page_title: Walking in London
section_title: London's urban footpath: the alley
hierarchical_section_title: Walking in London / Rights of way in London / London's urban footpath: the alley
caption_attribution_description: English: Looking from St Martin's Lane along Hop Gardens
context_page_description: Walking is a popular recreational activity in London, despite traffic congestion. There are many areas that provide space for interesting walks, including commons, parks, canals, and disused railway tracks. This includes Wimbledon Common, Epping Forest, Hampstead Heath, and the eight Royal Parks: Hyde Park, Regent's Park, Richmond Park, etc. In recent years access to canals and rivers, including the Regent's Canal, and the River Thames has been greatly improved, and as well a number of long-distance walking routes have been created that link green spaces.
context_section_description: One of the most common rights of way in Inner London is the alley. These urban footpaths generally have a long history and are also found in Outer London. One example, in an old neighbourhood of the City of London, Exchange Alley or Change Alley' is a narrow alleyway connecting shops and coffeehouses. It served as a convenient shortcut from the Royal Exchange on Cornhill to the Post Office on Lombard Street and remains as one of a number of alleys linking the two streets. The coffeehouses of Exchange Alley, especially Jonathan's and Garraway's, became an early venue for the lively trading of shares and commodities. These activities were the progenitor of the modern London Stock Exchange.
  West of the City there are a number of alleys just north of Trafalgar Square, including Brydges Place, which is situated right next to the Coliseum Theatre and just 15 inches wide at its narrowest point, only one person can walk down it at a time. It is the narrowest alley in London and runs for 200 yards (180 m), connecting St Martin's Lane with Bedfordbury in Covent Garden.
  An alley in London can also be called a passage, court, place, lane, and less commonly path, arcade, walk, steps, yard, terrace, and close. While both a court and close are usually defined as blind alleys, or cul-de-sacs, several in London are throughways, for example Cavendish Court, a narrow passage leading from Houndsditch into Devonshire Square, and Angel Court, which links King Street and Pall Mall. Bartholomew Close is a narrow winding lane which can be called an alley by virtue of its narrowness, and because through-access requires the use of passages and courts between Little Britain, and Long Lane and Aldersgate Street.
caption: A London alley: looking from St Martin's Lane along Hop Gardens
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