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|---|---|
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| Route information | |
| Length | 14.4 mi (23.2 km) |
| Major junctions | |
| North end | Bungay (A143) |
| Major intersections |  A143B1062 B1123 east toBlythburgh B1123 west toHarleston B1117 toStradbroke A12 |
| South end | A12 |
| Location | |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Constituent country | England |
| Road network | |
TheA144 is an A road in theEnglish county ofSuffolk. It runs from the town ofBungay, close to the border withNorfolk, to theA12 trunk road near the village ofDarsham, passing through the market town ofHalesworth. It is around 14 miles (23 km) in length and is single carriageway throughout.
The A144 was first numbered in 1923 and originally ran from the outskirts ofNorwich, throughBungay andHalesworth to theA12 atDarsham. The section north of Bungay was reclassified as the B1332 in the 1960s, reducing the length of the A144 by half.[1]
Prior to the building of the Bungay northern bypass in the 1980s the road started in central Bungay at the Buttercross market place. The bypass was completed in 1983,[2] re-routing theA143 around the northern edge of the town on the formerWaveney Valley railway line which had closed to traffic in 1966. This led to the extension of the A144 as far as the bypass. The A143 had previously run through Bungay.[1]
The A144 runs through the towns of Bungay and Halesworth in a generally north–south direction. It generally runs through rural areas along its route.[3]
The A144 has its northernmost point at the roundabout with theA143 on the northern edge ofBungay near the Clays printing factory.[4] It passes through the centre of the town, becoming part of the Bungay one way system established on a permanent basis in 2014.[5][6] This splits the road in places before it is reunited at the southern edge of the town centre having passed thegrade I listedSt Mary's Church. The road then passes Bungay Pool and Gym on the southern edge of the town before entering a rural section.[3]
South of Bungay the A144 runs through the parishes ofSt John, Ilketshall andSt Lawrence, Ilketshall, passing close to both parish churches. Between St Lawrence and Halesworth it follows the route of theRomanStone Street for around 5.5 miles (8.9 km).[3] Throughout this section the road is subject to a number of speed restrictions to slow traffic through villages and improve road safety.[7] InSpexhall parish it crosses theLowestoft to Ipswich railway before arriving at the northern edge of Halesworth.[3]
The road crosses the railway again nearHalesworth railway station before bypassing the town centre to the east. The bypass was built in the late 1980s and leaves the town centre mainly pedestrianised.[8] The B1123 from the east meets the A144 at the northern edge of the town centre, linking Halesworth to theA145 atBlythburgh. South of the town centre the westward section of the B1123 towardsMetfield andHarleston joins the road, before the junction with the B1117 towardsLaxfield andStradbroke is reached.[3]
The road then re-enters a rural section, crossing theRiver Blyth before crossing the railway for a third time at a level crossing adjacent to Halesworth Golf Club. The A144 then runs through the centre of the village ofBramfield before reaching theA12 main trunk road betweenGreat Yarmouth andLondon to the north of the village ofDarsham.[3]
The A144 is generally straight and has no record of significant safety issues. It has generally been rated as medium or low–medium risk inEuropean Road Assessment Programme (EuroRAP) surveys.[9][10] There were nine fatalities associated with road traffic accidents along its length between 1999 and 2010.[11]
Congestion in Bungay has caused some safety problems on the A144[12] and a one-way system was established in the town in 2014,[5] the town having been bypassed to the north for east–west traffic in the 1980s.[2] The road is limited to 30 miles per hour inBungay andHalesworth as well as through some village areas.[7] Some 40 mph and 50 mph restrictions are also in place either side of slower speed areas.Suffolk Constabulary operate mobile speed cameras on the road to enforce speed limits.[13] On-road cycle lanes, footpaths and pedestrian crossings are used within built up areas to support road safety, as do roundabouts at the northern junction of the road with theA143 and in Halesworth.
Media related toA144 road (England) at Wikimedia Commons