68 miles

Also by doing this I've realised that the A25 doesn't connect at all to the M25 or any other motorway directly (although it does cross the M23). But it kinda has a junction with the A21 (M?)
A few more in the 50-60 mile range: A140, A1101 and B1040 in East Anglia, A386 and A390 in Devon and Cornwall.
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Re: Trivia: Longest road that doesn't touch a Motorway

Post by someone »

crb11 wrote: Sat Oct 03, 2020 10:57A few more in the 50-60 mile range: A140, A1101 and B1040 in East Anglia, A386 and A390 in Devon and Cornwall.
The A134 (Colchester to King's Lynn) is 73.3 miles and the A143 (Haverhill to Great Yarmouth) is 74.9 miles.

Elsewhere, the A37 (Bristol to Dorchester) is 60 miles and the A607 (Leicester to Lincoln) is 54.1 miles.
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Re: Trivia: Longest road that doesn't touch a Motorway

Post by owen b »

Micro The Maniac wrote: Sat Oct 03, 2020 06:15
someone wrote: Fri Oct 02, 2020 21:20 I think Micro Maniac's point is that the dumbbell at that junction is part of the A20. So the A259 and M20 slip roads both end on the A20 (the roundabout) which insulates them from each other.
Indeed.
But according to the Ordnance Survey, the M20 J13 dumbbell is part of the A259, not the A20. So the A259 does meet a motorway directly. The SABRE wiki also refers to the A259 heading east from M20 J13. Of course it's possible that both are wrong, but based on the easily available evidence the A259 does meet the M20.
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Re: Trivia: Longest road that doesn't touch a Motorway

Post by someone »

owen b wrote: Sat Oct 03, 2020 16:29But according to the Ordnance Survey, the M20 J13 dumbbell is part of the A259, not the A20. So the A259 does meet a motorway directly. The SABRE wiki also refers to the A259 heading east from M20 J13. Of course it's possible that both are wrong, but based on the easily available evidence the A259 does meet the M20.
Google show the dumbbell as part of the A20, some of the signage shows it as the A20 and, more significantly it is maintained by Highways England as part of the M20 and A20. The other connecting roads, including the A259 and A2034, are maintained by Kent County Council. So from a purely administrative perspective it would be easier to make it the A20.
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Re: Trivia: Longest road that doesn't touch a Motorway

Post by owen b »

someone wrote: Sat Oct 03, 2020 19:06
owen b wrote: Sat Oct 03, 2020 16:29But according to the Ordnance Survey, the M20 J13 dumbbell is part of the A259, not the A20. So the A259 does meet a motorway directly. The SABRE wiki also refers to the A259 heading east from M20 J13. Of course it's possible that both are wrong, but based on the easily available evidence the A259 does meet the M20.
Google show the dumbbell as part of the A20, some of the signage shows it as the A20 and, more significantly it is maintained by Highways England as part of the M20 and A20. The other connecting roads, including the A259 and A2034, are maintained by Kent County Council. So from a purely administrative perspective it would be easier to make it the A20.
Ok, so it's unclear whether the dumbbell junction itself is part of the A20 or the A259, as the evidence is contradictory. But going back to the original question : "what's the longest road which doesn't cross, connect to or go under a Motorway at all", the A259 does meet M20 J13, so I think on any reasonable non-legalistic basis it's correct to say that the A259 connects to the motorway M20 at M20 J13.
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