European route E42
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The European route E42 is a road in Europe and a part of the United Nations International E-road network. It connects Dunkerque, a major ferry and container port at the northern end of the French coast with Aschaffenburg on the north western tip of Bavaria. Along the way it also passes through Wallonia in Belgium and the German Länder of Rhineland-Palatinate and Hessen. The full length of the route is approximately 680 kilometers (423 miles).
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[edit] Language challenge
The western end of the route runs close to of the Franco-Dutch language border. As a consequence, traffic signs might use Dutch exonyms for French or Walloon cities, and French exonyms for Dutch-speaking places. When a city lies in France, both names will be displayed in Flanders (e.g. Rijsel will be followed by Lille in italics).
[edit] France
The western end between Dunkerque and Lille follows a four lane dual carriageway toll free highway. Much of this has recently been resurfaced, but parts remain of subautoroute standard in terms of such details as junction lay-out and speed limits. Lille itself is at the centre of a major industrial area and is the meeting point of major routes. The passage of the E42 along the urban highway is marked by several sharp bends and, especially for westbound traffic, unavoidable lane changes as well as speed cameras. Delays during peak commuting times are frequent.
[edit] Belgium
The route follows no fewer than six different autoroutes in succession during its passage through southern Belgium (Wallonia). The provincial capitalMons (Bergen) and Charleroi, at the heart of Belgium's once economically crucial but now closed coal mining industry, are two of the larger cities connected by the E42, along with the major commercial and university city of Liège (Luik) further to the east. The most easterly portion within Belgium was fully upgraded to autoroute standard only with the completion of the A27 at the end of the twentieth century: before that happened the main road included (subject to diversions on race days) a brief stretch that used the Formula One racing circuit at Spa. The final kilometers before the German frontier include towns and villages transferred from Germany to Belgium under the provisions of the 1919 Treaty of Versailles endorsed in 1925 by a referendum process not universally regarded as fair: over three quarters of a century later sign boards showing place names in French and German frequently have the French versions deleted by graffiti artists.
[edit] Germany
The most westerly portion of the E42 in Germany follows the A 60 Autobahn. Despite considerable progress in recent years, the building of the Autobahn was delayed during the final decade of the twentieth century, and the road in this area is still missing several important doubled road viaducts, so that at various points the road is reduced to a single two lane road. The landscape here is relatively mountainous: a recent development has been the appearance on the surrounding horizons of modern windmill groupings.
[edit] The route
| E42 Dunkerque - Aschaffenburg | |||||
| State | National Road Number |
Section | Junction (national numbering) |
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   ..........Department |
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| 59 |  RN 225 |
Dunkerque - Bergues | RN 225  E 40RN 225  20RN 225 19RN 225 18RN 225 17RN 225 16 Bergues |
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| 59 |  A 25 |
Bergues - Lille (Rijsel) | A 25 15 Herzeele A 25 14 Winnezeele, HondschooteA 25   St Eloi et St LaurentA 25 13 SteenvoordeA 25 12 BailleulA 25 11 HazebrouckA 25 10 BailleulA 25 9 NieppeA 25 8 ArmentièresA 25 7 BéthuneA 25 6 EnglosA 25 5 Lille centreA 25 4 Lille-Faubourg de BéthuneA 25 3 Lille-WazemmesA 25 2 Lille-MoulinsA 25 1 E 17 |
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| 59 | A 27 |
Lille (Rijsel) - Baisieux | A 27 1 Ronchin A 27 2 LesquinA 27 A 23A 27 3 Baisieux |
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  ..........Province |
|||||
| Hainut | A 8 |
Baisieux - Tournai (Doornik) | A 8 35 Blandain A 8 Marquain E 403A 8 A 8 34 Tournai (Doornik) WestA 8 33 Tournai (Doornik) NorthA 8 Tournai (Doornik) E 429 |
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| Hainut | A 16 |
Tournai (Doornik) - Saint-Ghislain | A 16 32 Tournai (Doornik) East A 16 31 AntoingA 16 30 MaubrayA 16 29 PéruwelzA 16 28 BlatonA 16 27 BernissartA 16 26 PommerœulA 16 Hautrage E 19 |
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| Hainut | A 7 |
Saint-Ghislain - La Louvière | A 7 A 7 25 Saint-Ghislain E 19A 7 24 Mons (Bergen)A 7 23 Nimy, MaisièresA 7 22 ObourgA 7 A 7 21a ThieuA 7 21 Le RœulxA 7 Houdeng-Goegnies E 19 |
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| Hainut Namur Liège |
A 15 |
La Louvière - Liège (Luik, Lüttich) | A 15 20 Houdeng A 15 Bois-d'HaineA 15 19 ManageA 15 18 Chapelle-lez-HerlaimontA 15 Gouy E 420A 15 17 CourcellesA 15 Thiméon E 420A 15 16 Gosselies northA 15 15 FleurusA 15 14 SambrevilleA 15 A 15 13 SpyA 15 12 Namur westA 15 E 411A 15 10a FernelmontA 15 10 HingeonA 15 9 AndenneA 15 8 Huy-CouthuinA 15 7 Huy-FumalA 15 6 Villers-le-BouilletA 15 A 15 5 Saint-GeorgesA 15 4 FlémalleA 15 3 Liège airportA 15 A 15 E 40 |
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| Liège | A 3 |
Liège (Luik, Lüttich) - Battice | E 25 | ||
| Liège | A 27 |
Battice - Sankt-Vith | |||
  Land/District |
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| BIT WIL |
A 60 |
Steinebrück (frontier) - Wittlich | |||
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