Genuine backroads that are quicker than the primary route

[B1040]

The very last time up there, our daughter wanted to visit the Bicester shopping village.

Definitely best avoided from my experience. Overpriced and feels like it's a foreign tourist dumping site (a as in tour companies like to dump a load of them there for the afternoon).

I agree, but for teenage girls, it seems like heaven.
Only had to go there the once. No bookshops, just a load of shops selling look at me clothes.

[roadtester]

Probably not exactly what you are asking, but the A47 Wisbech by-pass.
It's pretty much the same distance as the old route of the A47 through town, but at peak times when the new road is pretty much stationary for 1.5 miles from the A1101 junction, it can be quicker going through town.

Also, going through Wisbech is much more interesting!

[fras]

Roads that are quicker than the primary A or M route, often cutting out two sides of the triangle...

I'll start with my favourites:

B4000 between M4/A34. Cuts out Chieveley Interchange and is genuinely a gorgeous route to drive on.

B430 between M40/A34.
Cuts out the horrific J9 interchange and again is a lovely route (cuts out the traffic waiting northbound, big time). Sadly development means that this cheeky cut through will not be as effective in the future.

Hit me with your favourites!

I think you meant M4(Jn 14) to A34 because the B4000 runs for miles and is a very pleasant drive, I drove it late last year on a lovely autumn day to get from Newbury, (we'd started at Basingstoke), to Highworth via Lambourn, then A361 to Burford. Our destination was Crewe where we live. At my time of life I much prefer to work my way across country with maps and avoid all the heavy traffic.

Maybe not as quick, though !

[jnty]

I hear about the B430 corner cut a lot but have one used it once when Google was showing mysteriously bad traffic on approach to the M34/M40 interchange going northbound. It turned out the motorway had just shut so was certainly quicker on that occasion but felt like a bit of a slog. I never find the "top" of that A34 section to be that problematic (certainly compared to Cherwell Valley!) but maybe I always hit it at quiet times. It's certainly very pleasing going southbound when everyone is scared of using the third A34 lane off the M4 around the roundabout and you can cruise past and gain a couple of light cycles. It's southbound leaving the A34 on to the M3 where I've had the most bother.

On that note, leaving the A34 in Winchester and cutting the corner on back roads to Tichfield, avoiding the M3/M27, is more or less even time-wise. I used it when the M3 not-smartification works were at their most extensive and use it if there's an accident or night time closure. The concrete replacement works on the M27 might give another reason to use it in the future.

[FosseWay]

This is admittedly at least 15 years ago, but when I lived in Stroud and regularly visited my parents in Sheffield, I generally drove up the Fosse Way from Cirencester to High Cross, then A5/M69/M1 for the northern bit. I did this because I enjoyed the drive and find motorways boring, but on the occasions where for some reason I did take what I imagine is the DfT's recommended route via the M5 and M/A42, it took longer.

If I'd driven the motorway route at a time of day when there was no traffic, and had driven at a fairly standard speed for cars at the time (so 80 rather than 70, never mind 60), it probably would have been quicker. But I was usually doing the journey on Friday evening, when traffic was heavy around the West Midlands but miraculously absent on the FW.

[wallmeerkat]

Going from South-east Belfast to Lisburn, the primary route would be to follow the A55 outer ring onto the M1 motorway, but the quickest way is to follow the Purdysburn / Hillhall road (B205 / B23)

Then going from Lisburn to Nutts Corner / airport, the primary route would be to take the M1, then either the A55/A52 to Nutts Corner, or the A12 Westlink onto the M2, whereas it's quicker to take the B101 via Dundrod (good motorbike race there too)

[jackal]

To get from Yeovil to the M5 north it's quicker to ignore the signed primary route via Taunton and take the B3151, then the unclassified but magnificently named Cockrod.

[wallmeerkat]

How about when an unclassified backroad is quicker than the signed B road?

Here - https://www.google.com/maps/@54.4036296 ... ?entry=ttu - traffic is told to continue right on the B7(NI) to avoid a dipping hill, however it is quicker to continue ahead on the old route.

[skiddaw05]

B1181 to hop from the A17 to the A52 rather than going up to the Swineshead roundabout. I think years ago Grantham was signed this way?
Not so clear cut going A52 to A17 though, you risk a lengthy right turn onto the A17.

[RichardA35]

To get from Yeovil to the M5 north it's quicker to ignore the signed primary route via Taunton and take the B3151, then the unclassified but magnificently named Cockrod.

Travelling to Bridgwater for 4 years on and off from Dorset, I found the unclassified route from Podimore to Charlton Mackrell meeting Cockrod at a crossroads to be a quicker route than via Somerton although my preferred route was a bit further west via Ilchester, High Ham across Sedgemoor to join the A39 west of Ashcott.

