A26 | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Major junctions | ||||
Northeast end | Maidstone | |||
Southwest end | Newhaven | |||
Location | ||||
Country | United Kingdom | |||
Primary destinations | Tunbridge Wells, Tonbridge, Maidstone, Lewes | |||
Road network | ||||
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The A26 road is a primary route in the southeast of England, going from Maidstone to Newhaven through the counties of Kent and East Sussex. The road is almost entirely single carriageway with one lane on each side, although parts of the road are three lanes, with the middle lane switching sides for overtaking and right turns. [1]
The road runs for a total distance of some 50 miles (80 kilometres) and provides access to the North Kent area and its industrial base with the ferry port of Newhaven. Consequently, it has a large Heavy Goods Vehicle usage.
The A26 was originally classified in 1922 due to the Ministry of Transport Act 1919, which in section 19 instructed the classification of all major roads. [2] The original route went from Maidstone to Brighton, along part of what is now the A27. [3] The part of the road going from Lewes was later reclassified to the A27 between 1947 and 1951. [4] [5] The road was later extended along the B2109 to Newhaven after 1969. [6]
The road starts as a non-primary route at a gyratory with the A20, in Maidstone, and then heads west to the A228, through Barming, Barming Heath, Teston, Wateringbury, and Mereworth where it becomes a primary route.
It then turns southwest towards Tonbridge and shares the route of the A228 until the next roundabout with Seven Mile Lane. The A26 passes through Hadlow and the edge of Tonbridge. Since 1970 [7] it has formed an eastern bypass of Tonbridge town centre, which terminates at the Vauxhall roundabout where there are slip roads to the A21 dual carriageway. From this roundabout, the A2014 Pembury Road runs into Tonbridge. The A26 route resumes at the west end of Pembury Road and heads south as Quarry Hill, forming a grade-separated junction with the A21.
South of Tonbride the A26 passes through Bidborough, Southborough, Royal Tunbridge Wells, Eridge Green, and Boarshead. The road then passes through Crowborough, going past the B2100, and then goes towards Maresfield, where it is interrupted by the A22. [8] [9]
Again heading south-west, the road meets with the A2029 in Lewes after passing Little Horsted and leaves Lewes heading south via Cuilfail Tunnel until it is interrupted again, this time by the A27.
After a short stretch of road where it is merged with the A27, it heads south, ending on the A259 in Newhaven, after passing Tarring Neville and South Heighton. [8] [9]
When entering Lewes from the direction of Uckfield, one is met with a view of the chalk cliffs at the very edge of the South Downs. Continuing, you enter the Cuilfail Tunnel, constructed in 1983, which leaves at the roundabout The Culfail Spiral, a sculpture created by Peter Randall-Page.
The M2 is a 26-mile-long (42 km) long motorway in Kent, England, and was built to bypass a section of the A2 road in Kent, which goes through the Medway Towns, Sittingbourne, and Faversham. It provides an alternative route to the Port of Dover, which supplements the M20 motorway located further to the south. The terminal junctions of the M2 intersect with the A2, which come together to form a 62-mile-long (100 km) long trunk road from London to Dover.
The A20 is a major road in south-east England, carrying traffic from London to Dover in Kent. Parts of the route date back to turnpikes established in the early part of the 18th century. The line of the road throughout Kent runs closely in parallel with the M20 motorway.
Tonbridge and Malling is a local government district with borough status in Kent, England. The council is based at Kings Hill. The borough also includes the towns of Tonbridge and Snodland along with numerous villages including Aylesford, West Malling and surrounding rural areas.
The A22 is one of the two-digit major roads in the south east of England. Radial, it carries traffic from London to the Eastbourne area of the East Sussex coast, in which town it ends.
The A27 is a major road in England. It runs from its junction with the A36 at Whiteparish in the county of Wiltshire, follows the south coast of Hampshire and West Sussex, and terminates at Pevensey in East Sussex.
The A21 is a trunk road in Southern England, one of several which connect London and various commuter towns to the south coast. It provides a link to Hastings, East Sussex and parts of Kent. Half of the distance covered is over gently undulating terrain, with some hills and bends. Often traffic is slow-moving, particularly on weekdays on the short single carriageway stretches; and in summer with holiday traffic. Because of this, people have described the A21 as "a joke" and businesspeople have been reported to "hate coming down the A21". There have been many proposals to upgrade parts of the A21 in response to this.
The A25 road is an east–west main road in the South-East of England. Its carries traffic east from Guildford, Surrey, eastward through Surrey and into mid-west Kent, to the town of Sevenoaks, and then on to Wrotham Heath where it connects with the A20.
The A272 is a road in southeast England. It follows an approximate east–west route from near Heathfield, East Sussex to the city of Winchester, Hampshire.
The East Coastway line is a railway line along the south coast of Sussex to the east of Brighton, England. Trains to the west of Brighton operate on the West Coastway line. Together with the West Coastway and the Marshlink line to the east, the line forms part of a continuous route from Havant to Ashford. The Brighton Main Line route to Eastbourne and Hastings, via Plumpton and Cooksbridge, shares the East Coastway line east of Lewes station.
The Denham Roundabout is a road junction in Denham, Buckinghamshire. It was originally opened in 1943 in conjunction with the completion of the new Western Avenue route into west London. The Western Avenue took over the classification of the A40, with the previous route to London, via Uxbridge and Ealing, being reclassified as the A4020. The roundabout also included a new link to A412 that formed part of the outer London orbital route.
The A249 is a road in Kent, England, running from Maidstone to Sheerness on the Isle of Sheppey. It mainly functions as a link between the M2 and M20 motorways, and for goods vehicle traffic to the port at Sheerness.
The A228 road is an important transport artery in Kent, England. It begins at the Isle of Grain and runs in a south-westerly direction to connect eventually with the A21 trunk road at Pembury. It serves existing communities and new and proposed housing developments and commercial enterprises. The most influential force on the recent upgrading of the road has been the development of Kings Hill near West Malling.
The A264 is an east–west road in southern England that runs from Pembury in west Kent to Five Oaks in West Sussex.
The A3 is a major road in Northern Ireland. It travels through County Antrim, County Down, County Armagh and parts of southern County Fermanagh.
The A278 is a road running north–south in north Kent, England. The whole length of the road is dual carriageway, within Medway Council but is a non-primary route.
The A1023 is an A-road in Essex, England that goes from junction 28 on the M25 through Brentwood to the A12. The road was originally a Roman road which linked London and Colchester. It opened in 1966, after the A12 was re-routed along the current Brentwood Bypass.
The A26 is a road in Northern Ireland. It travels in a north–south direction from Coleraine, County Londonderry to Banbridge, County Down.
The South Coast Trunk Road is a former designation of a 222-mile (357 km) long route in southern England, sometimes called the Folkestone to Honiton trunk route. It is made up of several numbered roads :
There are 28 routes assigned to the "A" zone of the California Route Marker Program, which designates county routes in California. The "A" zone includes county highways in Lassen, Plumas, Shasta, Siskiyou, and Tehama counties.
Following international norms, road signs in Nepal are controlled by the Nepali Department of Roads and are heavily influenced by those used in the United Kingdom.
Media related to A26 road (England) at Wikimedia Commons