St Albans is a cathedral city in Hertfordshire, England and the main urban area in the City and District of St Albans. It lies east of Hemel Hempstead and west of Hatfield, about 20 miles north-north-west of central London, 8 miles south-west of Welwyn Garden City and 11 miles south-south-east of Luton. St Albans was the first major town on the old Roman road of Watling Street for travellers heading north and it became the Roman city of Verulamium. It is within the London commuter belt and the Greater London Built-up Area.