The Two Tunnels Greenway is a free, flat, traffic-free path running about four miles from Bath to Midford along an old railway line, passing through the 1,672-metre Combe Down Tunnel, the longest cycling and walking tunnel in Britain. Both tunnels are surfaced and lit, it works in any weather, and it starts ten minutes from the city centre.
That combination is rarer than it sounds. Bath is a city built on hills, and almost every walk anyone recommends, including our own favourite, the Bath Skyline, makes you earn the views with a climb. The Two Tunnels is the exception: a railway engineer's gradient, which is to say barely a gradient at all, cut straight through the hills instead of over them. Visitors get sent up the Skyline in their hundreds while this one stays a local secret, and it deserves better.
The essentials
| Detail | Info |
|---|---|
| Distance | About 4 miles, Bath to Midford, one way |
| Longer option | Two Tunnels Circuit, 12.3 miles, circular |
| Terrain | Flat former railway line, surfaced throughout, tunnels lit |
| Cost | Free, open all year |
| Route number | National Cycle Network 244, linking routes 4 and 24 |
| City-side access | Linear Park, from Bellotts Road in Twerton to Bloomfield Road on Bear Flat |
We checked every route fact on this page in August 2026 against the custodian's and council's own pages: the Walk Wheel Cycle Trust (the charity formerly known as Sustrans), the community site twotunnels.org.uk, and Bath & North East Somerset Council.
What it actually is
The path follows the old Somerset & Dorset railway, which closed in 1966; the greenway on its trackbed opened in 2013. From the city it runs through Linear Park, then into the shorter Devonshire Tunnel beneath Bear Flat, out into a wooded valley, and then into the main event: Combe Down Tunnel, 1,672 metres of it, which both the trust and the council describe as the longest cycling and walking tunnel in the country. You come out above the Midford valley, cross Tucking Mill Viaduct with Midford Castle on the hillside, and the greenway ends at the Little Tunnel at Midford.
The tunnels are the reason to come. They are surfaced, lit, open around the clock, and cool on the hottest day of the year, which makes this one of very few Bath outings that improves in bad weather. Deep inside Combe Down Tunnel you walk or ride through Passage, a sound and light installation by United Visual Artists, and hearing music swell out of the dark in the middle of a hill is genuinely strange in the best way. Children tend to remember the tunnel long after they have forgotten the Royal Crescent.
How to get on it
The city end is Linear Park, a green strip that runs from Bellotts Road in Twerton through East Twerton and Moorfields to Bloomfield Road on Bear Flat, and forms the first section of the greenway. You can join it at either end of that strip and follow the path south.
By train, Oldfield Park is the closest station to the route, and Bath Spa is just over half a mile from the northern section, so arriving without a car is easy. If you do drive, the route's own site recommends parking at Newbridge Park & Ride (BA1 3NB) and riding in on the river path rather than hunting for a space near the entrances; there is no dedicated car park on the greenway itself. For a one-way walk, the D2 and D2X buses between Bath and Frome stop at Hope and Anchor Midford, right by the far end, so you can walk out through the tunnels and ride back, or the reverse.
At Midford there is a pub, the Hope and Anchor, at the end of the route. It does not publish details we could verify this run, so check it is open before you build lunch around it.
The longer option: the Two Tunnels Circuit
If four miles each way is not enough, the Walk Wheel Cycle Trust signs a circular version: the Bath Two Tunnels Circuit, 12.3 miles (19.7 km), which the trust rates as 76.5% traffic-free. It goes out through the tunnels, past Tucking Mill Viaduct, then across the Dundas Aqueduct on the Kennet & Avon Canal and back into Bath beside the River Avon. On a bike it is a superb half day, and the aqueduct is a destination in its own right.
One honest caution, which is the trust's as well as ours: there is a short on-road section following the A36 near Sydney Gardens on the return into Bath, and it needs extra care, particularly with children. Plan for it rather than being surprised by it.
Current status, checked August 2026
Both tunnels are open, with no current closures. For context, the Devonshire Tunnel had a rough 2024 with flooding and drainage problems, but it reopened in February 2025 with a new pump and drainage system, and has been fine since.
One thing to know if you plan to keep going beyond Midford: the next stretch of route 24, the Colliers Way section from Midford to Wellow, is a permissive path across private land and closes on a handful of published Saturdays each winter. The 2026-27 closure dates had not been published when we checked, so if you are extending the ride in autumn or winter, look at twotunnels.org.uk before you set out.
Who it suits
Almost everyone, which is the point. Families with young riders get a long, safe, car-free run. Runners get a flat interval route. Wheelchair and buggy users get railway gradients, though the custodians do not publish entrance-by-entrance step-free details, so we will not promise more than the gradient. And anyone counting pennies gets one of the best free outings in the city, which is exactly why it sits high on our Bath on a budget list: the whole thing, tunnels, art installation and viaduct included, costs nothing.
FAQs
How long is the Two Tunnels Greenway?
About four miles one way from Bath to Midford, on the council's own description of the route. Walking out and back is roughly an eight-mile round trip; most families ride it instead, or walk one way and catch the D2 or D2X bus back from Hope and Anchor Midford.
Is the Two Tunnels route flat?
Yes, as flat as Bath gets. It follows an old railway line, so the gradients are gentle throughout, which makes it the pick for buggies, young cyclists and anyone who does not fancy the city's hills. The council describes it as straight with only gentle gradients.
Are the tunnels lit, and are they open in winter?
Both tunnels are surfaced and lit, and the route is free and open all year. The enclosed sections make it one of the few Bath walks that works in the rain. The only seasonal wrinkle is beyond the greenway proper: the Midford to Wellow permissive path closes on published Saturdays in winter, so check twotunnels.org.uk before extending.
Where should you park for the Two Tunnels Greenway?
The route's own site recommends Newbridge Park & Ride (BA1 3NB), joining the route from there. There is no dedicated car park on the greenway. Arriving by train works well too: Oldfield Park station is closest to the route, and Bath Spa is just over half a mile from the northern section.
Can you cycle the Two Tunnels as a loop?
Yes. The Bath Two Tunnels Circuit is a signed 12.3-mile circular route, 76.5% traffic-free, returning to Bath via the Dundas Aqueduct and the riverside. Take extra care on the short section alongside the A36 near Sydney Gardens, which is the one busy-road moment on the loop.