Britain"s bendiest roads...

Britain"s bendiest roads - where motorists can face the same gravitational forces as on a rollercoaster or race track - have officially been revealed. And a mile-long stretch of the B3081, between Cann Common in Dorset and Tollard Royal, Wilts, is named top of the apexes.

One part of the road, which is two miles from Shaftesbury, is called Zig Zag Hill because of the many harsh curves. Last month, it was criticised following a study by Dorset County Council which showed more than half of the route"s surface was of "poor quality".

The study to find the bendiest roads, carried out by tyre maker Continental, discovered that a driver doing 30mph on Zig Zag Hill experiences the same lateral forces as they would accelerating around Brands Hatch in Kent or sitting on a rollercoaster at a theme park.

"At 30mph in an average family hatch, some British roads are so bendy you get an idea of how it feels for a race driver," said Continental"s Tracey Hyem. Shaftesbury town councillor Lester Dibben told us he wasn"t surprised the B3081 had been named the bendiest stretch in Britain. "You can"t get a coach along there," he explained. "It"s a main road and has two lanes, but it"s steep and the corners are very sharp.

"There are about four or five 180-degree bends. Most people avoid the route if they can, but some go along it because it"s an interesting drive."

Third on the list was the A537 between Macclesfield, Cheshire, and Buxton in Derbyshire. We reported on the dangers of the route in our Inside Story in Issue 779 - and at the time, Cheshire County Council Accident Investigation engineer John Triplett said: "Locals objected to us erecting reflective signs, as this area is part of the Peak District National Park. But do you want great views or a road that"s safe to drive on?"

Top 10 bendiest roads

B3081Cann Common to Tollard Royal, Dorset/Wiltshire

A686Penrith to Melmerby, Cumbria

A537Macclesfield to Buxton, Cheshire/Derbyshire

A466Monmouth and Staunton, Monmouth

A4061Price Town and Treorchy, Rhondda, Wales

A157Louth to Mablethorpe, Lincolnshire

B2130Godalming to Cranleigh, Surrey

B6270Keld and Reeth, North Yorkshire

A39Bridgwater to Minehead, Somerset

B797Mennock to Warnlockhead, Dumfries and Galloway

(Source: Continental Tyres)