Uxbridge Road
Encyclopedia
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...
. It starts at Shepherd's Bush Green
Shepherd's Bush
-Commerce:Commercial activity in Shepherd's Bush is now focused on the Westfield shopping centre next to Shepherd's Bush Central line station and on the many small shops which run along the northern side of the Green....
and goes west towards Uxbridge
Uxbridge
Uxbridge is a large town located in north west London, England and is the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Hillingdon. It forms part of the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is located west-northwest of Charing Cross and is one of the major metropolitan centres...
. It passes through Acton
Acton, London
Acton is a district of west London, England, located in the London Borough of Ealing. It is situated west of Charing Cross.At the time of the 2001 census, Acton, comprising the wards of East Acton, Acton Central, South Acton and Southfield, had a population of 53,689 people...
, Ealing Broadway and Hanwell
Hanwell
Hanwell is a town situated in the London Borough of Ealing in west London, between Ealing and Southall. The motto of Hanwell Urban District Council was Nec Aspera Terrent...
.
Uxbridge Road is a major road in West London passing through many retail and large residential districts. It provides several transport connections for commuters with many London Underground
London Underground
The London Underground is a rapid transit system serving a large part of Greater London and some parts of Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Essex in England...
stations situated either on it or within walking distance. A number of London buses
Buses in London
The London Bus is one of London's principal icons, the archetypal red rear-entrance double-deck Routemaster being recognised worldwide. Although the Routemaster has now been largely phased out of service, with only two heritage routes still using the vehicles, the majority of buses in London are...
also operate along the road, for varying distances. Bus routes 207
London Buses route 207
London Buses route 207 is a Transport for London contracted bus route in London, United Kingdom. The service is currently contracted to First Centrewest.-History:...
, 427
London Buses route 427
London Buses route 427 is a Transport for London contracted bus route in London, United Kingdom. The service is currently contracted to First Centrewest.-History:...
and 607
London Buses route 607
London Buses route 607 is a Transport for London contracted bus route in London, United Kingdom. The service is currently contracted to First Centrewest.-History:...
are specifically designed to operate along this road, staying on it for their entire route. The road has become notorious for traffic jams
Traffic congestion
Traffic congestion is a condition on road networks that occurs as use increases, and is characterized by slower speeds, longer trip times, and increased vehicular queueing. The most common example is the physical use of roads by vehicles. When traffic demand is great enough that the interaction...
, especially during rush hour and thus lots of drivers will do their best to avoid it. The road does not become a motorway at any stage, nor does it meet any motorways along its route.
In a 1912 book of verse Evelyn Underhill
Evelyn Underhill
Evelyn Underhill was an English Anglo-Catholic writer and pacifist known for her numerous works on religion and spiritual practice, in particular Christian mysticism....
published a poem entitled "Uxbridge Road". In 1972, the thirty-third episode of Monty Python's Flying Circus
Monty Python's Flying Circus
Monty Python’s Flying Circus is a BBC TV sketch comedy series. The shows were composed of surreality, risqué or innuendo-laden humour, sight gags and observational sketches without punchlines...
featured a sketch about a team of mountaineers "climbing" Uxbridge Road.
Areas
Emerging from a roundaboutRoundabout
A roundabout is the name for a road junction in which traffic moves in one direction around a central island. The word dates from the early 20th century. Roundabouts are common in many countries around the world...
in Shepherd's Bush
Shepherd's Bush
-Commerce:Commercial activity in Shepherd's Bush is now focused on the Westfield shopping centre next to Shepherd's Bush Central line station and on the many small shops which run along the northern side of the Green....
, the Uxbridge Road enters several important places in west 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...
. The Shepherds Bush/White City
White City, London
White City is a district in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, to the north of Shepherd's Bush. Today, White City is home to the BBC Television Centre and BBC White City, and Loftus Road stadium, the home of football club Queens Park Rangers FC....
area is now the site of the new Westfield London
Westfield London
Westfield London is a shopping centre in White City in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. The centre was developed by the Westfield Group at a cost of £1.6bn,...
retail development, which opened in October 2008. Uxbridge Road is crucial in providing road access to this new retail centre. The Uxbridge Road also provides access to the popular Shepherd's Bush Market, at the western end of the area, as well as Shepherds Bush Common.
