Road
Buckinghamshire's road network is still largely composed of single carriageway roads, with a few exceptions. The M40 and M1 motorways both pass through the county on their routes from London to the north, serving High Wycombe and Milton Keynes respectively. The A41 connects Oxfordshire to London through Buckinghamshire. Between Aylesbury and London this road is a grade-separated dual carriageway, essentially a motorway but with more curves and no hard shoulder. Aylesbury is the focal point of Buckinghamshire's road network; the A413, A418, A41 and A4010 roads all converge on the town. However all enter the town as single carriageways and none has a bypass. Consequently, Aylesbury suffers from serious traffic congestion problems during peak hours.
Similarly to Aylesbury, High Wycombe is a nexus of major roads in the southern part of the county. The A4010 from Aylesbury meets the A404 from Amersham as well as the M40 motorway, which passes the town to the south. The A404 continues south beyond the M40 towards Maidenhead.
Unlike the other two towns, Milton Keynes, being a new town, has a pre-planned network of roads known as the Milton Keynes grid road system. It is linked to Leighton Buzzard and Aylesbury by the dual carriageway A4146 which opened in September 2007. The single carriageway A508 connects it to Northampton whilst the A421 connects it, via the M1, to Bedford. West of Milton Keynes the A421 meets the A413 in Buckingham, which is also on the A422 road to Banbury.
Buckinghamshire (including Milton Keynes) is served by four motorways, although two are on its borders:
- M40 motorway - cuts through the south of the county serving towns such as High Wycombe and Beaconsfield
- M1 motorway - serves Milton Keynes in the north
- M25 motorway - passes into Bucks but has only one junction (J16-interchange for the M40)
- M4 motorway - passes through the very south of the county with only J7 in Bucks
Also the A41 (former A41 (M)) comes into Buckinghamshire from the east to Aston Clinton.
Four important A roads also enter the county (from north to south):
- A5 - serves Milton Keynes
- A41 - cuts through the centre of the county, serving Aylesbury
- A40 - parallels M40 through south Bucks and continues to central London
- A4 - serves Taplow in the very south
Road travel east–west is good in the county because of the commuter routes leaving London for the rest of the country. There are no major roads that run directly between the south and north of the county (e.g. between High Wycombe and Milton Keynes).
Read more about this topic: Transport In Buckinghamshire
Famous quotes containing the word road:
“How the cold creeps as the fire dies at length
How drifts are piled,
Dooryard and road ungraded,
Till even the comforting barn grows far away,
And my heart owns a doubt
Whether ‘tis in us to arise with day
And save ourselves unaided.”
—Robert Frost (1874–1963)
“But, where the road runs near the stream,
Oft through the trees they catch a glance
Of passing troops in the sun’s beam—
Pennon, and plume, and flashing lance!
Forth to the world those soldiers fare,
To life, to cities, and to war!”
—Matthew Arnold (1822–1888)
“A route differs from a road not only because it is solely intended for vehicles, but also because it is merely a line that connects one point with another. A route has no meaning in itself; its meaning derives entirely from the two points that it connects. A road is a tribute to space. Every stretch of road has meaning in itself and invites us to stop. A route is the triumphant devaluation of space, which thanks to it has been reduced to a mere obstacle to human movement and a waste of time.”
—Milan Kundera (b. 1929)