Iffley Road

Iffley Road is a major arterial road in Oxford, England. It leads from the Plain, near Magdalen Bridge, southeast towards the village of Iffley. While it becomes Henley Avenue at Iffley Turn, and then Rose Hill, many people will refer to the whole stretch from the ring road to the Plain as Iffley Road. This entire route (including all of Iffley Road) is designated the A4158.

The road is famous for the Oxford University athletics venue, the Iffley Road Track, where Sir Roger Bannister ran a mile in under four minutes for the first time ever on 6 May 1954. A blue plaque now records the event for passers by on the road. Next door to the Oxford University Track is the Iffley Road rugby ground, home of Oxford University Rugby Football Club. This iconic rugby venue, is the home ground of the University Rugby Blues. The ground is steeped in history and hosts numerous high profile fixtures, for example in 2012: Canada vs Maori All Blacks, England u16s vs Wales u16s and Oxford University Rugby Football Club vs Russia. Also in Iffley Road is Greyfriars, a Capucin priory that was formerly a permanent private hall of the University of Oxford.

Iffley Road used to be known as the Henley Road in the 19th century since it leads towards Henley-on-Thames, the historic centre of the sport of rowing in the United Kingdom, with its famous Henley Royal Regatta further down the River Thames. Now only the few hundred metres before Rose Hill carry any mention of Henley, as Henley Avenue.

There are a number of historic public houses including the Cape of Good Hope at the Plain and 1 Iffley Road,^[1] the Cricketers' Arms, now a cocktail bar renamed The Mad Hatter in 2013, and the Fir Tree Tavern.^[2]^[3]

The Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics is based at 91 Iffley Road, and the headquarters of Transun are to be found at the start of the road.