It then enters Acton
Acton, London
Acton is a district of west London, England, located in the London Borough of Ealing. It is situated west of Charing Cross.At the time of the 2001 census, Acton, comprising the wards of East Acton, Acton Central, South Acton and Southfield, had a population of 53,689 people...
, crossing over from the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham
London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham
The London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham is a London borough in West London, and forms part of Inner London. Traversed by the east-west main roads of the A4 Great West Road and the A40 Westway, many international corporations have offices in the borough....
into the London Borough of Ealing
London Borough of Ealing
The London Borough of Ealing is a borough in west London.-Location:The London Borough of Ealing borders the London Borough of Hillingdon to the west, the London Borough of Harrow and the London Borough of Brent to the north, the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham to the east and the London...
, where the largest part of the road lies. Acton is primarily a residential district, though there is a long stretch of shops (including a large Morrisons
Morrisons
Wm Morrison Supermarkets plc is the fourth largest chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom, headquartered in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. The company is usually referred to and is branded as Morrisons formerly Morrison's, and it is part of the FTSE 100 Index of companies...
, pubs, and restaurants, mostly concentrated on the Uxbridge Road.
Ealing Common
Ealing Common
Ealing Common is a large open space in Ealing, west London, bounded by Gunnersbury Ave to the east and the Uxbridge Road to the north. A smaller area of the common extends to the east of Gunnersbury Ave, including Leopold Road...
is the next residential area that the Uxbridge Road crosses through, which is the smallest of all areas the Uxbridge Road crosses through. It has a short stretch of shops concentrated on the Uxbridge Road.
Ealing Broadway is the main retail centre that is directly served by the Uxbridge Road. The shopping area is a mixture of shops in the open on the actual road and around several neighbouring back roads, as well a closed-centre building, home to several chain stores and independent boutiques, which has an entrance on Uxbridge Road. This is arguably the busiest part of the road for passengers on foot.
West Ealing
West Ealing
West Ealing is a place in the London Borough of Ealing in west London.-History:West Ealing in its present form is less than 100 years old....
follows, which is very similar to Acton – it is also a large residential district and has a very similar stretch of shops concentrated on the Uxbridge Road. West Ealing has a few more retail outlets similar to those in Ealing Broadway, but increasingly since the 1990s
1990s
File:1990s decade montage.png|From left, clockwise: The Hubble Space Telescope floats in space after it was taken up in 1990; American F-16s and F-15s fly over burning oil fields and the USA Lexie in Operation Desert Storm, also known as the 1991 Gulf War; The signing of the Oslo Accords on...
, it has begun to differ from Ealing Broadway in the types of shops that it offers.
Hanwell
Hanwell
Hanwell is a town situated in the London Borough of Ealing in west London, between Ealing and Southall. The motto of Hanwell Urban District Council was Nec Aspera Terrent...
Broadway follows very shortly after West Ealing Broadway ends. Hanwell again offers its own range of shops, similar in style to Ealing Common, West Ealing and Acton. After leaving Hanwell, the road passes Ealing Hospital
Ealing Hospital
Ealing Hospital, officially called Ealing Hospital NHS Trust, is a general NHS hospital in the Southall district of the London Borough of Ealing, Greater London, England....
.
Compared with the other centres along the length of the road, there is a much larger gap between Hanwell and the next centre, Southall
Southall
Southall is a large suburban district of west London, England, and part of the London Borough of Ealing. It is situated west of Charing Cross. Neighbouring places include Yeading, Hayes, Hanwell, Heston, Hounslow, Greenford and Northolt...
. Southall Broadway has a mix of shops in both the style of Ealing Broadway and of West Ealing; however, as the areas is predominantly populated by Asians
Asian people
Asian people or Asiatic people is a term with multiple meanings that refers to people who descend from a portion of Asia's population.- Central Asia :...
, they are in a slightly different vein. This is another very congested part of the road (like Ealing Broadway), because it is very popular as a shopping area for the public and tourists.
