The Greenway, also called the North Road, the North-South-Road, the Old South Road, was the part of the Royal Road from Fornost Erain to the western shore of the Fords of Isen.
Course
The Greenway ran from Fornost Erain in the south of the North Downs southeast until it crossed the East-West Road at the Greenway-crossing just west of Bree. It then continued south through Andrath between the Barrow-downs and the South Downs, crossed a road in Minhiriath that ran over Sarn Ford, then turned south-east and traversed the Great Fens in the plains of Minhiriath on a long causeway until it crossed the river Gwathló at Tharbadz It continued on a long raised causeway across the fens in the plains and then ascended to higher land in the center and south-east of Enedwaith until it turned west close to the southern end of the Misty Mountains and ran west to the western shore of the Fords of Isen.
The part of the Royal Road that ran from the eastern shore of the Fords of Isen to the north gate of the Rammas Echor was called the Great West Road, the West Road or the horse-road.
History
The Greenway was the long, main path of traffic between Gondor and Arnor, but in the later Third Age after the division of Arnor into three realms it became lesser used. The importance of the road virtually ended after the Great Plague and the Long Winter when Tharbad was abandoned and its bridge ruined, and the Old South Road to Dunland was mostly lost. The patch of the road around Bree-land became overgrown with grass because of disuse and so was called the Greenway by the Bree-landers.
In the year 3018, Boromir took this road, but lost his horse crossing Tharbad, on his way to Rivendell. It is possible that the road was restored after the end of the War of the Ring during the reign of King Elessar in the Reunited Kingdom.
In adaptations
InThe Lord of the Rings Online
In The Lord of the Rings Online, "Greenway" specifically refers to the portion of the road running through the Bree-land, with the rest of it called the "North-South Road". Running south from Fornost Erain, the road crosses a large chasm called "Cirith Núr" that separates Bree-land from the North Downs through the wooden "Trestlespan" bridge in the town of "Trestlebridge". South of Andrath, the Greenway passes through the mannish town of "Herne" where is turns east towards Tharbad. With the Bridge of Tharbad now broken, the road to the east of Tharbad is considered to be a separate Old South Road.