A72 autoroute

The A72 is an autoroute (motorway) in France. It is 55 km long.

The motorway is operated by Autoroutes du Sud de la France (ASF) and links Balbigny to Saint-Étienne on one of the steepest and meandrous motorways in France. Over 35 km of the motorway is limited to 110 km/h (70 mph) as sections are considered too dangerous for the standard 130 km/h (80 mph) speed limit.

The motorway has 2 lanes both directions with 3 lane sections near Saint-Étienne.

The road is also numbered the European route E70. In 2006, the section between Clermont-Ferrand and the A89 spur became part of the A89.