out-of-zone roads

Under the UK road numbering scheme, roads are meant to be numbered according to the furthest anticlockwise numbering zone in which they start. This means all roads starting with 1 start anticlockwise of the A1, and so on. There are two sets of zones; zones 1 to 6 cover England, Wales and part of south-east Scotland (radiating out of London), whilst zones 7, 8 and 9 cover the remainder of the Scottish roads (radiating out of Edinburgh).

So, despite crossing zones 4, 5, and 6, the A38 is correctly numbered as it starts in zone 3; on the other hand, the A14 is wrongly numbered, as it starts in zone 6 - despite it spending most of its time in zone 1. Motorways numbered Ax(M) follow the same scheme, but Mx motorways have their own numbering system.

M48
Magor - Almondsbury
Incorrectly enters Zone 5
The former M4 until the Second Severn Crossing opened, but is entirely in zone 5, so should be M5x - the use of M48 hints at the road being renumbered as a spur of the M4, in a USA numbering fashion.

M49
Avonmouth - Severn Beach
Incorrectly enters Zone 3
This motorway is south of the M4, and west of the M3, so should have an M3x number - may have been numbered in the same manner as the M48.

M62
Liverpool - Warrington
Incorrectly enters Zone 5
Was meant to be M52, but was renumbered M62 before opening in order to form a continuous Trans-Pennine motorway.

M65
Preston
Incorrectly enters Zone 5
A very short section crosses west of the M6 in what is essentially a glorified set of slip roads ending at Junction 1a (Junction 1 is in fact the M6 interchange!)

A3(M)
Waterlooville Bypass
Incorrectly enters Zone 2
This is an oddity of a motorway - it's number suggests that it is the A3 to motorway standards, yet the A3 itself runs through the centre of Waterlooville; so technically, both the bypass and the bypassed roads have the same number, albeit one has "(M)" tacked onto the end of it. As a result, the motorway is out of zone. So it should be A2x(M) instead.

A404(M)
Maidenhead Bypass
Incorrectly enters Zone 3
Entirely out of zone, as it runs south of the A4 - numbered as a continuation of the A404.

A14
Catthorpe to Brampton
Incorrectly enters Zones 5 and 6
Should start with a 5, due to the road starting west of the A1 and A6.

A31
Guildford
Incorrectly enters Zone 2
A short stretch runs into Guildford after crossing the A3 into zone 2. Was entirely in zone until the 1930s Guildford Bypass opened.

A41
London to Elstree
Incorrectly enters Zone 5
Originally correct, as it used to run west of the A5, along what is now the A4140, but was later rerouted across the A5 and onto its current, but technically illegal, course.

A42
Appleby Magna to Kegworth
Incorrectly enters Zone 5
Numbered as a non-motorway continuation of the M42, thus keeping the same number, but is entirely in the wrong zone.

A51
Curdworth to Tamworth
Incorrectly enters Zone 4
Starts south of the A5, so should be an A4x road. Maybe so numbered due to a lack of available A4x numbers!

A55
Holyhead to Bangor
Incorrectly enters Zone 4
Used to be completely in zone, but was extended over to Holyhead, crossing the A5 several times and putting it out of zone at Junction 1.

A66
Workington to Penrith
Incorrectly enters Zone 5
The A66 was incorrectly extended westwards in the 1970s as part of an upgrade to roads in central Cumbria. The old road was the A594, but in order to encourage cross-country traffic and to use the road (and the M6), the number was changed to something that sounded more important. Similar happened with the A14 - and that was wrongly numbered too!

A88
Larbert to Skinflats
Incorrectly enters Zone 9
A shadow of its former self, having been mostly taken over by the M876. The rest of the road has been left stranded to the east of the A9.

A89
Larbert to Skinflats
Incorrectly enters Zone 9
An odd number to be given as this road is the former A8; however the boundary was shifted south with the opening of the M8, which replaced the A8.

A168
Wetherby
Incorrectly enters Zone 6
This number was originally correctly allocated, however the road was extended down the line of the old A1 when that road was upgraded south of Dishforth.

A177
Durham to Bowburn
Incorrectly enters Zone 6
This number was originally correctly allocated, however the construction of the A1(M) shifted the zone boundary eastwards.

