RARE Alley to a railway foot crossing in London!

แชร์
ฝัง
  • เผยแพร่เมื่อ 14 เม.ย. 2018
  • This is a foot crossing on the Angerstein Wharf line in the London borough of Greenwich. It's considered rare because there are hardly any foot crossings in London. The crossing is accessible through an alley between the houses on Fairthorn Road. Angerstein Wharf is located on the south bank of the River Thames and is connected to the North Kent Main Line by this branch line. It is used to haul aggregate from the Aggregate Industries site to various freight yards in and around London.
    UPDATE April 2019 - Exactly one year after this video was filmed in April 2018, Network Rail gave one weeks notice they are closing this crossing. Please see my latest video here for details - • CLOSED! London's ONLY ...
    EDIT: I made a mistake in the subtitles @1:14. It should have read "Built by John Julius Angerstein in the 1850s". The branch line opened in 1852.
    #footcrossing #angerstein #charlton
  • ยานยนต์และพาหนะ

ความคิดเห็น • 1.1K

  • @frogstamper
    @frogstamper 6 ปีที่แล้ว +7

    I'm in my fifties now and these little alleyways were everywhere near rail-lines when I was a kid in the 70's, nowadays they really are quite rare.

  • @priestland1
    @priestland1 6 ปีที่แล้ว +709

    Something so simple as an alleyway but built so beautifully, bricklaying at its best.

    • @Daimo83
      @Daimo83 6 ปีที่แล้ว +18

      Horrendous attempt at a garden wall though

    • @michaelparker2449
      @michaelparker2449 6 ปีที่แล้ว +21

      Yeah they really made things to last in the Victorian era.

    • @BioBiro
      @BioBiro 6 ปีที่แล้ว

      Everybody dance!

    • @gerry343
      @gerry343 6 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      And litter!

    • @bombasticbuster9340
      @bombasticbuster9340 6 ปีที่แล้ว +20

      Peter Clapham So true, in your country as well as the states craftsman took pride in work and made simple things interesting and beautiful. 19thc British engineering was second to none. Hail Isombard Kingdom Brunell!!

  • @beetooex
    @beetooex 6 ปีที่แล้ว +289

    I never used to get these kind of videos in my TH-cam recommendations. Geoff and Vicki have got a lot to answer for...

    • @joshp5471
      @joshp5471 6 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      beetooex haha! Yes!!

    • @theholymagpie8201
      @theholymagpie8201 6 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      They certainly have!! 😅

    • @drcurv
      @drcurv 6 ปีที่แล้ว +7

      Erm ... who are Geoff and Vicki? Please pardon my ignorance.

    • @beetooex
      @beetooex 6 ปีที่แล้ว +8

      All the stations
      All of them
      All the stations
      All of them
      All the stations
      All the stations
      All the stations...

    • @beetooex
      @beetooex 6 ปีที่แล้ว +14

      Except the Isle of Wight

  • @Bob_Burton
    @Bob_Burton 6 ปีที่แล้ว +10

    That brought back memories. I used to live close to the A102 side of the crossing before the road was built and the crossing was a short cut to the fish and chip shop in Woolwich Road.
    Up some steps, across the crossing, down the steps, through the alleyway, turn left down to Woolwich Road, turn right and the fish and chip stop was just along on the right.

  • @stiletto56
    @stiletto56 6 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    An architectural gem. I doubt if such a thing would be even planned these days let alone built so beautifully. Thanks for sharing.

  • @rsparker922
    @rsparker922 6 ปีที่แล้ว +267

    A video of absolutely nothing and I LOVED IT!!! Quite relaxing in a funny sort of way.

    • @AAAyyyGGG
      @AAAyyyGGG 6 ปีที่แล้ว +13

      It may be nothing to you but I recognised the sound of my fav loco - the Class 66 - as soon as he got to the stairs! Could listen to them for ages!

