Are these roads motorways or not?

The definition of a motorway

Motorway numbers

Other road types

Road types in different languages

Last updated 8-4-23

The definition of a motorway

In many countries, certain roads are officially designated as motorways. Special rules and regulations apply to these roads, and in most countries the sign

is used to indicate that one is accessing such a road.

One might define a motorway as follows:

A motorway is a road which is accessible only to motorised traffic and which does not have crossings at grade.

Usually a motorway is a dual carriageway, but there are exceptions. Sometimes the sign above also appears with a single carriageway under the bridge. Motorways are normally accessible only via slip roads (except at end points). However, there are exceptions. In the United Kingdom and Cyprus, there are many roundabouts in junctions between motorways. In the Netherlands there used to be many as well but most of them have been reconstructed. There are still relatively many crossings at grade in the Dutch motorway network. There are even a few in Germany. It seems that some countries, for example Lithuania, have a different definition of motorways. According to the Lithuanian road authority, the A1 Vilnius-Klaipeda and the A2 Vilnius-Panevezys are motorways, though they have (some) level crossings according to most maps.

Motorway numbers

Many countries have a separate numbering system for motorways, for example Germany, France, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Argentina and Gabon. In the United Kingdom, Ireland and Argentina, the road number appears in the motorway sign as follows:

A special class of road numbers are the A(M) roads in the United Kingdom. These are motorways like any other and motorway regulations apply to them, but they are part of a route that is only partly a motorway and it is easier for motorists to follow the same number, albeit with the suffix '(M)'. This way situations like in Germany, where one follows the B80, then the A38, then the B80, then the A38 again etc. are avoided, though such a situation is usually only temporary. A(M) roads are officially referred to as 'A roads with motorway regulations' which should not be confused with 'Dual carriageways with motorway characteristics': characteristics are not the same as regulations.

Sometimes motorway numbers form an integrated system with other road numbers. For example, in the Netherlands, national road 7 has motorway sections A7 and ordinary road sections N7. Similarly, in Ireland, the N1 from Dublin to the north has sections of motorway numbered M1. In Hungary a similar system used to exist but this was changed recently.

Motorway numbers are used for other roads in exceptional cases, for short gaps in motorways. An example is the Dutch A59, which has one section that is an ordinary two-lane road with level crossings and a section that is for motorised traffic only and has motorway characteristics but it does not quite meet the motorway standard.

In Spain, however, the A numbers were originally used only for motorways, but they are now also assigned to many dual carriageways with motorway characteristics.

Other road types

In many countries there are roads which look just like motorways, but they are not officially motorways, and therefore motorway regulations do not apply to them. This is clear from the road number if separate motorway numbering exists.

For example, in Germany, many motorways have been created by upgrading an existing dual carriageway (usually a Bundesstraße). In some cases, this 'upgrade' consisted of nothing else than simply changing the colour of the road signs from yellow to blue and changing the road number. Suddenly different regulations apply and the road is officially designated as a motorway but in a physical sense the road has stayed exactly the same. The most recent example of this is the A270 which was formerly the B74. In this case (and some others), this upgrade was announced by the authorities but the road signs have not yet been changed so motorists can not even see the difference unless they happen to know about the change. Many more times, German motorways were downgraded to federal highways. The following table shows some of these downgrades. Most of them occurred in the early 1980's. The 1974 motorway numbers were assigned to many roads which were later apparently deemed not appropriate for the motorway network or not up to motorway standard.

In some of these cases, too, maps showed the new number years before the signs were actually changed.

So what are the differences between real motorways and motorway-like roads or roads with motorway characteristics? There are more than you might think:

Motorways have a higher design speed

The lanes are usually wider

The central reservation is different (or not present on a motorway-like road)

The hard shoulder is wider (or not present on a motorway-like road)

Different regulations apply (in particular maximum speed)

Road markings can be different

Road numbering and road signs are different, including indications of exits and kilometerage

Exits are more likely to be officially named or numbered

The differences can be so subtle that many motorists (especially from other countries) do not notice them at all. The most important one to be aware of is the speed limit: in case of a speed trap, the police will probably not accept the excuse that you thought you were on a motorway. Even if that would really be true, it would reveal a lack of attention.

Road types in different languages

A common misconception (outside English speaking countries) is that the English word 'highway' means 'motorway'. It appears in legends to maps (which are often poorly translated anyway) and in route planners. This is obviously not the case, as a highway can be a dirt road. Highways are generally important roads but certainly not always of national importance. There are County highways in the United States of America.

Motorways on maps

Map makers seem to be confused about road types in certain countries. Below, an overview is given of certain roads in Norway, Greece, Estonia, Lithuania and Belarus.

Road types are indicated as follows:

It should be noted that according to Philip's atlases Europe 1999 and 2000 and the Shell Atlases 00/01 and 01/02 the MKAD (Moscow Ring Road) is a motorway (it is a dual carriageway with motorway characteristics in reality). Also, the Philip's atlases do not distinguish between dual carriageways and other roads.

Norway

E18/E6 Oslo-Halden

Greece

Route 1 Macedonia-Athina (Athens)

Lithuania

Belarus

Austria

In Austria, there used to be a clear distinction between motorways, which had A numbers and the standard motorway sign, and expressways (with S numbers) and other roads for motorised traffic only, which had the car sign.

In 2006, however, the legal difference was abolished and on the one hand, the motorway symbol is used for some S roads, mostly for dual carriageways but also for some single carriageway roads. The car symbol is still used on some roads that have the same design standards, notably the S5 and the S33.

In the Soviet Union, motorways were an officially defined road class so it may be assumed that the same holds for Estonia, Lithuania and Belarus. In Greece and Norway, motorways are probably also an official road class. Therefore it is amazing that there is so little consensus among different maps.

Some of the differences between the 1999 and 2000 editions of Philip's atlas and between the 00/01 and 01/02 editions of the Shell atlas are particularly striking since the roads in question were not changed in reality in the meantime, but for some reason the cartographers decided to change their representation of some of the roads.

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