The A449 is a major road in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. It runs north from junction 24 of the A48 road at Newport in

South Wales South Wales ( ) is a Regions of Wales, loosely defined region of Wales bordered by England to the east and mid Wales to the north. Generally considered to include the Historic counties of Wales, historic counties of Glamorgan and Monmouthshire ( ...

Stafford Stafford () is a market town and the county town of Staffordshire, England. It is located about south of Stoke-on-Trent, north of Wolverhampton, and northwest of Birmingham. The town had a population of 71,673 at the 2021–2022 United Kingd ...

Staffordshire Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation ''Staffs''.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It borders Cheshire to the north-west, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, ...

. The southern section of the road, between Ross on Wye and Newport forms part of the trunk route from

to Newport, avoiding the Severn Bridge

Route

Newport – Ross-on-Wye

The A449 starts on the M4 at the Coldra Interchange (J24) in Newport and is dual carriageway all the way to Raglan. The section from the A40 junction at Raglan to the A472 junction at Usk, known as the ''New Midlands Road'', was one of the first sections to be dualled, opening on 16 October 1970. A special postmark dated 8 December 1972 was produced showing the opening of the A449 by The Secretary of State for Wales. Between Raglan and

Ross-on-Wye Ross-on-Wye is a market town and civil parish in Herefordshire, England, near the border with Wales. It had a population estimated at 10,978 in 2021. It lies in the south-east of the county, on the River Wye and on the northern edge of the Fore ...

the A449 is concurrent with the A40.

Ross-on-Wye – Worcester

The road becomes quite twisty on departing Ross-on-Wye, but straightens out a little before arriving at Ledbury. The road turns northwards upon crossing into

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Shropshire, Staffordshire, and the West Midlands (county), West ...

at Little Malvern and skirts the eastern slopes of the

Malvern Hills The Malvern Hills are in the English counties of Worcestershire, Herefordshire and a small area of northern Gloucestershire, dominating the surrounding countryside and the towns and villages of the district of Malvern. The highest summit af ...

through the town of

Great Malvern Great Malvern is an area of the civil parish of Malvern, Worcestershire, Malvern, in the Malvern Hills District, Malvern Hills district, in the county of Worcestershire, England. It lies at the foot of the Malvern Hills, a designated Area of O ...

. It then crosses Worcester's ring road, the A4440, at a roundabout near

Powick Powick is a village and civil parish in the Malvern Hills District, Malvern Hills district of Worcestershire, England, located two miles south of the city of Worcester, England, Worcester and four miles north of Great Malvern. The parish includ ...

Worcester – Wolverhampton

North of Worcester, a spur road of the same number heads towards the M5 Junction 6, while the main route continues towards

Kidderminster Kidderminster is a market town and civil parish in Worcestershire, England, south-west of Birmingham and north of Worcester, England, Worcester. Located north of the River Stour, Worcestershire, River Stour and east of the River Severn, in th ...

, concurrent with the A442. Between Claines and Hartlebury the A449 is once again dual carriageway, but much tinkering has left the road with a single lane each way and speed restriction. The road becomes urban again while passing through Kidderminster. It then heads north into

, passing between Kinver and

Stourbridge Stourbridge () is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Situated on the River Stour, Worcestershire, River Stour, the town lies around west of Birmingham, at the southwester ...

and crossing the A458 at Stourton. The A491 meets it just north of Kingswinford. Continuing northwards, it passes Wombourne (becoming dual carriageway once more) being joined by the A463 before turning sharply north-east into the outskirts of

Wolverhampton Wolverhampton ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands of England. Located around 12 miles (20 km) north of Birmingham, it forms the northwestern part of the West Midlands conurbation, with the towns of ...

and meeting the

Ring Road A ring road (also known as circular road, beltline, beltway, circumferential (high)way, loop or orbital) is a road or a series of connected roads encircling a town, city or country. The most common purpose of a ring road is to assist in reducin ...

Wolverhampton – Stafford

The road resumes its journey northwards, passing

Molineux Stadium Molineux Stadium ( ) is a association football, football stadium situated in Wolverhampton, West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. It has been the home ground of Premier League club Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C., Wolverhampton Wanderers ...

(home of

Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club ( ), commonly referred to as Wolves, is a professional football club based in Wolverhampton Wolverhampton ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands of England. ...