    • @imaenglishman5471
      @imaenglishman5471 6 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      Exactly mate ;-)

    • @VicMcFly111
      @VicMcFly111 5 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      rs parker How is it nothing?

    • @lesleyhubble2976
      @lesleyhubble2976 5 ปีที่แล้ว +4

      You have over a 100 likes, we all feel relaxed watching this. Brilliant

    • @A_10_PaAng_111
      @A_10_PaAng_111 5 ปีที่แล้ว +6

      rs parker My kind of nothing. I can watch this kind of nothing for days.

  • @moominmay
    @moominmay 6 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    There was such a quiet beauty about how you shot your video. Don’t know why it was in my recommended’s but glad it was!

  • @disgruntledoflondon
    @disgruntledoflondon 5 ปีที่แล้ว +5

    Wow, this is a blast from the past for me. I used to take this shortcut to get to Asda each Saturday with my Dad (we lived on Foyle Road1986 -1999). Thanks for sharing.

  • @marknestbox
    @marknestbox 5 ปีที่แล้ว +37

    Found this randomly and thought 'WHAT, nearly 8 minutes of filming featuring an alley - and its got 400,000 views? Is any nudity involved??!!' Was going to pass it by until I scanned the comments - and glad I did. Surprisingly, a brilliant video. Thank you.

  • @culcune
    @culcune 6 ปีที่แล้ว +4

    It is absolutely amazing how a little opening leads to so much! Love this video! Years ago, my two cousins and I went exploring over the rail lines on a footbridge in Faversham, Kent. It felt like we were doing something illegal, but in fact, it was a public footbridge over all the rail lines. This little alleyway almost makes it feel like we, the viewers, are doing something illegal by trespassing when in fact, it is a public right-of-way, as well!

  • @Redoralive
    @Redoralive 6 ปีที่แล้ว +16

    Guy walks like a 90's computer game character.

  • @TheRivetts
    @TheRivetts 5 ปีที่แล้ว +11

    Yay the ally from Westcombe to Charlton, we used to tell the kids it was a magic ally when they were small, we use it all the time to go to the shops :) thank you for sharing a little piece of our hometown.

  • @freesaxon6835
    @freesaxon6835 6 ปีที่แล้ว +484

    Smooth camera work

    • @berthold64
      @berthold64 6 ปีที่แล้ว +26

      Free Saxon feels like it was from video game

    • @geoffreylee5199
      @geoffreylee5199 6 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      Free Saxon go pro?

    • @iamthetinkerman
      @iamthetinkerman 6 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      post processing!

    • @freesaxon6835
      @freesaxon6835 6 ปีที่แล้ว +17

      I reckon it's a gimble

    • @Martindyna
      @Martindyna 6 ปีที่แล้ว +4

      I thought that as he bounced along in the alley way, where's the Steadicam lol

  • @catcook3324
    @catcook3324 6 ปีที่แล้ว +4

    When my husband was a kid he had a freight train pass close to the end of his back yard. He used to wave at the engineers and they used to throw huge thick pieces of chalk to him. They used it for marking train numbers on the yard chalk board. He loved it.

  • @Hertog_von_Berkshire
    @Hertog_von_Berkshire 6 ปีที่แล้ว +65

    What a gem of a location. Many thanks for the video.

  • @dennisjeffs4239
    @dennisjeffs4239 6 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    What a brilliant video, unless you live in this area you would never know about this pathway to Westcombe Park Station. As a retired Southeastern driver I was stopped a few times over the years for the freight to Angersteins Wharf to cross over at the Junction, but of course with the track non-electrified never went there myself, very interesting, thanks for the upload.

  • @wilsjane
    @wilsjane 6 ปีที่แล้ว +11

    Their are numerous such crossings in London, many of them around Wimbledon.
    They are mostly so concealed that only local people know that they exist.

    • @dressrosacr7
      @dressrosacr7 5 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      So mostly in South London

  • @RODALCO2007
    @RODALCO2007 6 ปีที่แล้ว +85

    Awesome alleyway. Great piece of history still in service. Thanks for sharing.

