Oxford Ring Road

Last updated

The Oxford Ring Road circles the city of Oxford, England. It is a dual carriageway ring road for most of its length apart from a short section between Woodstock Road and Banbury Road in the north of the city. The severe restrictions on traffic in Oxford city centre mean that it is the only practical way for long-distance traffic to get past Oxford, especially as there are few road bridges over the rivers Isis and Cherwell. Five Park and Rides are close to the ring road.

Contents

Junctions list

Oxford Ring Road
exits
Woodstock Road
A34 North, A44
A40
A4144 (Woodstock Road South), A40 West
A4165 (Banbury Road)
B4150 (Marsh Lane), Marston
A4142
A40 East, A420, Headington, (Headington Roundabout)
Kiln Lane, Beaumont Road
Horspath Driftway
Horspath Road
B480 (Garsington Road)
Sandy Lane West (Clockwise Access Only)
A4158 (Littlemore Roundabout)
A4074, Superstore
A423
A4144 (Kennington Roundabout)
Kennington Road (Clockwise Access Only)
Abingdon Road (Anti-Clockwise Access Only)
A34
A34 South, Hinksey Hill
South Hinksey
Westminster Way (Clockwise Access Only), North Hinksey Lane (Anti-Clockwise Access Only)
Stanley Close (Anti-Clockwise Access Only)
A420, (Botley Interchange)
Unnumbered Road to Wytham (Clockwise Access Only)

Description

History

The north-eastern section, from Headington to Banbury Road, is the oldest part of the Oxford Ring Road. It was built in the mid-1930s and is part of the A40.

In 1938 the southern part of the western section was opened from the bottom of Hinksey Hill to Botley. The road was known as the "road to nowhere" and little used at that time. In 1962 it was extended north by a new bridge over the River Thames to Wolvercote, and the whole western section then became part of the A34. It was dualled in 1973.

The south-eastern section between Headington and Rose Hill was opened in 1959. The southern section between Hinksey Hill and Heyford Hill, including the new Isis Bridge over the River Thames, was opened in 1965. The ring road was completed when the short section between Rose Hill and Heyford Hill was opened in 1966.

The ring road has suffered major problems in recent years as housing developments are built next to the ring road leading to more traffic light intersections and roadworks. The latest traffic intersection on the Barton Park development, which opened in 2017, brings the total number of traffic light intersections on the ring road to 22. [1] [2] [3] [4]

Future

In 2023, Oxfordshire County Council plans to rebuild the Kennington Bridge due to degradation of the bridge deck bearings, which due to the bridge design, cannot easily be replaced. The rebuilding process involves several utility diversions and also building over a major railway line and two Thames tributaries [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">M40 motorway</span> British motorway connecting London and Birmingham

The M40 motorway links London, Oxford, and Birmingham in England, a distance of approximately 89 miles (143 km).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A40 road</span> Road in Great Britain, connecting London to Wales

The A40 is a trunk road which runs between London and Goodwick (Fishguard), Wales, and officially called The London to Fishguard Trunk Road (A40) in all legal documents and Acts. Much of its length within England has been superseded by motorways, such as the M40, and has lost its trunk road status, though it retains it west of Gloucester, including its length within Wales. It is approximately 260 miles (420 km) long. The eastern section from Denham, Buckinghamshire to Wheatley, Oxfordshire is better served by the M40 and its former function of linking London with Cheltenham and Gloucester has been taken by the M4, A419 and A417 via Swindon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A34 road</span> Major road in England

The A34 is a major road in England. It runs from the A33 and M3 at Winchester in Hampshire, to the A6 and A6042 in Salford, close to Manchester City Centre. It forms a large part of the major trunk route from Southampton, via Oxford, to Birmingham, The Potteries and Manchester. For most of its length, it forms part of the former Winchester–Preston Trunk Road. Improvements to the section of road forming the Newbury Bypass around Newbury were the scene of significant direct action environmental protests in the 1990s. It is 151 miles (243 km) long.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A44 road</span> Major road in the United Kingdom

