Chapter III – Practical studies

Present conditions

142

Newbury lies 17 miles west of Reading at the intersection of the London-Bath Road (A.4) and the Southampton-Birmingham Road (A.34). It is a market town of about 30,000 population with the usual range of activities of such a town (see Figure 72). It serves as a centre for the surrounding rural area, and it is estimated that the additional population dependent upon it is about 30,000. At Thatcham, a few miles to the east, there is a group of paper mills, and the atomic energy research establishments at Aldermaston and Harwell are two other employment centres which have a considerable influence on the pattern of movement.