After a bit of niche knowledge. I want to get from Bromsgrove to Stratford-upon-Avon on a road bike and am struggling to put a route together that both avoids nasty climbs (Astwood Bank) and avoid the main roads. Can any locals assist? I'll be leaving 7am on a weekday if that makes any difference?
There are plenty of quiet lanes from Bromsgrove that will get you as far as Redditch, no mega hills but that part of Worcs is fairly lumpy. Then just pick up the NCN 5 that will take you all the way to Stratford. There is one short sharp hill at Billesley, but otherwise the second half of your ride will be easier on the legs. Watch out for lunatic deer jumping out of the hedgerows (not kidding!)
Not my locality so this may be useless info, but just put this into the cycle travel app and asked for gravel and it came up with this. Zooming in on the app and it looks mostly like back roads. Might be worth trying the app, or I can download the route and send it you
Was going to say similar. I don't know the Bromsgrove end very well, but the Stratford end is more just rolly. There's a short sharp climb into Wilmcote from Billesley which you could avoid by going through Aston Cantlow and then along the 3400, but that's a crap road to ride, so I'd suffer that bit, then go right along the Ridgeway into town.
Unfortunately there are lots of wolds round here. It's relatively flat, but it's not Norfolk.
Not my locality so this may be useless info, but just put this into the cycle travel app and asked for gravel and it came up with this. Zooming in on the app and it looks mostly like back roads. Might be worth trying the app, or I can download the route and send it you
Very easy jokes that I'm not going to make, but I'd really avoid riding through the middle of Redditch. The road system is not built for bikes.
Plus the country lanes are so much nicer, and you stand less chance of being hit in the face by an errant St George's flag.
I live about halfway between Bromsgrove and Stratford Upon Avon.
I read the OP but I think your best route is over Astwood Bank.
Something like Stoke Prior/****enham/Cookhill/Wixford/Stratford Upon Avon
Something like this: Bromsgrove to Stratford Upon Avon
Couple of options, what do we reckon? 
I'd really avoid riding through the middle of Redditch. The road system is not built for bikes.
Can’t second this strongly enough. Years back, when I got my first road bike, I got trapped in Reddich - there appeared to be no way out that wasn’t a suicide mission on a dual carriageway. I went out and bought a Garmin very soon after that.
Redditch is full of cycle paths but they aren’t well marked out.
using cycle.travel and trying different route options (as below) but checking the gradient profile for each is probably the best way forward, there are a couple of scarps heading eastwards so trying to stick to the river valleys would avoid these, though add to the distance, eg swinging southwards and then eastwards (as with the green line):
Bromsgrove - Redditch - Studley - Spernall - - Claverdon - Snitterfield - Stratford.