    • @pyeltd.5457
      @pyeltd.5457 5 ปีที่แล้ว

      RODALCO2007 fancy seeing you here from Shango066 (Dan c) videos.

    • @porombpeter
      @porombpeter 5 ปีที่แล้ว

      Hi. Sadly this is not in service for long. This only foot crossing is also going to be disappear, as Network Rail is permanently closing it and demolish it in April ! Sad!

  • @bullettube9863
    @bullettube9863 6 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    An Amazing difference in the sound level from Fairthorn Road to the tracks! Some people complain of the noise from trains which don't run continuously, but the noise from the constant traffic on highways is actually very annoying.

  • @Gruntled2001
    @Gruntled2001 6 ปีที่แล้ว +340

    Glad there were no dementors in the alleyway. It’s kind of hard to conjure up patronus when filming a video..

    • @aishahzaman2862
      @aishahzaman2862 5 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      ЭлектромонтажUSA 😂😂😂😂 im dead

    • @the486kgman2
      @the486kgman2 5 ปีที่แล้ว +4

      ЭлектромонтажUSA fuck off rusian

    • @larjkok1184
      @larjkok1184 5 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      What?

    • @Wig4
      @Wig4 5 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      @@the486kgman2 GOOD answer !! :-)

    • @danielkerr4100
      @danielkerr4100 5 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      @Uncle Rico racist

  • @AbsoluteMiniacGena
    @AbsoluteMiniacGena 6 ปีที่แล้ว +50

    What a gem at the end of the alleyway. I always wanted to live somewhere right next to a railway line. Used to fancy an old station or stationmasters house but I’m at an age now whereby I’m not fussy. I just want to be able to hear trains and see them from my house. It is just in my dreams now, im never likely to move which is a pity.

    • @catcook3324
      @catcook3324 6 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      Frog Pr.: I too long for the mournful sound of the distant train whistle at night.

    • @karlosbricks2413
      @karlosbricks2413 5 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      Interesting that, I live in the centre of Dunblane and I have a perfect view of the station and therefore the HML, best of all, there's a signal right outside (they replaced the semaphore one this month :C) so you get to see HSTs, sheds, the odd Network Rail train and plenty of DMUs from my bedroom window

    • @nitinpardeshi8767
      @nitinpardeshi8767 5 ปีที่แล้ว

      Naniteri

    • @beshjs408
      @beshjs408 5 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      @@catcook3324 Trains don't whistle anymore I live right next to a train track and its not better than a normal house lol.

    • @Mick-ss7ro
      @Mick-ss7ro 5 ปีที่แล้ว

      I have train tracks right behind my house and it is really annoying when you are trying to get to sleep

  • @nathanw9770
    @nathanw9770 5 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    I often see this branch line behind the big ASDA in North Greenwich. It goes across a nice bridge on Bugsbys Way and you get a very clear view of the Class 66s and their aggregates hoppers near there. You also get a decent view of the planes landing at LCY.

  • @brianartillery
    @brianartillery 6 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Fascinating. Thousands of people must walk by there every day, without a clue as to what lies down that path. Thanks for sharing!

  • @ronleitch7788
    @ronleitch7788 6 ปีที่แล้ว +14

    Fascinating! I have driven up and down the A102 many times, but never realised that there was a parallel Branch line running so close by!

    • @markfryer9880
      @markfryer9880 6 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      Ron leitch Something to look out for on your many trips, help to keep things interesting while driving. Helps keep the brain sharp.

  • @nickstraw1952
    @nickstraw1952 6 ปีที่แล้ว +9

    Very common - almost all Victorian terraced housing uses alleys, ginells back lanes or pads (likely lots more local names too). My grandma's house was an end of terrace. The rear access was in the middle of the block, so a long walk round to get stuff into the yard. In those days all deliveries and collections - like the bin men (garbage collection) was to the back.
    House entrance was direct off the pavement (sidewalk) straight into the front room, or parlour, which was only used for extremely formal visits, like the vicar. Never by the family.
    Only two small rooms plus kitchen downstairs, three rooms upstairs (bath was a tin bath kept in the shed used every week!) Family was 11 kids.

