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 A272 westbound at Cheesefoot Head | |
| Route information | |
| Length | 86 mi (138 km) |
| Major junctions | |
| East end | Five Ashes (nearHeathfield) 50°59′38″N0°12′48″E / 50.9939°N 0.2133°E /50.9939; 0.2133 (A272 road (eastern end)) |
| Major intersections | A22 A23 A24 A26 A29  A267 A273 A275 A283 A286A3 A31  M3A34 A33 A30 |
| West end | South Wonston (betweenWinchester andAndover) 51°08′28″N1°22′58″W / 51.1410°N 1.3828°W /51.1410; -1.3828 (A272 road (western end)) |
| Location | |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Primary destinations | Winchester Petersfield Uckfield |
| Road network | |
TheA272 is a road in southeastEngland. It follows an approximate east–west route from nearHeathfield,East Sussex to the city ofWinchester,Hampshire.
The eastern end of the A272 starts at a junction with theA267, 1.5 miles (2.4 km) north-west of the village ofCross-in-Hand,East Sussex. It heads west, crossing theA26 andA22 north ofUckfield, and continues throughNewick before going over the border intoWest Sussex at a point east ofScaynes Hill. It then bypasses the town ofHaywards Heath and continues west, crossing the mainLondon-BrightonA23 road atBolney.
The route continues, crossing theA24 and passing through a number of villages and small towns inWest Sussex, such asBillingshurst,Petworth andMidhurst. It then crosses the county boundary intoHampshire and reachesPetersfield, where it crosses theA3 to the west of the town. The final section passes theNational Trust property ofHinton Ampner and rises high on to theHampshiredowns, passingCheesefoot Head, before descending to merge with theA31 at Chilcomb to the east ofWinchester.
In former years, the A272 continued north-west fromWinchester toStockbridge, but this section has now been redesignated as theB3049. Today, after 1.3 miles (2.1 km) it re-emerges from the A31 to run north to the Winnall Roundabout, Junction 9 of theM3. Here it merges with theA34, passing east and north ofWinchester (with limited access to theA33 northbound), before re-emerging near Littleton. It then runs NW along the Andover Road (formerlyB3420), terminating at theA30 in theparish ofBarton Stacey, an overall length of 85 miles (137 km).[1] To the north the B3420 continues across theRiver Test toWherwell andAndover.
The A272's route is predominantlyrural, despite being only 40 miles (64 km) from the centre ofLondon at its nearest point. Most of it passes through countryside, villages and small towns, and the only built-up area of any size that it traverses isHaywards Heath and its surrounding villages. There is very littledual carriageway—just three very short sections betweenPetworth andMidhurst—and it therefore gives the driver an experience which is reminiscent of English country roads as they were in the middle of the 20th Century.
It has been said that the A272 follows part of the route that was taken bypilgrims travelling between thecathedral cities ofWinchester andCanterbury. However, this is unlikely because, for most of its length, it passes through the lowweald ofSussex. Prior to the development of modern roads, this was difficult for travellers, because of the extensive forest and tracts of low-lying marshy ground. The more likely route was thePilgrims' Way, which followed thechalkescarpment of theNorth Downs.
The road is the subject of a book by theDutch authorPieter Boogaart:A272 - An Ode to a Road (Pallas Athene, 2000).[2]
The A272 is the subject of a chapter in W H Charnock's book "Mind over Motor" describing in detail a car journey from Winchester to Petersfield.
The A272 is mentioned as part of the route Pablo Picasso will take as part of his bicycle ride in the first episode of Monty Python.
A roads in Zone 2 of theGreat Britain road numbering scheme | ||
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50°59′17″N0°37′56″W / 50.9881°N 0.6321°W /50.9881; -0.6321 (A272 road)
