Leicester To Grantham
The road begins in Leicester on the A594 inner ring road from the Burleys Flyover intersection, near Thames Tower, as Belgrave Gate. The section of road was the A46, and also the A6. As Belgrave Road it is well known in Leicester as a place of curry houses, and the city council promotes this fact. At Belgrave Circle (a grade separated junction - the Belgrave Flyover) it meets Abbey Park Road (B5327) north of the Murco Petroleum Ltd Flyover Filling Station and Leicester College's Abbey Park Campus at Painter Street, with the college's Technology and Engineering Centre on the eastern side of the flyover, next to the Bridle Lane Tavern. The Belgrave Road Sainsbury's is on the right. In Belgrave, Loughborough Road leaves to the left, which was the former A6. The road now becames Melton Road and meets the former A6030 at crossroads. On the corner of Sandringham Avenue there is the BP Sandringham Service Station on the left, and from here the road becomes a dual-carriageway. There is a roundabout with the Owl & Pussycat on the left. In Rushey Mead it passes Rushey Mead School on the right, and meets the A563 Leicester outer ring road (Troon Way) at crossroads. The former site of the GE Lighting factory (closed in 2007) is on the right (originally British Thomson-Houston, then AEI). The Shell (former TOTAL) Fosseway Service Station is on the left.
The road becomes a trunk road, and leaves the unitary authority of Leicester, and enters Leicestershire and the district of Charnwood. The road used to pass through the centre of Thurmaston, but there is now a bypass to the east (built as the A46) known as Newark Road, where the road leaves the route of the Fosse Way. At the large Thurmaston Roundabout with Barkby Thorpe Lane, there is a large Asda to the right, with a McDonald's, Pizza Hut and the Thurmaston Shopping Centre retail park. The Syston bypass was originally built as the A46, before the Leicester Western Bypass was built in November 1995. Near The Roundhill Academy in Syston, the road used to diverge from the A46. The Syston bypass is quite some distance longer than driving through Syston itself. It passes the headquarters of Lafarge Cement UK on the right, and there is a left turn for the Watermead Country Park. At Syston the road now meets with the Leicester Western Bypass (A46) at a roundabout, known locally as the Hobby Horse Roundabout which was widened in May 2006, where there is the Hobby Horse on the exit to the right, for Syston. At Cossington it crosses the Midland Main Line and leaves the A46 (Fosse Way) at an interchange in the parish of Ratcliffe on the Wreake. The Syston Northern Bypass opened in October 1992.
There is a small roundabout as Cossington Lane with the former Fosse Way, and the road crosses the River Wreake then the Birmingham to Peterborough Line. It meets the former route (east of Syston) at the Queniborough Roundabout. The road used to pass through East Goscote and Rearsby (and access for the Beedles Lake Golf Centre), but is now bypassed to the east. The £7 million bypass was opened on 15 December 2004 by Charlotte Atkins, and construction had begun in April 2004. At the end of the bypass the road enters the district of Melton. There is a left turn for an agricultural college (Brooksby Melton College) at Hoby with Rotherby, where the road is crossed by the Midshires Way. The road is crossed by the Leicestershire Round at Frisby and Kirby. At Kirby Bellars it passes the The Flying Childers, named after the Flying Childers race horse.
Entering Melton Mowbray as Leicester Road, it passes the headquarters of Samworth Brothers on the Leicester Road Industrial Estate and crosses the former Northampton to Nottingham railway and then the Birmingham to Peterborough Line. It meets two roundabouts and passes the Long Field School to the left. It meets Dalby Road (B6047, for Tilton on the Hill) to the right at the TOTAL (former BP) Malthurst Egerton Park Filling Station, and crosses the two sections of the River Eye. It passes through the middle of Melton Mowbray, and meets the A606 from the right. Opposite Brooksby Melton College, it meets the A6006 (for Loughborough) to the left, and the A606 exits straight ahead. It follows the exit to the right at the traffic lights crossroads, and passes to the north of the town centre. At the traffic lights junction with the B676 (for Pedigree Petfoods), it leaves to the left, where it is crossed by the Jubilee Way. As Thorpe Road it passes the small Melton Mowbray Hospital on the right, near the B676 junction, and passes the JET Brobot Melton Mowbray garage and a Tesco on the right. It bends to the right, and the road ahead, Melton Spinney Road, is the exit for Twinlakes Theme Park (in the parish of Waltham and Thorpe Arnold).
In Thorpe Arnold (Waltham and Thorpe Arnold parish) it passes the church, then ascends the Leicestershire wolds, passing Melton Mowbray Golf Club on the right. The Waltham transmitting station dominates the view of the area to the right, and is situated next door to the Waltham Centre for Pet Nutrition. At Waltham on the Wolds, it is crossed by the Mowbray Way, and the primary school is on the left. There is a crossroads next to St Mary Magdalene church, on the right. The Royal Horseshoes is on the left and the Marquis of Granby is on the right of the crossroads.
In the parish of Croxton Kerrial at Lings Farm, it meets the Salters Way from the west - a Roman road along the top of the wolds from Six Hills, which eventually reaches Saltersford near Grantham. At this point, Lings Hill, the road is at its highest point of 173 metres. There is a right turn for Branston. In Croxton Kerrial, it passes the Peacock on the left, and there is a right turn for Knipton (and Belvoir Castle), and a left turn for Saltby. The road bends to the left and the Roman road carries straight on. The road is still on top of the wolds, and at Top Ash Plantation near Hill Top Farm, it meets the Viking Way (Sewstern Lane), and enters South Kesteven and Lincolnshire.
At this point it descends from the top of the wolds down into Denton, which it passes to the south. It gently ascends a hill to reach Harlaxton. There is a crossroads, with the left exit for Barrowby. To the right is the entrance to Harlaxton Manor. It descends down the hill towards the A1 and the 400kV pylon line. There is a roundabout for the northbound A1, where there is a Premier Inn, and the Farrier (Brewers Fayre) pub.