Clerkenwell and Farringdon: Lanes, Markets and Arrivals
Clerkenwell is a medieval street plan carrying a modern design district, and the lanes give a car almost nothing to work with.
A medieval plan under a modern district
Clerkenwell keeps the street pattern of a place that grew around a priory and a river, not one that was planned. St John Street, Clerkenwell Road and Farringdon Road provide the through movement; everything between them is short, angled and narrow. Britton Street, Albemarle Way, Jerusalem Passage, Turnmill Street and the lanes around Clerkenwell Green are the sort of streets where one delivery van halts everything behind it.
The district now carries a heavy concentration of design, architecture and media offices, which puts modern volumes of visitor traffic onto that old plan. The result is that arrivals are best handled on the three main roads with a short walk in.
Farringdon station and the interchange effect
Farringdon has become one of the better connected points in London, with the Elizabeth line, Thameslink and the sub-surface Underground lines all meeting there. Cowcross Street outside the station is narrow and part-pedestrianised, so it is not a collection point. Turnmill Street, Charterhouse Street and Farringdon Road are the workable alternatives, and which one to use depends on the station entrance you are coming out of.
- Turnmill Street for the western station entrance
- Charterhouse Street for the Barbican and Smithfield side
- Farringdon Road for anything heading south towards the river
Smithfield and the night rhythm
The meat market at Smithfield works through the night and into the early morning, which gives the surrounding streets an inverted schedule. Long Lane, Charterhouse Street and West Smithfield carry market vehicles when the rest of the City is empty, and are comparatively quiet in the middle of the working day. An early morning departure from this area is planned around that rather than despite it, and the market buildings are subject to long-term redevelopment that changes the surrounding road layout from time to time.
Hatton Garden and Leather Lane
Hatton Garden is narrow, one-way for part of its length and lined with jewellery businesses that operate their own security arrangements. Vehicles do not linger there, and several premises prefer a discreet arrival with no waiting outside. Leather Lane immediately to the west runs a weekday street market that closes the road to traffic through the middle of the day, so a route that works at nine in the morning does not work at one in the afternoon.
Green, market and design week
Clerkenwell Green and Exmouth Market are the two pedestrian-leaning focal points. Exmouth Market is closed to through traffic and lined with restaurants, so arrivals are made on Rosebery Avenue or Farringdon Road. In May the district hosts a large design festival that fills showrooms across the area and puts temporary installations into several streets, which is worth knowing about if you are travelling here in that week.
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Frequently asked questions
Where is the best pickup point at Farringdon station?
Not Cowcross Street, which is narrow and part-pedestrianised. Turnmill Street, Charterhouse Street and Farringdon Road all work, and the right one depends on which station entrance you use, so it is worth naming the exit.
Can a car use Leather Lane during the day?
Not while the market is running. The street market closes the road to traffic through the middle of the weekday, so an address there is reached from Clerkenwell Road, Greville Street or Hatton Garden with a short walk.
Why is Smithfield busy at four in the morning?
Because the meat market works overnight. The streets around it carry market traffic when the rest of the City is empty, which is useful to know for an early departure and explains why the area is calmer at midday.
Is Clerkenwell inside the Congestion Charge zone?
The southern part is, with the zone boundary running close by along Old Street and City Road. Journeys into the City from here cross into the zone. The boundary, hours and daily amount are set by Transport for London and should be checked for your travel date.