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The A431 is an A road running from
Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...
to
Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...
in
England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
. It runs parallel to, and about to the north of, the A4, the principal route between Bristol and Bath on the south side of the River Avon.


Route

The A431 begins at a junction with the A420 road to
Chippenham Chippenham is a market town in north-west Wiltshire, England. It lies north-east of Bath, Somerset, Bath, west of London and is near the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The town was established on a crossing of the River Avon, ...
at
St George Saint George (;Geʽez: ጊዮርጊስ, , ka, გიორგი, , , died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was an early Christian martyr who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to holy tradition, he was a soldier in the R ...
, about east of central Bristol. From there it runs through Hanham,
Longwell Green Longwell Green is a suburban neighbourhood and electoral ward in South Gloucestershire, England. It is part of the Bristol Built-up Area, east of the city centre of Bristol. Longwell Green takes its name from the medieval well which used to ...
,
Bitton Bitton is a village and civil parish of South Gloucestershire in Gloucestershire, England, to the east of Bristol and on the River Boyd. The parish of Bitton had a population of 9,307, and apart from the village itself, includes Swineford, ...
and Kelston. It passes around the edge of Kelston Round Hill, and past the estate of Sir John Hawkins to Newbridge, Bath, where it joins the A4 which continues to central Bath. Some of the road runs on the alignment of a
Roman road Roman roads ( ; singular: ; meaning "Roman way") were physical infrastructure vital to the maintenance and development of the Roman state, built from about 300 BC through the expansion and consolidation of the Roman Republic and the Roman Em ...
between Bristol and Bath.


History

What is now the A431 was the upper turnpike between Bristol and Bath, north of the River Avon (the lower turnpike, south of the Avon, being the A4). Both roads were turnpiked by the Bath Trust in 1707. The Bristol Trust attempted to turnpike the western half of the upper road, but faced opposition from colliers at Kingswood, and it was not fully completed until the 1740s. By the 19th century, the Upper Bristol Road to Kelston was described as a "pleasing and nearly level ride". When roads were first numbered in 1923, the A431 formed the full extent of the upper Bristol – Bath turnpike as far as the old Post Office at the corner of George Street and Milsom Street. In 1935, the
Ministry of Transport A ministry of transport or transportation is a ministry responsible for transportation within a country. It usually is administered by the ''minister for transport''. The term is also sometimes applied to the departments or other government a ...
rerouted the A4 along this route towards Bristol and
Avonmouth Avonmouth ( ) is a port and outer suburb of Bristol, England, on the north bank of the mouth of the River Avon and the eastern shore of the Severn Estuary. Part of the Port of Bristol, Avonmouth Docks is important to the region's maritime eco ...
, curtailing the A431 to its current eastern point at Newbridge.


Kelston Park landslip

In February 2014 the road was closed near Kelston Park due to a landslip. The closure lasted until 17 November 2014 as the ground continued to move. Deeper pilings were found necessary as the works progressed, taking total repair costs to about £2 million. Local entrepreneur Mike Watts created a private
toll road A toll road, also known as a turnpike or tollway, is a public or private road for which a fee (or ''Toll (fee), toll'') is assessed for passage. It is a form of road pricing typically implemented to help recoup the costs of road construction and ...
over agricultural land to bypass the closed section, which opened in August 2014.Bath & North East Somerset Council, http://www.bathnes.gov.uk/services/streets-and-highway-maintenance/roadworks/major-transport-schemes/a431-kelston-road-council


See also

* British road numbering scheme


References

Citations Sources *


External links


SABRE website: description of route
{{DEFAULTSORT:4-0431 Roads in England Roads in Bristol Roads in Gloucestershire Roads in Somerset