A27: Hampshire and Sussex road named as the second worst A road in England
A road connecting Hampshire, West Sussex and East Sussex has been named as the second worst in the country.
The A27, which runs between Portsmouth and Pevensey, has been rated the second worst A road in England following a recent survey by the independent watchdog Transport Focus.
The road scored a 63 per cent satisfaction rate after more than 9,000 road users were asked about their last journey on a motorway or major A road managed in England by National Highways.
The A27 is largely a dual carriageway connecting Portsmouth with other key South Coast locations such as Chichester, Worthing, Brighton and Eastbourne, however there are a number of points where it reduces down to a single lane such as at Arundel, and other bottlenecks including the roundabouts on the Chichester bypass.
Traffic also often backs onto the A27 when there are incidents in Portsmouth, and there have been a number of roadworks projects including the ongoing works at Langstone Bridge near Havant which caused traffic chaos.
The A12, which connects Lowestoft in Suffolk to London was ranked as the worst A road in England with a satisfaction rate of 55 per cent. Participants in the survey were also asked about journey times and the quality of the road surface.
Alex Robertson, chief executive at Transport Focus, said: "Drivers tell us that the maintenance of motorways and major roads – how most of us get around the country – is more important to them than building new roads.
"With road user perceptions of road surface quality deteriorating since 2022 and declining satisfaction with journey times, National Highways must continue to focus on delivering safe, smooth journeys.
"We’re committed to working with the Government and National Highways to help them to deliver on road users’ top priorities – improved journey times and satisfaction with surface quality."
A spokesperson for National Highways said: "Maintaining and investing in our roads is a priority and our most recent assessment shows that over 96 per cent of them are in good condition.
"We have a robust programme of improvements which will provide long term benefits for motorists, including shorter and more reliable journeys."