A344 road
Encyclopedia
The A344 is an A road in the English
county of Wiltshire
. It runs from its junction with the A303 road
at Stonehenge
north west to its junction with the A360 road
, 2 miles (3.2 km) away.
What remains today of the A344 was once part of a slightly longer route, stretching from Andover
in the East to Warminster
in the West. The section from Andover to Amesbury
was redesignated as the A303, when the new route to the south west was created to bypass the A30
to the south. The western section, from Shrewton
to Warminster has been re-classified as the B390.
The remaining section passes close to Stonehenge and was planned for closure to enhance the setting of the stones should approval for widening and tunneling of the nearby A303 have been given by the British government.
The pressure group Heritage Action have an alternative plan for a scheme to close the A344 to enhance the immediate area around Stonehenge without the increasing capacity on the A303.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
county of Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
. It runs from its junction with the A303 road
A303 road
The A303 is a 92-mile long trunk road in England. It is the main road between Basingstoke in Hampshire and Honiton in Devon. The M3, the A303 and the A30 together make up one of the main routes from London to South West England, running from London to Land's End in Cornwall...
at Stonehenge
Stonehenge
Stonehenge is a prehistoric monument located in the English county of Wiltshire, about west of Amesbury and north of Salisbury. One of the most famous sites in the world, Stonehenge is composed of a circular setting of large standing stones set within earthworks...
north west to its junction with the A360 road
A360 road
The A360 is a minor A road in Wiltshire, England, running from Devizes to Salisbury, through the villages of Potterne, West Lavington, Tilshead, and Shrewton, and passing near Stonehenge....
, 2 miles (3.2 km) away.
What remains today of the A344 was once part of a slightly longer route, stretching from Andover
Andover, Hampshire
Andover is a town in the English county of Hampshire. The town is on the River Anton some 18.5 miles west of the town of Basingstoke, 18.5 miles north-west of the city of Winchester and 25 miles north of the city of Southampton...
in the East to Warminster
Warminster
Warminster is a town in western Wiltshire, England, by-passed by the A36, and near Frome and Westbury. It has a population of about 17,000. The River Were runs through the town and can be seen running through the middle of the town park. The Minster Church of St Denys sits on the River Were...
in the West. The section from Andover to Amesbury
Amesbury
Amesbury is a town and civil parish in Wiltshire, England. It is most famous for the prehistoric monument of Stonehenge which is in its parish, and for the discovery of the Amesbury Archer—dubbed the King of Stonehenge in the press—in 2002...
was redesignated as the A303, when the new route to the south west was created to bypass the A30
A30 road
The 284 miles A30 road from London to Land's End, historically known as the Great South West Road used to provide the most direct route from London to the south west; more recently the M3 motorway and A303 road performs this function for much of the route and only parts of A30 now retain trunk...
to the south. The western section, from Shrewton
Shrewton
Shrewton is a village in Wiltshire, England, located around 9 km west of Amesbury and north of Salisbury. It lies on the A360 road between Stonehenge and Tilshead. It is close to the source of the River Till, which flows south to Stapleford. Its population at the 2001 Census was 1,826, as...
to Warminster has been re-classified as the B390.
The remaining section passes close to Stonehenge and was planned for closure to enhance the setting of the stones should approval for widening and tunneling of the nearby A303 have been given by the British government.
The pressure group Heritage Action have an alternative plan for a scheme to close the A344 to enhance the immediate area around Stonehenge without the increasing capacity on the A303.