A181
Durham to Dragonville
Incorrectly enters Zone 6
This number was originally correctly allocated, however the construction of the A1(M) shifted the zone boundary eastwards.

A282
Dartford Crossing
Incorrectly enters Zone 1
The boundary between zones 1 and 2 is the Thames, meaning A282 is the wrong number as it should have an A1xx designation.

A307
Cobham
Incorrectly enters Zone 2
Starts in Cobham, just to the south of the A3.

A320, A322
Guildford
Incorrectly enters Zone 2
These roads have been out of zone since the 1930s due to the northwards movement of the A3 following the opening of the Guildford Bypass.

A397
Cosham
Incorrectly enters Zone 2
This road is entirely out-of-zone due to being south of the A3; in fact it used to be a spur of the A3, but was later given this incorrect number.

A412
Slough
Incorrectly enters Zone 3
Starts south of the A4, so should be an A3xx road.

A427
Market Harborough to Oundle
Incorrectly enters Zone 6
Perhaps the most out-of-zone road there is, as it is two zones away from where it should be. Originally this road started in Rugby, correctly in zone 4, but with the opening of the A14, the road west of Market Harborough was renumbered to discourage through traffic from using it instead of the new route. However, the new numbers (A4303 and A4304) are also illegal, as the roads should have a number starting with 5. Does it seem that the arrival of the A14 meant that the rule book was completely thrown out of the window?

A447
Hinckley to Coalville
Incorrectly enters Zone 5
Left stranded north of the A5 when the section south of the boundary was downgraded to B4109.

A505
Linslade to Houghton Regis
Incorrectly enters Zone 4
The section west of the A5 should really be a continuation of A418 (it ends at the same roundabout as the A418, so makes sense!)

A601
Derby Inner Ring Road
Incorrectly enters Zone 5
Western side of the ring is in zone 5, as the A6 disappears when it meets the A601, only reappearing on the other side of the city. Technically, the boundary would just dissect through the middle of Derby city centre.

A620
Retford to Beckingham
Incorrectly enters Zone 1
This road is entirely out-of-zone, due to the section west of the A1 having been downgraded to become the B6079.

A624
Chapel-en-le-Frith, Derbyshire
Incorrectly enters Zone 5
The section within Chapel was forced out of zone when the A6 was rerouted via Dove Holes.

A683
Heysham to Torrisholme, Lancashire
Incorrectly enters Zone 5
When the Morecambe Bypass was built, the A683 was extended along it, usurping part of the A589 in the process, to form a continuously numbered route from the M6 to the port at Heysham.

A720
Edinburgh City Bypass
Incorrectly enters Zone 6
Mostly out of zone, as it starts over at the A8, some 11 miles west of the A7.

A882
Roadside to Wick, Scottish Highlands
Incorrectly enters Zone 9
Originally in the correct zone, but ended up out of zone when the A9 was rerouted along the A895 and the original A9 became A99.

A899
Dedridge to Dechment
Incorrectly enters Zone 7
Virtually all of this road is out-of-zone, as it runs south of the M8 (which forms the zone 7/8 boundary).

A949
Bonar Bridge to Clashmore, Scottish Highlands
Incorrectly enters Zone 8
Incorrectly extended westwards along the old line of the A9 when the Dornoch Firth bridge was opened and the A9 took the short-cut.

A1057
St Albans to Hatfield
Incorrectly enters Zone 5
The road runs completely westwards of the A1, so in theory should be A5057 (but that's taken, over on Merseyside!)

A1068
Alnwick
Incorrectly enters Zone 6
This road briefly runs into zone 6 at its northern end due to the strange route it takes to access the A1 from the east (the road virtually has to double back on itself).

A1081
South Mimms to Luton
Incorrectly enters Zone 5
This is the former A6, as that now starts in Luton. It should have an A5xxx number, or to be picky, even an A6xxx number to show that it is still the zone boundary - A6000 or A6666 anyone?

A1246
Selby Fork to Brotherton
Incorrectly enters Zone 6
This is the former A1 which runs parallel to the A1246 - yet the old road ended up with an incorrect number as it is west of the A1.

A3023
Brockhampton to South Hayling
Incorrectly enters Zone 2
Runs east of the A3 in its entirety, so completely in the wrong zone.

A3100
Guildford
Incorrectly enters Zone 2
The former A3, until the Guildford Bypass came along and pinched it! Entirely out of zone as a result.