[tom66]

On the A34, in the morning peak I've been stuck at Wendlebury Interchange before and found hopping through Wendlebury to be quicker most of the time, and it seems like few do this even though it's quite obvious on the map.

And it's quite pretty too.

[Runwell]

It's quicker to cut the corner off between the A140 south and Diss using the B1077 rather than A140/A1066 as is signposted. The reverse might not be as clear-cut as it requires turning right onto the A140.


The B1008 corner-cut is probably a better route from Great Dunmow to Chelmsford than the A120/A130 dogleg.

Much quicker for both examples, even if, for the latter, they've added a couple of, admittedly short, 40mph buffers either side of Ford End in recent years. Even the lorries still regularly use it.

[jabbaboy]

Loads of them in or around Darlington due to the lack of a Northern Bypass and lack of access to the A1(M) from the A66(M)

A1(M) to A167 South - A68 / B6280 / A167
A68 to A66 East - A1150 / Burtree Lane or B6279 / Cleveland Street / Brinkburn Road
A1(M) to A66 East - A689 / Elstob Lane / Bishopton Lane / Hill House Lane
A167 (North) to A66 East - Ricknall Lane / Lodge Lane / Bishopton Lane / Hill House Lane
A167 (South) to A68 (West) in the centre - Stanhope Road

Also from Consett to Rowlands Gill, it's quicker to cut the corner via the B6308/B6310 rather than using the A691/A694

[Summers-lad]

It can be quicker - and certainly less frustrating - to take one of the minor roads east of Loch Ness in the summer rather than the A82.

From Culloden I generally find the A9/B851/B862 is about 5 mins quicker than the A82. Difference increases if there's a lot of tourist traffic or the Fort Augustus canal bridge is closed.

[rileyrob]

It can be quicker - and certainly less frustrating - to take one of the minor roads east of Loch Ness in the summer rather than the A82.

From Culloden I generally find the A9/B851/B862 is about 5 mins quicker than the A82. Difference increases if there's a lot of tourist traffic or the Fort Augustus canal bridge is closed.

In Summer, the routes via Whitebridge can definitely be quicker than the A82. The B852 south of Dores is a good fast section, but I have often got stuck climbing up through Foyers behind a camper van, lorry or bus or something that won't get out of the way. The B862 through Errogie is equally a bit of a bottleneck, even if most of the rest of the road from Daviot has been improved for wind farm traffic. In the winter, I think the A82 is generally quicker, without all the slow tourists.

The other useful back route nearby is the B9006 to Croy and then the B9090/B9101 through Cawdor to Auldearn, bypassing Nairn. A lot of traffic goes this way, including some lorries, so hopefully the A96 Nairn bypass will get built and relieve this rat run.

[wallmeerkat]

I believe that the West Approach Road in Edinburgh is unclassified but is quicker than the A71/A8

[peterc]

One that's known and heavily used by locals in my area is at the bottom end of the A18. Rather than deal with the needlessly complex first two miles (which includes perhaps the most pointless TOTSO known to man) you can use the parallel A16 and cut across on a straight, full width back road from North Thoresby instead.

[AndyB]

Going from South-east Belfast to Lisburn, the primary route would be to follow the A55 outer ring onto the M1 motorway, but the quickest way is to follow the Purdysburn / Hillhall road (B205 / B23)

Then going from Lisburn to Nutts Corner / airport, the primary route would be to take the M1, then either the A55/A52 to Nutts Corner, or the A12 Westlink onto the M2, whereas it's quicker to take the B101 via Dundrod (good motorbike race there too)

Actually, from Lisburn the signed route to the airport is via the B101, and from Sprucefield it is the M1 (westbound) and A26.

From Hillsborough, the signed route is also M1 and A26, but the quicker route is to turn from the Sprucefield bypass towards Maze, then A3 and A26 to the airport.

As for the Hillhall Road, it’s not signed particularly hard, but it is on flags from at least Forestside, and on the ADS at the end of Belvoir Road.

[owen b]

Bala to Shrewsbury (or vice versa) is usually quicker going cross country over the Berwyns (B4391 / B4396) rather than A494 / A5.

Not today though : the B4391 over the hills was no problem, but the B4396 was closed by an RTI and/or flooding (the warning signs said "ACCIDENT" but I saw no other evidence of an accident but could see that the road had water all the way across it, I don't know how deep) at the Afon Tanat bridge (Pedair-ffordd), necessitating a diversion along the B4391 and B4580 via Rhos-y-brithdir back to the B4396. Much of the remainder of the B4396 along the Tanat valley was more like a river than a road, the worst flooding I've ever negotiated by car, very slow going and I was seriously concerned I wouldn't get through.

[roadtester]

Not sure this quite qualifies as a back road but leaving Boston, Lincs, heading North, Skegness is signposted via the A16/A158, which is a dogleg, but my sat navs have always sent me via the A52, which is slower/lower quality (I think it must have more changes of speed limit than any other road in the UK) but more direct.