) and leaving the city just south of Junction 2 of the M54. It originally ran through the centre of Wolverhampton until the 1980s, when all roads within the new ring road were declassified. Around the same time, the section of Waterloo Road on which Molineux Stadium stands was declassified and the A459 Stafford Street (north of the Ring Road) and Lower Stafford Street became part of the A449. From there it forms part of the link between the M54 and the M6 North. It crosses the A5 at the Gailey Roundabout near the village of Gailey, a short distance west of M6 Junction 12, at which point it reverts to a single carriageway. It passes through

Penkridge Penkridge ( ) is a village and civil parish in South Staffordshire, South Staffordshire District in Staffordshire, England. It is to the south of Stafford, north of Wolverhampton, west of Cannock, east of Telford and south-east of Newport, Shro ...

before crossing the M6 at Junction 13, reaching its terminus at its junction with the A34 in Stafford. Originally turnpiked under the Stafford, Worcester and Warwick Roads Act 1760 ( 1 Geo. 3. c. 39), the Wolverhampton-Stafford road was part of the historic London-Liverpool coach route. Notoriously narrow in the 19th century, much of it was turned into dual carriageway between the world wars. The Gailey Roundabout was improved in 1929 and again in 1937, removing parts of the churchyard and the historic Spread Eagle Inn (although the latter was replaced by a new building). Widening at Penkridge between 1932 and 1934 reshaped the western part of the town, resulting in the demolition of many ancient buildings. The dual carriageway between Wolverhampton and Gailey was constructed between 1936 and 1939.Victoria County History: Staffordshire: Volume 5, chapter 8: Brewood, s.1.
/ref> This section of the road was featured in Citizen Khan episode "Alia's University".

Former routes

* The original routing of the road was from Bromsgrove – Stourbridge – Wolverhampton – Stafford * The villages of Hartlebury and

Ombersley Ombersley is a village and civil parish in Wychavon district, in the county of Worcestershire, England. The parish includes the hamlet of Holt Fleet, where Thomas Telford, Telford's 1828 Holt Fleet Bridge crosses the River Severn. The 2011 Un ...

have been bypassed * Part of Ledbury is now bypassed * Between Raglan and Newport the A449 used to run through the towns of Usk and Caerleon, along a now mostly unclassified road to the west, terminating at junction 25 of the M4

Water crossings

* River Trothy,

Monmouth Monmouth ( or ; ) is a market town and community (Wales), community in Monmouthshire, Wales, situated on where the River Monnow joins the River Wye, from the Wales–England border. The population in the 2011 census was 10,508, rising from 8 ...

River Monnow The River Monnow () marks the England–Wales border for much of its length. After flowing through southwest Herefordshire, England, and eastern Monmouthshire, Wales, its confluence with the River Wye is approximately south of Monmouth. The ...

River Wye The River Wye (; ) is the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, fourth-longest river in the UK, stretching some from its source on Plynlimon in mid Wales to the Severn Estuary. The lower reaches of the river forms part of Wales-England bor ...

* River Leadon, Ledbury *

River Severn The River Severn (, ), at long, is the longest river in Great Britain. It is also the river with the most voluminous flow of water by far in all of England and Wales, with an average flow rate of at Apperley, Gloucestershire. It rises in t ...

, Worcester * Stourbridge Canal, Stourton * River Stour, Kinver * Wom Brook, Wombourne * Birmingham Canal,

Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal The Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal is a navigable narrow canal in Staffordshire and Worcestershire in the The Midlands, England, Midlands of England. It is long, linking the River Severn at Stourport in Worcestershire with the Trent a ...

Coven A coven () is a group or gathering of Witchcraft, witches. The word "coven" (from Anglo-Norman language, Anglo-Norman ''covent, cuvent'', from Old French ''covent'', from Latin ''conventum'' = convention) remained largely unused in English lan ...

* River Penk,

References

External links

Road to Nowhere: A449
{{DEFAULTSORT:4-0449 Roads in England Roads in Wales Transport in Herefordshire Transport in Monmouthshire Transport in Newport, Wales Transport in Staffordshire Roads in Worcestershire Transport in Worcester, England Malvern, Worcestershire Transport in Wolverhampton