MaxB wrote:

"John Rowland" wrote in message
...

http://maps.google.co.uk/?hl=en&f=q&...01352,0.002494
From the aerial photo, it looks like two roads (Undercliff Road and
Halesworth Road) come out on Loampit Hill next to each other, with a 6-8
foot wall between them. I'm not aware of a feature like this anywhere
else, and can't help wondering why it was done here. It would be more
normal to run the side roads into each other so that there was only one
junction on Loampit Hill, and the land saved could be built on or
beautified.


Just had a look at an old (pre WW 1) map and then Halesworth Road ran
straight into Underhill Road on its alignment parallel to the main road.
Shell Road has been inserted so I suppose they thought they could squeeze
more houses in that way.

MaxB

However, the housing on the alignment is of a similar age to the other
houses on Halesworth Road, and those built as part of the same
development in Loampit Vale (built during the 1870s, IIRC). Before the
houses were built, the area was extensively quarried for clay for
bricks and tiles, leaving behind some steep and uneven hills.