    • @nickmoore5105
      @nickmoore5105 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      It's not the alleyway that''s rare but the foot crossing. Interesting post, however!

  • @PlanetoftheDeaf
    @PlanetoftheDeaf 6 ปีที่แล้ว +14

    I've often wondered where that footbridge over the A102 goes, I never realised that you can continue on it over the Angerstein Wharf line, so this video was very interesting, thanks!

  • @zetacon4
    @zetacon4 6 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    I kept seeing this video show up in the suggested list at the right. I said, "This better be good". And it was. Thank you for a very pleasant surprise. I enjoyed every minute of it. You did a wonderful job of it.

  • @malcolmabram2957
    @malcolmabram2957 5 ปีที่แล้ว +5

    I suppose I am a sad person, but little alleys and railways and foot bridges adds colour to life. Thanks for posting. Oscar on the way.

  • @Edward1312
    @Edward1312 6 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    I used to live a stones throw away in Calvert Road (in between Maze Hill and Westcombe Park) for 3 years, 20 years ago and didn't know this crossing existed, which is a shame, I would have liked to have checked it out!

  • @siccodierdorp6947
    @siccodierdorp6947 6 ปีที่แล้ว +84

    Well that was perfectly timed:)

    • @Robodick4
      @Robodick4 6 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      Or planned :-)

    • @Hertog_von_Berkshire
      @Hertog_von_Berkshire 6 ปีที่แล้ว +16

      Well planned ... and well edited. Note the natty cross-fade at 0:57

  • @horrortackleharry
    @horrortackleharry 6 ปีที่แล้ว +173

    Where would we all be without sea-dredged aggregate?

    • @benlee2765
      @benlee2765 5 ปีที่แล้ว

      Is that sand?

    • @tartrazine
      @tartrazine 5 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      Ben Lee No. Not just sand.

    • @MelliaBoomBot
      @MelliaBoomBot 5 ปีที่แล้ว +18

      Over 15% of the sand and gravel currently used in England and Wales is won from the sea-bed and has been used in a wide range of reinforced concrete structures. The main difference between the majority of land-based aggregates and marine aggregate lies in the presence in the latter of sea salts, which usually have to be washed out to meet British Standard maximum limits for chloride and latest guidelines for limited alkali content to prevent alkali silica reaction (ASR). In this paper the basic facts about marine aggregates are considered in relation to the requirements of BS 8110 Structural use of concrete, of the latest guidelines to prevent ASR, and of BS 882 which all aggregates from natural sources must pass to be acceptable for structural reinforced concrete. If these requirements are fulfilled then marine aggregates can be safely used.@@benlee2765

    • @uwotm835
      @uwotm835 5 ปีที่แล้ว +13

      My family of dredged the sea aggregate mines for decades. Good to finally have some gratitude.

    • @stud105
      @stud105 5 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      I'm not sure. We'd be fucked right?

  • @pugwashsecond
    @pugwashsecond 6 ปีที่แล้ว +10

    I was on at least three of the ships that used to run up to Angersteins Wharf back in the late 1990's and early 2000's before I retired in 2005. Never knew about the rail link - interesting...

  • @zenersmytok3619
    @zenersmytok3619 6 ปีที่แล้ว +6

    That's wonderful. Just imagine having that treasure in your back garden !.

  • @pgbear
    @pgbear 5 ปีที่แล้ว +4

    This popped up on my TH-cam recommendations today. No idea why, as I'm not into this sort of thing. Crikey though, I was hooked immediately once I started watching it. Brilliant camera work and such a beautiful hidden part of London. I was transfixed! Thanks for making this.

