The Alban Way is a traffic free multi-user route along a former railway line in

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For govern ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, that has been constructed along the route of the former Hatfield to St Albans railway line. It runs from St Albans, close to St Albans Abbey railway station and the site of Roman

Verulamium Verulamium was a town in Roman Britain. It was sited southwest of the modern city of St Albans in Hertfordshire, England. A large portion of the Roman city remains unexcavated, being now park and agricultural land, though much has been built upon ...

, through Fleetville and Smallford to Hatfield, ending close to

Hatfield railway station Hatfield railway station serves the town of Hatfield in Hertfordshire, England. The station is managed by Great Northern. It is measured from on the East Coast Main Line. History Hatfield was formerly the junction of a branch to St A ...

. It is long. Part of

National Cycle Network The National Cycle Network (NCN) is the national cycling route network of the United Kingdom, which was established to encourage cycling and walking throughout Britain, as well as for the purposes of bicycle touring. It was created by the cha ...

Route 61, which runs from the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, se ...

at Maidenhead to the

River Lea The River Lea ( ) is in South East England. It originates in Bedfordshire, in the Chiltern Hills, and flows southeast through Hertfordshire, along the Essex border and into Greater London, to meet the River Thames at Bow Creek. It is one of t ...

Ware Ware may refer to: People * Ware (surname) * William of Ware (), English Franciscan theologian Places Canada * Fort Ware, British Columbia United Kingdom * Ware, Devon *Ware, Hertfordshire * Ware, Kent United States * Ware, Elmore County ...

, the Alban Way is fully tarmacked throughout making it usable all year round. It can be linked to a separate section of Route 61, also along a disused railway route, runs from

Welwyn Garden City Welwyn Garden City ( ) is a town in Hertfordshire, England, north of London. It was the second garden city in England (founded 1920) and one of the first new towns (designated 1948). It is unique in being both a garden city and a new town and ...

to Hertford and is called the

Cole Green Way The Cole Green Way is a rail trail which runs east-west from the eastern edge of Welwyn Garden City to Hertford in Hertfordshire. Part of National Cycle Network Route 61, and the Lea Valley Walk, it runs for more than six miles along the for ...

. The remains of most of the station platforms still exist along the route, with many as of 2017 having recently been refurbished along with signage and street names painted into the tarmac. A station building still stands at the London Road exit in St Albans, which has been converted into a nursery, while at Nast Hyde Halt a replica semaphore signal has been erected along with a garden and other signage. At what used to be Hill End Station, a small remembrance park has been created to remember a former mental health hospital that existed at the site. It is located in what was the hospital's graveyard, once close to the track opposite Longacres park. Most of the graves are covered and few remain intact but include a plaque describing the story behind the gravestones, including some details about specific patients. In Hatfield the route joins the ''Great North Way'' (National Cycle Network route 12) and in St Albans links to National Cycle Network route 6. There was once some speculation that the railway may be reinstated in the future as an extension to the proposed

Abbey Line The Abbey Line, also called the St Albans Abbey branch line, is a railway line from Watford Junction to St Albans Abbey. The route passes through town and countryside in the county of Hertfordshire, just outside the boundaries of the Oyster C ...

tram system although this never materialised.

Bus connections

Uno route S4 provides a link to the start of the route by Cottonmill Lane. Passengers should alight at Weyman's to join the route.

References

External links

Leaflet and guide pack for the Alban Way, Cole Green Way and the Great North Way
is available from

Welwyn Hatfield The Borough of Welwyn Hatfield is a Non-metropolitan district, local government district in southern Hertfordshire, England, governed by Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council. It covers the two towns of Welwyn Garden City and Hatfield, Hertfordshire, ...

Borough Council {{commons category, Alban Way Footpaths in Hertfordshire Rail trails in England

Bus connections

See also

References

External links