A30 - Do NOT use it!

[lazybloke]

Google even recommends walking on the A30. There are better route planners.

 

[Katherine]

As its planning season again, time for a seasonal thread to be bumped

I have stuck this thread permanently so you don't have to keep bumping it

 

[mudsticks]

I would not ride the new A30 for love or money, it is, to all intents and purposes a motorway, only worse in a way because it has more bends and hills.
and hazards, line of sight is very poor in places

In addition some of it is still concrete - it was a private finance construction.

Plus in Summer it's full of holiday traffic - cars stuffed with distracted families yelling at each other, on an unfamiliar road.

Mixed in with big lorries, and coaches, and the odd tractor here and there, why would anyone want to ride it for 'fun' idk.

The old, detrunked A30 as mentioned above is much better though, goes through some nice countryside.

 

[Chris Long]

Just jumping in here

I've done Jogle. We used the A30 because it was suggested on a dvd we watched. I wouldn't do it again though. Later in when it is single carriage way it is doable, but for the majority, there is nowhere to cycle and it is like a motorway. My brother came off on it because there are those concrete sloped drainage valleys that are as slippery as glass.

When I do it again I'll be doing the road that goes along the north coast

Chris

 

[Ajax Bay]

Later [JOGLE 'later' ie west Cornwall] in when it is single carriage way it is doable

The A30 is a reasonable road to ride from Hayle past (bypassing) Penzance and west to Land's End. But avoid that by heading SW from Redruth/Camborne to Marazion and then go right through Penzance to Newlyn and either continue on the (lumpy) B3115 or cut back up to the quiet A30 after that. A connoisseur's option would be to head NW from Hayle, though, and either through or past St Ives to the coast road all the way round to St Just and south to Sennen/LE.

 

[Solocle]

What's all this here fuss about the A30?

Oh, that A30.
I'm not completely averse to dual carriageways - I've used them in early morning, or during lockdown - e.g. the A303, which is effectively the A30.

Under quiet conditions, they don't bother me. I avoid them like the plague when they're busy - I'd much rather be on a hard shouldered motorway.
Of course, if you're on it at stupid-o-clock, you're then dicing with tired/drunk drivers...

If trying to make good progress, I'd probably aim for hitting the A30 around Hayle at 6am on a Sunday, so maybe departing at 5am (sunrise in summer)? Then keep with it until the traffic gets too bad, which quite possibly gets you as far as Launceston, then A388 -> Okehampton -> B3215 -> A3072 -> A377 -> A3072 -> Tiverton?

If anything, that's shorter than A30 to Exeter, likely more pleasant (although local input on that would be appreciated), and not much more hilly!

 

[Ajax Bay]

If trying to make good progress, I'd probably aim for hitting the A30 around Hayle at 6am on a Sunday, so maybe departing at 5am (sunrise in summer)? Then keep with it until the traffic gets too bad, which quite possibly gets you as far as Launceston, then A388 -> Okehampton -> B3215 -> A3072 -> A377 -> A3072 -> Tiverton?

Sunrise next weekend at Land's End is 0513, but it'd be light enough to ride from 0330. Just depends on getting out of bed early enough!
Launceston is 125km from Land's End on the A30. From Hayle it's dualled ALL the way. Rider's in a hurry do, against advice, do what you suggest and start at 5am , and hopefully make Launceston bypass by 9.
From Launceston, the A388 doesn't go Okehampton, it just goes out back to the A30 (dualled). Then you have the 'old A30' road nearly to Okehampton, which is fine.
And the 'old A30' then takes you all the way to Exeter; where turn NNE on the 'old' and new A38 - if you're "in a hurry". Michael Broadwith was 'in a hurry' and went via Exeter.
I'm going to hazard a guess that you have not ridden the A3072 from Crediton over to Tiverton, but are a 'map warrior'.
The climb over the Cadbury Hills to Bickleigh on the A3072 is 13.8km + 287m. Grim after 180km.
Route options
Okehampton to J27/M5 services (E of Tiverton on A39)
Old A30, through Exeter, and B3181 = 67.6 km +716 m I have no idea what taking the dualled A30 to Exeter would be, I'm not even going to measure it. Fine if you have a following vehicle all the way, protecting your a**/life.
"B3215 -> A3072 -> A377 -> A3072" -> [Halberton Road] = 60.4 km +836 m The A3072 goes over the Cadbury Hills from Crediton.
"B3215 -> A3072 -> A377" ->Crediton then [Thorverton, Bradninch, Cullompton] = 59.2 km +774 m This is the 'classic' end-to-end route which skirts the Cadbury Hills.