A3400
Chipping Norton to Monkspath
Incorrectly enters Zone 4
Renumbering of the A34, when that was rerouted via the M40. Although it hints at the road's old number, it is incorrect as the road is entirely in the wrong zone.

A4174
Bristol Outer Ring Road
Incorrectly enters Zone 3
Heads out of zone when it crosses the A4 south of Bristol.

A4208
The City, London
Incorrectly enters Zone 3
Originally correct, but forcefully moved into zone 3 when the A4 was diverted to Holborn Circus.

A4280
Bedford
Incorrectly enters Zone 5
Entirely out of zone and almost two zones out as it ends on the A6! This road came about as a result of the A428 being rerouted via the Bedford Western Bypass - so the old road simply had a "0" tacked onto the end.

A4300
Kettering
Incorrectly enters Zone 6
A downgrade of the A43, numbered in a similar way to the A3400 shown above - the A43 follows the bypass, whilst the A4300 heads through the centre of Kettering.

A4303, A4304
Lutterworth to Market Harborough
Incorrectly enters Zone 5
The old route through Lutterworth (formerly the A4303 until the bypass was built) was the A427, but was renumbered to something that sounded less important. Yet the roads are entirely in zone 5.

A4500, A4501
Northampton to Wellingborough
Incorrectly enters Zone 5
The former A45 through Northampton, when that road was diverted via the M1. Numbered in the same way as the A3400 above.

A5127
Gravelly Hill to Shenstone
Incorrectly enters Zone 4
Formerly the A38, but the vast majority of the road is south of the A5.

A5140
Bedford
Incorrectly enters Zone 6
Should be an A6xxx road due to being entirely east of the A6.

A5223
Telford
Incorrectly enters Zone 4
Starts south of the A5, even after it was pinched by the M54.

A6004
Loughborough Ring Road
Incorrectly enters Zone 5
Incorrect as the A6 slices through the A6004, so the western side is in zone 5.

A6010
Chorlton-cum-Hardy to Rusholme
Incorrectly enters Zone 5
Section west of the A6 is out-of-zone, even if it does maintain a single number for the old ring road.

A6143
Manchester
Incorrectly enters Zone 5
South of the A6, so should be an A5xxx number.

A6144
Lymm to Sale
Incorrectly enters Zone 5
Entirely within zone 5, several miles south of the Zone 6 boundary.

A6182
Doncaster
Incorrectly enters Zone 1
This road is entirely to the east of the A1, so A1182 would have been a more appropriate choice.

B325
Kensington, London
Incorrectly enters Zone 4
Left stranded in zone 4 when the A4 was rerouted in Kensington during the 1960s.

B452, B454, B455
Brentford and Osterley
Incorrectly enters Zone 3
These roads were left in the wrong zone when the A4 was rerouted to the north of Brentford during the 1930s.

B470
Colnbrook to Windsor
Incorrectly enters Zone 3
Road crosses the line of the A4, so should be a B3xx road.

B576
Desborough
Incorrectly enters Zone 6
Old route of the A6, but it is entirely in zone 6.

B589
Loughborough
Incorrectly enters Zone 6
Entirely out of zone as it is west of the A6.

B645
Rushden
Incorrectly enters Zone 5
The former route of the A45, this road however makes the numerical error of crossing to the west of the A6.

B1043
Norman Cross
Incorrectly enters Zone 6
Manages to stay within the correct zone, apart from a short stretch where the road has to cross the A1(M) in order to access Junction 16 as part of its duties as a local access road.

B1164
Tuxford to Markham Moor
Incorrectly enters Zone 6
Although most of the roads runs east of the A1, the section north of Tuxford crosses over onto the wrong side of the A1.

B1198
Shincliffe to Sherburn
Incorrectly enters Zone 6
Originally correct, but pushed out of zone when the A1 was bypassed to the east in the form of the A1(M).

B1247
East Garforth to Hook Moor
Incorrectly enters Zone 6
This road was originally entirely in zone 1, but was pushed into zone 6 when the A1(M) at Hook Moor was built, then extended further into the wrong zone when the road was extended onto the former A642 don to the M1 extension.

B1284
Chester-le-Street to Woodstone
Incorrectly enters Zone 6
Originally correct, but pushed out of zone when the A1 was bypassed to the east in the form of the A1(M).

