Formerly the National Cycle Network’s London to Brighton route, this is no longer officially a through route – the Crawley-Brighton section has been cancelled because of rising motor traffic levels.

That said, there are some lovely sections along here. Foremost is the Wandle Trail through suburban London, a largely traffic-free route following the River Wandle past parks and secluded woods.

After Carshalton the route moves onto residential streets around Carshalton, with a wonderful climb over Farthing Downs after Coulsdon. The passage of Gatwick Airport is particularly remarkable, though we could do without the trek through Crawley’s industrial estates that follows. See our guide to the Avenue Verte for full details on this section.

The route south of Crawley has now been removed from the NCN and exists as a local route only. Closely paralleling the busy A23, it’s often not much more than a pavement with cycling signs. A handful of on-road sections have busy traffic. 

At Pyecombe, the NCN route resumes, following the London Road as far as Brighton’s seafront.

For an enjoyable ride, we'd suggest our own London-Brighton touring route.

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