the London Inland Letter Office negotiated by Ralph Allen, the postmaster of Bath. In the early part of the 19th century, coaching was at its height with six stagecoaches each day carrying passengers to and from London along the Bath Road in 1830, rising to ten by 1836. Hungerford is at about the midway point of the journey between London and Bristol and was ideally positioned to take advantage of the increase in coaching. In 1836, five companies operated a coaching service through Hungerford. This peak was to be short-lived following the construction of the Great Western Railway. The decline in coaching traffic in Hungerford coincided with the building of the Great Western Railway from London to Bath and Bristol, and the subsequent Berks and Hants Railway line from Newbury to Hungerford itself in 1847. By 1843, it was reported that the stage coaches had ceased running between Bristol and London. Route Holborn Circus to Westminster (0.4 miles) The A4 begins as New Fetter Lane in the City of London at Holborn Circus on the A40. It goes in a southerly direction to join Fleet Street where many British national newspapers at one time had their head offices. Westminster to Hammersmith via Kensington (4.6 miles) The road heads west through the City of Westminster via Aldwych and the Strand, passing notable landmarks such as the Royal Courts of Justice, the Savoy and Adelphi theatres, and Charing Cross railway station. From Charing Cross station to Green Park, the westbound and eastbound routes of the A4 are considerably different, due to one-way systems. Westbound, the A4 continues along the Strand up to Charing Cross itself, then along Cockspur Street and into Pall Mall, the location of many exclusive gentlemen's clubs as well as the Institute of Directors, before turning right along St James's Street to reach Piccadilly. Eastbound from Green Park, the A4 runs along the full length of Piccadilly to Piccadilly Circus, before turning right along Haymarket. It bears left along Pall Mall East, then right along the west side of Trafalgar Square, past the National Gallery and Canada House, to Charing Cross. Finally, it bears left along the east side of the Square, past South Africa House, then right along Duncannon Street to reach Charing Cross station. The first part of Regent Street, from Waterloo Place to Piccadilly Circus, is also signed as the A4; all traffic here runs in