The A1211 crosses the City of London. Although the western section is straightforward, the eastern section flirts with the A1210, with traffic between Aldgate and Tower Hill required to use both road numbers and cross traffic running in the opposite direction.
The road starts at the Museum of London Rotunda, a roundabout where the A1 begins to peter out when heading southbound. The A1211 heads east along the D2 London Wall, with the Barbican to the left. The road soon goes through a tunnel under one of its towers; there is a signalised crossroads underneath to confuse matters.
London Wall (A1211), London E1
The road bends to the right to leave the Barbican behind - the buildings become older and less tall immediately - before crossing the A501 Moorgate at traffic lights. The road, still called London Wall, is only S2 on the far side but it soon duals again as the buildings become more modern. In the shadow of the Gherkin the A10 is crossed at traffic lights, after which the road splits. Eastbound (which becomes southbound) traffic bears left one block before continuing east along Houndsditch, whilst northbound (which becomes westbound) traffic uses the parallel Bevis Marks, which runs straight. Both roads soon reach the Aldgate One-Way System, where things become more complicated.
For reasons best known by the transport planners, northbound and southbound traffic has to cross at Aldgate. Although southbound traffic only needs to get from one side of St Botolph's Church to the other in fact it has to do a whole loop of Aldgate tube station to run along Aldgate High Street and bear left into Minories. Northbound traffic reaches this point on the A1210 and runs in the same direction along Aldgate High Street to pass Minories, skirt the church and run into the approach road for Bevis Marks.
Southbound A1211 traffic continues along the one-way Minories, gradually approaching a railway bridge in the distance, which goes under the throat of Fenchurch Street station. Before it reaches it, however, traffic is forced left into Goodman's Yard and forced to join the A1210, which could take traffic back to Aldgate High Street or on to Tower Bridge. Minories, and the A1211, does continue under the railway bridge, however, but now carries only northbound traffic. It passes Tower Gateway station before reaching a set of traffic lights on the A100 Tower Hill, marking the end of the A1211.