The Cole Green Way is a

rail trail A rail trail is a shared-use path on railway right of way. Rail trails are typically constructed after a railway has been abandoned and the track has been removed, but may also share the right of way with active railways, light rail, or streetca ...

which runs east-west from the eastern edge of

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 an ...

Hertford Hertford ( ) is the county town of Hertfordshire, England, and is also a civil parish in the East Hertfordshire district of the county. The parish had a population of 26,783 at the 2011 census. The town grew around a ford on the River Lea ...

in Hertfordshire. 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, and the Lea Valley Walk, it runs for more than six miles along the former Hertford, Luton & Dunstable branch line from

Welwyn Garden City railway station Welwyn Garden City railway station serves the town of Welwyn Garden City in Hertfordshire, England. It is from on the East Coast Main Line. Train services are currently provided by Thameslink and Great Northern. History A station named '' ...

to Hertford North railway station.

History

The original line opened on March, 1, 1858 and operated passenger traffic until June, 18, 1951. It was never a busy branch line, and numbers decreased quickly after the Hertford Loop Line was added to the

Great Northern Line The Great Northern route (formerly known as Great Northern Electrics) is the name given to suburban rail services run on the southern end of Britain's East Coast Main Line and its associated branches. Services operate to or from and in Lond ...

from London King's Cross, which gave faster access to Hertford North railway station. Prior to the Loop opening, trains on this branch terminated at Hertford Cowbridge. It closed completely to goods traffic on 1 August 1962 and the track was lifted shortly afterwards. The former trackbed has been used as a

public footpath A footpath (also pedestrian way, walking trail, nature trail) is a type of thoroughfare that is intended for use only by pedestrians and not other forms of traffic such as motorized vehicles, bicycles and horses. They can be found in a w ...

since and was refurbished by the local council to provide better facilities, including a public car park at what was Cole Green railway station. The route is largely flat, which makes it popular with walkers, horse riders and cyclists. At the far end of the car park and associated picnic area, almost hidden in the undergrowth are the remains of buffers, presumably from station sidings. The woodland associated with the car park and picnic area has a number of items carved from standing wood. The route forms part of Route 61 of the

Route

Starting on the eastern edge of Welwyn Garden City at Cole Green Lane, the route heads east towards the household recycling centre by the A414 with an underpass to allow access to the former Cole Green railway station. There are bridges at Station Road by Cole Green and Chapel Lane near Letty Green. A further bridge was filled in further along, which means users must cross a country lane before rejoining the trail. At St. Mary's Lane there is another bridge just short of what was

Hertingfordbury Hertingfordbury is a small village in Hertfordshire, England, close to the county town of Hertford. It was mentioned in the ''Domesday Book''. Hertingfordbury is also the name of a neighbouring civil parish, which does not contain the village. ...

railway station, now a private residence, and then the trail finishes by Hertford Town Football Club and the viaduct south of Hertford North railway station.

Other rail trails

The Cole Green Way is one of three rail trails in the

Welwyn Hatfield The Borough of Welwyn Hatfield is a local government district in southern Hertfordshire, England, governed by Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council. It covers the two towns of Welwyn Garden City and Hatfield, along with numerous smaller settlemen ...

area. The other two are the

Alban Way The Alban Way is a traffic free multi-user route along a former railway line in Hertfordshire, England, 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 Abbe ...

, from Hatfield to St. Albans, and the Ayot Greenway, which connects

Wheathampstead Wheathampstead is a village and civil parish in Hertfordshire, England, north of St Albans. The population of the ward at the 2001 census was 6,058. Included within the parish is the small hamlet of Amwell. History Settlements in this area were ...

References

External links

Cole Green Way leaflet
(pdf) {{GeoGroup Rail trails in England Footpaths in Hertfordshire Tourist attractions in Hertfordshire