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 Looking north near Carland Cross in Cornwall | ||||
| Route information | ||||
| Length | 191 mi (307 km) | |||
| Major junctions | ||||
| North East end |  A4atBath51°23′10″N2°25′51″W / 51.3861°N 2.4307°W /51.3861; -2.4307 | |||
| Major intersections |  A368
 A394 | |||
| South West end | Falmouth50°08′58″N5°03′26″W / 50.1495°N 5.0573°W /50.1495; -5.0573 | |||
| Location | ||||
| Country | United Kingdom | |||
| Primary destinations | Truro Wadebridge Bude Bideford Barnstaple Minehead Bridgwater Glastonbury | |||
| Road network | ||||
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TheA39 is anA road in south westEngland. It runs south-west fromBath inSomerset throughWells,Glastonbury,Street andBridgwater. It then follows the north coast of Somerset,Devon andCornwall throughWilliton,Minehead,Porlock,Lynmouth,Barnstaple,Bideford,Stratton,Camelford,Wadebridge andSt Columb Major. It thenjoins the route of theA30 road for around 5 miles (8.0 km), re-emerging nearZelah to head for the southCornish coast viaTruro andFalmouth.
In Cornwall and North Devon (until the junction with theA361 "North Devon Link Road"), the road is known as theAtlantic Highway, and was classified as atrunk road until 2002.
Porlock Hill is a section of the A39 west of the village ofPorlock. The road climbs approximately 1,300 ft (400 m) in less than 2 miles (3.2 km) up ontoExmoor: a very steep hill with gradients of up to 1 in 4 and hairpin bends.[1]
In Porlock itself you will often smell burning brakes from vehicles who have just descended the hill.
On 12 January 1899, the ten-tonLynmouth lifeboat was launched during a storm, but the storm's ferocity meant it could not put out to sea. Instead, it was retrieved and hauled by men and twenty horses overCountisbury and Porlock hills to Porlock Weir where the water in the bay was less rough.[2] The endeavour eventually enabled thirteen seamen to be rescued.[3]
There is a less steeptoll road that small vehicles and cyclists can take as an alternative route.[1] It formed part of the route in the 2007Tour of Britain cycle race. Another alternative for cyclists, avoiding tolls, is provided by part of Regional Cycle Route 51 (Minehead to Ilfracombe).
About 9.3 miles (15.0 km) to the west of Porlock Hill, the A39 starts its equivalent descent from the hills ofExmoor. Within about 2.5 miles (4.0 km), the road descends the 1,300 ft (400 m) it had previously climbed. Unlike Porlock Hill, this section is relatively straight down into Lynmouth village where there is a bridge over the river and a sharp left turn, however the gradient at the foot is also 25% for a short distance. The original road between Lynmouth and Lynton was much more challenging with gradients of around 1 in 3 (33%). It is now the B3234, Lynmouth Hill.
AtMartinhoe Cross in Devon—about 5 miles (8.0 km) west ofLynton and 2 miles (3.2 km) east ofParracombe—on the north side of the A39 lies a once disused but, in 2004, restored and reopenedrailway station. Woody Bay was once an intermediate stop on, and is now the main operating centre of, theLynton & Barnstaple Railway anarrow-gauge line built in 1898, which closed in 1935.[4] Over- and under-bridges and other traces of the line can be seen at various locations along this stretch of the road.
Atlantic Highway is the name given to a section of the A39, as it passes from theNorth Devon Link Road atBarnstaple inDevon until it reaches theA30 atFraddon inCornwall.[5]
It is so called, as it is the main road (it was a trunk road until 2002) from mid-Cornwall to North Devon and follows the line of the Atlantic Ocean's coast. It is also named thus due to the formerSouthern Railway express that ran in this part of North Devon and North Cornwall (theAtlantic Coast Express). Views of the Atlantic can be seen along its length, although the road does not approach very close to thecoastline itself.
The road is signified as theAtlantic Highway by road signs indicating the route mileage throughout its length, in both directions, in white on brown above the green background of the route mileage boards.[6]
It passes byWadebridge,Bude andBideford, and directly throughCamelford.
Download coordinates as:
| Point | Coordinates (Links to map resources) | OS Grid Ref | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Falmouth | 50°08′59″N5°03′26″W / 50.1496°N 5.0571°W /50.1496; -5.0571 (Falmouth) | SW816321 | Southern end of the A39 atFalmouth, Cornwall |
| Corston | 51°23′10″N2°25′49″W / 51.3862°N 2.4303°W /51.3862; -2.4303 (Corston) | ST701653 | Northern end of the A39 atCorston, Somerset nearBath |
A roads in Zone 3 of theGreat Britain road numbering scheme | ||
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