A6002

This article is about the current route of A6002 in Nottinghamshire.
For the original route in Bedfordshire, see A6002 (Bedfordshire).

The A6002 skirts the western edge of Nottingham.

The road starts at a tight mini-island with the A6007 and B6004 on the north edge of Stapleford. Presumably in the past when the A52 went through Stapleford it (as the B6004) started in the centre though there is no evidence of this, mainly because it wasn't the A6002 at that time.

Aside from numbering issues, the A6002 leaves Stapleford towards the north of Nottingham. The road parallels the M1 for much of its length. The Hemlock Stone and Bramcote Crematorium are passed and the road skirts Bramcote itself to the west before crossing the A609 and an unclassified road at a large signalled junction.

The road continues to skirt the west end of Bilborough towards Strelley - a new island to Bilborough College merely interrupts the flow of a nice open S2. The B6004 leaves its former alignment at a signalled junction (Strelley village is to the left) before a newer alignment carries the road round the West of Broxtowe estate and the large Nuthall island with the B600 (old A610) to Nuthall itself, and the A610 to M1 junction 26 and Nottingham itself.

Low Wood Road

The island itself is large and signalled; nonetheless the A6002 emerges rather unscathed and heads off towards Bulwell. Shortly after skirting Hempshill Vale there are a couple of islands for local estates but after bypassing most of the centre of Bulwell the road comes to a halt at lights with the B682 and access to Bulwell centre.

In bygone days the B682 used to be the A611 and if the A6002 were so-numbered then it would have ended here. However, the A6002 TOTSOs left along part of the former A611 to meet the present A611 at another tight mini-island. You can continue straight ahead here to Hucknall via the A611, or turn left across the bridge over the Robin Hood Line (and NET tram line 1) to access Bestwood (by turning immediately left on the B683) or straight on to Nottingham via the A611.

Original Author(s): ForestChav

History

As noted above, the current line of the A6002 around Cinderhill and Bulwell is a modern bypass. The road previously turned east at Strelley and followed the B6004 and B6008 to the A610, from where it continued north along Cinderhill Road into the centre of Bulwell. The exact chronology is uncertain for the last couple of miles, as the A611 formerly came into the centre of Bulwell, and the DfT road list suggests that the A6002 may have terminated here before the A611 was re-routed. Presuming that the A611 was re-routed first, after running north along Main Street, the A6002 continued along what is now the B682 to rejoin its current line along Hucknall Lane.

The 1972 OS quarter inch map only shows the section from the A610 to the A611 in Bulwell as an (un-numbered) A road, the remainder is still the B6004, and previous editions show the whole road as a B road. This could suggest that the A6002 was initially much shorter, and steadily grew as the road network was realigned around this part of Nottingham.