Uxbridge Road then enters the London Borough of Hillingdon
London Borough of Hillingdon
The London Borough of Hillingdon is the westernmost borough in Greater London, England. The borough's population was recorded as 243,006 in the 2001 Census. The borough incorporates the former districts of Ruislip-Northwood, Uxbridge, Hayes and Harlington and Yiewsley and West Drayton in the...
as it enters the very large residential and retail district of Hayes
Hayes, Hillingdon
Hayes is a town in the London Borough of Hillingdon, West London. It is a suburban development situated west of Charing Cross. Hayes was developed in the late 19th and 20th centuries as an industrial locality to which residential districts were later added in order to house factory workers...
. Hayes is home to a few industrial sites, unlike most of the other areas Uxbridge Road passes through. Shop-wise, along the length of the road, it is similar to areas like West Ealing and Acton. Uxbridge Road then terminates after passing through certain areas of Hillingdon
Hillingdon
Hillingdon is a suburban area within the London Borough of Hillingdon, situated 14.2 miles west of Charing Cross.Much of Hillingdon is represented as the Hillingdon East ward within the local authority, Hillingdon Council...
and ending in Uxbridge
Uxbridge
Uxbridge is a large town located in north west London, England and is the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Hillingdon. It forms part of the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is located west-northwest of Charing Cross and is one of the major metropolitan centres...
. Uxbridge retail centre is not directly accessible by the Uxbridge Road, but is the only other retail centre associated with areas in close proximity to the Uxbridge Road other than Ealing Broadway to boast a variety of high street shops. Both are popular with London residents.
Rail
The only London Underground stations that have the station building and entrance on Uxbridge Road are Ealing CommonEaling Common tube station
Ealing Common is a London Underground station on the Uxbridge branch of the Piccadilly Line, and on the Ealing Broadway branch of the District Line...
and Shepherd's Bush Market. Ealing Broadway station is less than 2 minutes walk away from the junction of Uxbridge Road and The Broadway. Uxbridge station
Uxbridge tube station
Uxbridge is a London Underground station in Uxbridge in the London Borough of Hillingdon, north-west London. The station is the terminus of the Uxbridge branches of both the Metropolitan Line and the Piccadilly Line. The next station towards London is Hillingdon. The station is 15.5 miles west of...
is within walking distance of the very end of the road. Towards the eastern end of the road, the Shepherd's Bush (Central Line) station is within walking distance of the road. The western areas that Uxbridge Road runs through do not contain particular tube stations in their areas, although Northfields station
Northfields tube station
Northfields is a London Underground station in Northfields, west London. The station is on the Heathrow branch of the Piccadilly Line, between Boston Manor and South Ealing stations...
is situated a short walk away from the junction of Uxbridge Road and Northfields Avenue in West Ealing. West Ealing
West Ealing railway station
West Ealing railway station was opened in 1871 as "Castle Hill and Ealing Dene" on the Great Western Railway, which was constructed from Paddington through Ealing to Bristol in 1836-8....
, Hanwell
Hanwell railway station
Hanwell railway station is a railway station in Hanwell in the London Borough of Ealing. The station is managed by First Great Western but served by local services operated by Heathrow Connect from London to Heathrow Airport.-History:...
and Southall
Southall railway station
Southall railway station, is in Southall in west London, England. The station is in Travelcard Zone 4 and passenger services are provided by First Great Western from London to , and , and by Heathrow Connect from Paddington to Heathrow Airport....
railway stations are themselves within walking distance of Uxbridge Road.
Buses
Although several buses operate along the Uxbridge Road for parts of their route, the road is considered so important that three particular buses were designed to operate solely on the road. They are:-- Bus route 207, which operates between the road's eastern terminus at Shepherds Bush to the Hayes By-Pass
- Bus route 427, which operates between the road's western terminus at Uxbridge to Acton High Street
- Bus route 607, which operates as an express service along the whole length of the road, but only stops at the most popular locations such as Ealing Hospital and tube station connections.
A tram scheme, the West London Tram
West London Tram
The West London Tram was a proposed on-street light rail line which was to run along the Uxbridge Road corridor in west London, England. The scheme was promoted by Transport for London but opposed by the councils of all three London Boroughs through which it would run...
, was planned run along the length of the Uxbridge Road and would replace these three bus routes. This scheme has been abandoned.