A308(M) motorway

A308(M) shield
A308(M)
Route information
Maintained by National Highways
Length0.6 mi (970 m)
Existed1971–present
Major junctions
East endM4 Junction 8/9
Major intersections
M4 motorway

A404(M) motorway
West endMaidenhead (Braywick)
Location
CountryUnited Kingdom
Primary
destinations
Maidenhead, Windsor, Bracknell
Road network
A194(M) A329(M)
Looking towards the A308(M) terminus with the A308 and A330.

The A308(M) is a motorway in Berkshire, England. It is 0.6 miles (0.97 km) long. It forms part of the Maidenhead bypass and runs from the M4 at junction 8/9 to the A308 south of Maidenhead town centre. The A308(M) is one of Britain's shortest motorways, and is generally considered to be the second shortest, after the A635(M) on the Mancunian Way.[1]

History

In 1961[2] the A4(M) was opened and ran from the existing junction 7, through a junction with the A308 and ending at a junction with the A4. In 1963, the Slough bypass was opened[2] to junction 7 and the A4(M) was renumbered M4, junction 8 being with the A308 and junction 9 with the A4.

The proposed route of the M4 was then changed to go south of Reading, instead of north of it. When the M4 was extended in 1971,[2] a new junction was provided to connect with what would become a spur. This new interchange was built too close to the original junction 8, so this had to be closed. A new junction (numbered 8/9 so as not to confuse motorists) was built. The original M4 north of this was renumbered as the A423(M) and in the 1990s this was again reclassified as the A404(M). A new spur, the A308(M), was built to maintain access to the A308 and connected with the A404(M) and the M4 at the same grade separated roundabout.

Junctions

Note: motorway has no junction numbers

A308(M) motorway
Eastbound exits Junction Westbound exits
Road continues as A308 to Maidenhead, Windsor
A330 to Ascot and Bracknell (A3095)
A308 & A330
Terminus
London, Reading (M4) A308(M), Oxford A404(M)
Maidenhead, Windsor A308, Ascot A330, Bracknell A3095 Start of motorway
Start of motorway
Maidenhead (Central) A308(M)
M4 J8/9
A404(M)
The West M4(W), London M4(E)
High Wycombe A404(M)

Information above gathered from Advanced Direction Signs April 2011

See also

References

  1. ^ "BBC Radio 4 - Radio 4 in Four - Ten speedy facts about motorways". BBC. Retrieved 3 August 2021.
  2. ^ a b c The Motorway Archive – M4 Dates Page Archived 4 January 2007 at the Wayback Machine
KML is from Wikidata