 

[Racing roadkill]

I've said it before, but I'll say it again, the A30 is not suitable for cycling.
It may be perfectly legal, but in most other northern European countries it would be called a motorway, Autobahn or Autostrada and cycling would never even be contenplated on such a route.

The story below is tragic, but unless you are some sort of supervised mass race style event, they were in the wrong place.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cornwall-23157100

I couldn’t agree more.

 

[rogerzilla]

"If you feel lucky" is the usual rule for roads like this. Times have changed with increasing traffic volumes (especially with Sunday shopping removing the one quiet morning of the week for cycling). As recently as 1994, it wasn't unusual for the St Budeax CC club run to head straight down the A38 from Plympton, and stay on it for miles. The problem with Devon and Cornwall is that the big A-roads are the only flattish routes.

 

[Solocle]

I found some stats from Cornwall.gov

Trunk road is likely the A30 - although there is the A38.
Of course, cyclists are only around 0.1% of the traffic on the A30...

 

[Ajax Bay]

What's all this here fuss about the A30?

The 'fuss' as you put it, is a firm recommendation not to ride on the dualled A30 from Camborne to Honiton and the reasons have been articulated upthread.
Yes; I too have ridden on short bits, but never felt sensible doing so. There is ALWAYS an alternative, often a very good one.
The only part where a substantial deviation is required is the need to go south of (hilly) or north of (further) Bodmin Moor.

Trunk road is likely the A30 - although there is the A38.
Of course, cyclists are only around 0.1% of the traffic on the A30...

Not sure what you're trying to say, old chap, nor is the graph clear to me.
12% of what are collisions causing a cyclist personal injury at a trunk road junction?
So are you suggesting riding on the A30 (nearly all dualled) or the A38 (3/5ths dualled, in Cornwall) is safer than on other roads or what?

 

[Solocle]

The 'fuss' as you put it, is a firm recommendation not to ride on the dualled A30 from Camborne to Honiton and the reasons have been articulated upthread.
Yes; I too have ridden on short bits, but never felt sensible doing so. There is ALWAYS an alternative, often a very good one.
The only part where a substantial deviation is required is the need to go south of (hilly) or north of (further) Bodmin Moor.

Not sure what you're trying to say, old chap, nor is the graph clear to me.
12% of what are collisions causing a cyclist personal injury at a trunk road junction?
So are you suggesting riding on the A30 (nearly all dualled) or the A38 (3/5ths dualled, in Cornwall) is safer than on other roads or what?

That opening line was a joke, I live very near the A30, but it's in Dorset/Somerset, so just your bog standard 60 mph A road.

I think the figures aren't percentages, but raw number. Obviously, it's hard to calculate actual risk from them, without knowing just what proportions of miles cycled in Cornwall are on trunk roads. But it does highlight that by far the most dangerous places are junctions, so should you use a section of the A30, be extra vigilant at junctions. Give way to traffic joining at slip roads, that sort of thing.

 

[lazybloke]

Aren't all trunk roads also A roads? Not really sure what that graph shows.

 

[Ajax Bay]

No, the only 'trunk' roads in Cornwall are the A30 (east of Penzance) and the A38 (Saltash to Bodmin).
Map of English Trunk Roads and Motorways

 

[Ming the Merciless]

Aren't all trunk roads also A roads? Not really sure what that graph shows.

All trunk roads are also A roads, but not all A roads are also trunk roads.