Stonehenge permanent road closure work begins". BBC News: Wiltshire. 24 June 2013 . Retrieved 19 August 2016.

Highways Agency (27 July 2010). "Road closures for the purposes of filming Top Gear". What Do They Know . Retrieved 19 August 2016.Hammond, Norman (7 August 1991). "Department to fund historical surveys before roads are built". The Times. p.14 . Retrieved 19 August 2016. Government approves multi-million scheme to upgrade A303 within South Somerset". South Somerset Council. 1 February 2021 . Retrieved 6 December 2021. Improving journeys to the South West - The case for the A303/A358 corridor (PDF). Highways England (Report). 2018. p.7 . Retrieved 6 December 2021.

The famous and iconic road from London to the South West, and from work to holidays for many millions of people over the years, the A303 is bound up in British culture with ideas of summer, surfing, festivals and fun. In 2011, BBC Four broadcast the documentary A303 Highway to the Sun. [71] The writer Tom Fort drove the length of the A303 in a Morris Traveller, making various stops. [72] The following year, he published a book with the same title; it covers the history of the road, and British road planning, together with landscape, history and general travel writing. During research, one interviewee recommended using the A303 to reach southwest England, adding it was "less boring than the motorway, and you've always got Stonehenge". [73] The programme was praised for its eclecticism and enthusiasm for what could have been a tedious subject. [74] [75] Junctions and landmarks [ edit ] Road designations were first allocated by the Ministry of Transport in the early 1920s, but the New Direct Road was not initially considered a major through route. Instead, the older coaching road further south via Salisbury and Yeovil was determined to be the main road. [18] Maps produced by companies independent to the Ordnance Survey, the Government's official mapping body, marked the New Direct Road as a "class I" route anyway. [19]A section of the A303 around Weyhill, west of Andover, runs alongside a ditch thought to be constructed during the Bronze Age. Several historic roads converged at Weyhill, which is believed to have hosted a popular market since the Middle Ages, eventually becoming one of the most important in England by the 19th century. [b] The market closed in the 1950s. [15] 19th century [ edit ] In 2019, the preferred route of the A358 upgrade was revealed, [59] and in 2020 the government confirmed funding for the A358 scheme and dualling of the A303 between Sparkford and Podimore. [60] Other schemes [ edit ]

Prior to the broadcast of Series 15 of Top Gear in 2010, the cast of Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May were spotted and recorded driving along the A303 in what appeared to be house cars. The video was recorded and put on YouTube. [70] Preferred route for A358 Taunton to Southfields scheme revealed". Highways England. 27 June 2019 . Retrieved 5 May 2020. A303: 'Death trap' the locals shun". Western Morning News. 23 November 2014 . Retrieved 19 August 2016. [ permanent dead link] Creating an expressway to the South West (PDF) (Report). Highways England. 2016. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 August 2016 . Retrieved 19 August 2016.

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There are a wide variety of junctions on the A303. These range from motorway-style free-flowing junctions such as that with the A36 near Wylye, to simple forks on the single carriageway sections. [4]

The road has evolved from historical routes, some of which are thousands of years old, including the Harrow Way and the Fosse Way. The modern route was first laid out in the early 19th century as the New Direct Road, a faster coaching route from London to Exeter. It was initially in demand but fell into disuse as railways became popular from the 1840s onwards. It was not thought of as a significant through route when roads were initially numbered, but was revived as a major road in 1933, eventually becoming a trunk road in 1958. Since then, the A303 has gradually been upgraded to modern standards, though there are still several unimproved parts with longstanding plans to fix them. more miles of motorway by early 1980s will bring growth to less prosperous areas". The Times. 24 June 1971. p.4 . Retrieved 19 August 2016.A303 Countess Roundabout Improvements (PDF) (Report). Wiltshire Council. 2 December 2010 . Retrieved 19 August 2016. Corridor Plan: London – Exeter (PDF) (Report). London to South West & South Wales Multi-Modal Study. May 2002. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 March 2016 . Retrieved 21 August 2016. A303/A358 South Petherton to M5 Taunton". Highways Agency. Archived from the original on 25 November 2009 . Retrieved 22 November 2009.