The A44 is a major road in the United Kingdom that runs from Oxford in southern England to Aberystwyth in west Wales.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">River Cherwell</span> Tributary of the River Thames in central England

The River Cherwell is a tributary of the River Thames in central England. It rises near Hellidon, Northamptonshire and flows southwards for 40 miles (64 km) to meet the Thames at Oxford in Oxfordshire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A361 road</span> Longest three-digit road in England

The A361 is an A class road in southern England, which at 195 miles (314 km) is the longest three-digit A road in the UK.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Botley, Oxfordshire</span> Human settlement in England

Botley is a village in the civil parish of Botley and North Hinksey, in the Vale of White Horse district, in the county of Oxfordshire, England, just west of the Oxford city boundary. Historically part of Berkshire, it stands on the Seacourt Stream, a stream running off the River Thames. The intersection of the A34 and A420 is to the village's north.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A43 road</span> Road in England

The A43 is a primary route in the English Midlands and northern South East England, that runs from the M40 motorway near Ardley in Oxfordshire to Stamford in Lincolnshire. Through Northamptonshire it bypasses the towns of Northampton, Kettering and Corby which are the three principal destinations on the A43 route. The A43 also links to the M1 motorway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lower Heyford</span> Human settlement in England

Lower Heyford is a village and civil parish beside the River Cherwell in Oxfordshire, about 6 miles (10 km) west of Bicester. The 2011 Census recorded the parish's population as 492.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A420 road</span> Road in England

The A420 is a road between Bristol and Oxford in England. Between Swindon and Oxford it is a primary route.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South Hinksey</span> Human settlement in England

South Hinksey is a village and civil parish just over 1 mile (1.6 km) south of the centre of Oxford. The parish includes the residential area of Hinksey Hill about 0.5 miles (800 m) south of the village. The parish was part of Berkshire until the 1974 boundary changes transferred it to Oxfordshire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hinksey Stream</span> Stream in Oxfordshire, England

Hinksey Stream is a branch of the River Thames to the west of the city of Oxford, England. It starts as Seacourt Stream, which leaves the Thames at a bifurcation north of the village of Wytham, and rejoins the river south of the city near Kennington.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Abingdon Road</span> Road to the south of Oxford, England

Abingdon Road is the main arterial road to the south of the city of Oxford, England. The road passes through the suburbs of Grandpont and New Hinksey. It is named after the town of Abingdon to the south.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A423 road</span> Road in England

The A423 road is a primary A road in England in two sections. The main section leads from central Banbury to the A45 near Coventry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A4074 road</span> Road in England linking Reading and Oxford

The A4074 is a British A road from the Reading suburb of Caversham to the Heyford Hill roundabout on the Oxford Ring Road.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A4130 road</span> Road in England

The A4130 is a British A road which runs from a junction with the A404 at Burchetts Green (Maidenhead), Berkshire to the A417 at Rowstock in Oxfordshire. It passes through Henley-on-Thames, and Nettlebed, and bypasses Wallingford and Didcot.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Isis Bridge</span> Bridge in Oxford

Isis Bridge is a modern road bridge across the River Thames just south of Oxford, England. It carries the Oxford Ring Road, part of the A423 road, across the Thames on the reach between Sandford Lock and Iffley Lock.

References

  1. "Barton Park Development". Headington News.
  2. "Warning that traffic chaos in Oxford will only get worse, as 46,000 workers now commute to city". Oxford Mail.
  3. "Oxford roadworks will be 'pure hell', motorists fear". BBC.
  4. "Traffic jams worse than ever in Oxfordshire as businesses count cost of congestion". Oxford Mail.
  5. "A423 Kennington Bridge works". Oxfordshire County Council.

51°47′04″N1°15′02″W / 51.7844°N 1.2505°W / 51.7844; -1.2505