B3000
Compton to Peasmarsh
Incorrectly enters Zone 2
Crosses the A3, so should have a B2xxx number.

B3004, B3006
Hampshire
Incorrectly enters Zone 2
Crosses the A3, so should have a B2xxx number.

B4640
Newbury (south)
Incorrectly enters Zone 3
Entirely south of the A4, this was the A34 until the Newbury Bypass opened.

B4666, B4667, B4668, B4669
Hinckley
Incorrectly enters Zone 5
All A-roads within Hinckley were downgraded to B-roads following the rerouting of the A47 via the town's bypass. However, the numbers allocated were all incorrect, meaning there are four out-of-zone B roads in one town.

B5011
Brownhills
Incorrectly enters Zone 4
Originally entirely in the correct zone, the road was extended south across the A5 to become an out-of-zone route. With the opening of the M6 Toll, the section to the north of the A5 became A5195, leaving the B5011 entirely in the wrong zone.

B5060, B5061
Telford
Incorrectly enters Zone 4
These are all roads that start south of the A5, in the same manner as the A5223 above.

B5070
Chirk
Incorrectly enters Zone 4
Originally entirely in-zone, but was extended to take over the old A5 when Chirk Bypass opened.

B5072
Telford
Incorrectly enters Zone 4
Entirely south of the A5, unlike its friends above.

B5404
Quarry Hill to Mile Oak
Incorrectly enters Zone 4
Should be B4xxx; this was the route of the A5 until the Fazeley Bypass opened.

B5414
Rugby
Incorrectly enters Zone 4
Should be B4xxx as it is entirely in zone 4.

B5444
Swansea
Incorrectly enters Zone 4
Nearly 100 miles away, and even further away from another B5444 (the original road with this number, in Mold).

B6241
Preston
Incorrectly enters Zone 5
An arc around the north of Preston, half of this road is west of the A6.

B6280
Darlington
Incorrectly enters Zone 1
Incorrectly numbered as it is entirely in Zone 1.

B6291
Bowburn to Thornley
Incorrectly enters Zone 1
Incorrectly numbered as it is entirely in Zone 1.

B6407
Market Harborough
Incorrectly enters Zone 5
The old route of the A6 until that road was completely rerouted north and east of the town.

B6420
Clumber Park to Babworth
Incorrectly enters Zone 1
An omission from when roads were renumbered following the mass upgrade of the A1 through the East Midlands.

B6541
Middlesborough to Thornaby-on-Tees
Incorrectly enters Zone 1
Entirely within zone 1, and quite some distance from the A1.

B9080
Lithlingow to Winchburgh
Incorrectly enters Zone 8
Virtually the entire road is south of the M9, so should have a B8xxx number according to the Scottish number zoning.

B9150
Newtonmore
Incorrectly enters Zone 8
Entirely within zone 8, so seems strange that it has a B9xxx number. Maybe its because there are no B8xxx roads nearby?

B9163, B9164, B9169
Scottish Highlands
Incorrectly enters Zone 8
Originally correct, but pushed out-of-zone by the various reroutings of the A9 to improve and speed up the route between the north of Scotland and the Central Belt.

B9176
Easter Fearn to Skaich
Incorrectly enters Zone 8
Another example of the B9xxx roads in zone 8, similar to the B9150 above.

Visiting Roads

These roads are correctly numbered as they start in the relevant zone, yet they still manage to incorrectly enter a wrong zone! Normally these roads do so because of boundary roads being rerouted onto new alignments.

A167
Aycliffe - Birtley
Incorrectly enters Zone 6
The road is actually correctly numbered as it starts in zone 1 - it travels out of zone by spending a fair bit of time to the west of the A1(M).

A199
Haddington - Tranent
Incorrectly enters Zone 6
The road is actually correctly numbered as it starts in zone 1 - it travels out of zone around Haddington because it twice crosses the A1.

A1000
Welwyn Garden City
Incorrectly enters Zone 6
Very briefly enters zone 6 due to the course of the A1(M) and the layout of Junction 6.

B197
Welwyn Garden City
Incorrectly enters Zone 6
The course of the A1(M) causes the road to very briefly cross into zone 6, before re-entering zone 1.

Based on a list originally compiled by Paul Berry.