Headington Road is an arterial road

Arterial road

An arterial road, or arterial thoroughfare, is a high-capacity urban road. The primary function of an arterial road is to deliver traffic from collector roads to freeways, and between urban centres at the highest level of service possible. As such, many arteries are limited-access roads, or feature...

 in the east of Oxford

Oxford

The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

. The road connects the junction of St Clements

St Clement's, Oxford

St Clement's is a district in Oxford, England, on the east bank of the River Cherwell. Its main road, St Clement's Street , links The Plain near Magdalen Bridge with London Place at the foot of Headington Hill at the junction with Marston Road to the north...

 and Marston Road

Marston Road

Marston Road is a road in the east of Oxford, England. It links the junction of St Clements and the foot of Headington Hill to the south with the suburb of New Marston to the north. This is a mini-roundabout connecting with Cherwell Drive and Headley Way at the northern end. To the north is the ...

 with the suburb of Headington

Headington

Headington is a suburb of Oxford, England. It is at the top of Headington Hill overlooking the city in the Thames Valley below. The life of the large residential area is centred upon London Road, the main road between London and Oxford.-History:...

, up Headington Hill

Headington Hill

Headington Hill is a hill in the east of Oxford, England, in the suburb of Headington. The Headington Road road goes up the hill leading out of the city...

. When it reaches the Headley Way junction, it becomes London Road, as the Boundary Brook runs under the road at this point.

To the south is South Park

South Park, Oxford

South Park is a park on Headington Hill in east Oxford, England. It is the largest park within Oxford city limits. A good view of the city centre with its historic spires and towers of Oxford University can be obtained at the park's highest point, a favourite location for photographers.The park is...

, from which good views of the city centre with its historic university buildings can be seen. Also to the south on Gipsy Lane at the top of Headington Hill is the Headington campus of Oxford Brookes University

Oxford Brookes University

Oxford Brookes University is a new university in Oxford, England. It was named to honour the school's founding principal, John Brookes. It has been ranked as the best new university by the Sunday Times University Guide 10 years in a row...

, originally the Oxford Polytechnic.

Pullens Lane

Pullens Lane

Pullens Lane is in Headington, east Oxford, England. It is located at the top of Headington Hill, leading north off Headington Road to Jack Straw's Lane and Harberton Mead. The cul-de-sac Pullens Field leads off west from Pullens Lane.- Buildings :...

 leads off to the north at the top of Headington Hill.
Headington Hill Hall

Headington Hill Hall

Headington Hill Hall stands on Headington Hill in the east of Oxford, England. It was built in 1824 for the Morrell family, local brewers, and was extended between 1856 and 1858, by James Morrell junior who built an Italianate mansion, designed by architect John Thomas...

, built in 1824 for the Morrell

Morrell

Morrell is a surname, and may refer to:* Andy Morrell, English footballer* Arthur Fleming Morrell, English naval officer* Benjamin Morrell, American sealing captain and explorer, after whom is named:...

 family, local brewer

Brewing

Brewing is the production of beer through steeping a starch source in water and then fermenting with yeast. Brewing has taken place since around the 6th millennium BCE, and archeological evidence suggests that this technique was used in ancient Egypt...

s, is nearby, with its associated Headington Hill Park

Headington Hill Park

Headington Hill Park is a park on Headington Hill in the east of Oxford, England. It is part of the grounds of Headington Hill Hall, previously owned by the Morrell family and now owned by Oxford City Council and leased to Oxford Brookes University since 1992. The landscaping for the park was...

 bordering Headington Road to the north.

The road is designated the A420

A420 road

The A420 is a road between Bristol and Oxford in England. Between Swindon and Oxford it is a primary route.-Present route:Since the opening of the M4 motorway, the road is in two sections. The first section begins on Old Market Street near the centre of Bristol, it passes through Kingswood before...

.

History

The road did not exist until 1775, when it was cut through the countryside as part of the scheme to replace the old route from Oxford to London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

 (via Cheney Lane, Old Road, Shotover

Shotover

Shotover is a hill and forest in Oxfordshire, England.Shotover Hill is east of Oxford. Its highest point is above sea level.-Early history:The toponym may be derived from the Old English scoet ofer, meaning "steep slope"...

, and Wheatley

Wheatley, Oxfordshire

Wheatley is a village and civil parish in Oxfordshire, about east of Oxford.-Archaeology:There was a Roman villa on Castle Hill, about southeast of the parish church. It was excavated in 1845, when Roman coins dating from AD 260 to 378 and fragments of Roman pottery and Roman tiles were...

) by a new road via Stokenchurch

Stokenchurch

Stokenchurch is a village and civil parish within Wycombe district in Buckinghamshire England. It is in the Chiltern Hills, about south of Chinnor in Oxfordshire and west of High Wycombe. The village is a popular place to live, due to its rural location and ease of access to London and Birmingham...

. Until that date, the road at the top of Headington Hill turned left into Cuckoo Lane, the former road to Old Headington.