  • @catlover4971
    @catlover4971 6 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    Outstanding video - Amazing how you timed your arrival at the line in time to photograph the train. I wouldn't feel safe walking that path after dark. You kept your camera very steady to produce a smooth video so very well done.

  • @BrianSeaman
    @BrianSeaman 6 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    Fascinating - thank you for the film and the history / views of south east London :) It is very rare to have a foot crossing like this. Network Rail are busy shutting them as fast as they can. I've subbed :)

  • @andrewr2825
    @andrewr2825 6 ปีที่แล้ว +6

    Brilliant! Now I’m going to get my A to Z, track it down and visit on my next holiday to the UK!

  • @JawTooth
    @JawTooth 6 ปีที่แล้ว +9

    This is my second time to watch this video. It is really interesting! I showed this to my son also since he went to London a couple years ago. I hope you have more videos like this because I subscribed to ya!

    • @finnpeters7867
      @finnpeters7867 6 ปีที่แล้ว

      Jaw Tooth Feel sorry for your son

    • @JawTooth
      @JawTooth 6 ปีที่แล้ว +5

      No, don't feel sorry for him, he had a great time! My sister, mother, brother in law also went to London and had a great time. They told me about the trains

  • @stuartleggat7176
    @stuartleggat7176 5 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    Thoroughly enjoyed your wee tour and info...felt like I was there...was based in London back in '83 and lead singer in a band...lived in a street similar to this and instant memories...been a few years since my last visit and your vid has put me in the mood for another one fairly soon...
    Cheers!

  • @thoughtfortheday7811
    @thoughtfortheday7811 5 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    What a gem of a find on the Internet and in real life. The alley is so "simple" and beautiful. Well filmed too. Thanks for sharing.

  • @kooliz
    @kooliz 6 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    the top flat on the right of the alleyway was sold in Aug 2017 for an attractive £255,000. It had a short lease and in need of refurbishment

  • @andrewhaines8603
    @andrewhaines8603 6 ปีที่แล้ว +26

    There used to be "Treacle Cock Alley" in Bingley, West Yorkshire that went under the railway line to the canal three rise locks. It was filled in when they built the bypass in the 2000's unfortunately. Progress kills the history and unique parts of the UK all the time!

    • @am-vm8ew
      @am-vm8ew 6 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      Andrew Haines Evidence of this is they demolished Washwood Heath depot for High speed 1. HS1 or whatever it's called isn't really progress, I mean we have Eurostar, do we need much more?

  • @fattypark
    @fattypark 5 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    Really interesting. London really is a city of amazing contrasts. The whole video feels surreal, almost like something from a game. Could quite happily spend a day there wandering.

  • @mfr58
    @mfr58 5 ปีที่แล้ว

    Amazing, I've lived in the area all my life and only discovered this the other day and here you are putting it up on YT!

  • @heftyalan1152
    @heftyalan1152 6 ปีที่แล้ว +5

    The old 66069 I know it well. A friend of mine is a spotter so I often hear what is that number while he looks to see if he has it ticked off. Admittedly not down an alleyway but used to live in an area which was built around a farm so you would walk around the corner and straight across a railway line which would lead into the town and because people were crossing with such regularity there were a number of casualties when I was younger as unlike this one it was on a mainline so very easy to become blasé about it. I have always lived very close to railway lines completely unintentionally.

  • @markfryer9880
    @markfryer9880 6 ปีที่แล้ว +29

    A nice qwerky visit to London with a bonus freight train hauling aggregate rock for concrete.

  • @saucylight
    @saucylight 6 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    Thank you for taking me on a walk through the backstreets of my home town - looking mighty pretty from this far away on the Indian Subcontinent. Great camera work.

  • @SMILEVIDEOTRAINS
    @SMILEVIDEOTRAINS 5 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    I see the train on my travels. Thanks to you I know know what it carries and where it comes from. Thank you

  • @octoberphoenix
    @octoberphoenix 6 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    In all the years of crossing this line, I have never seen a freight train, thanks for posting!

    • @wilsjane
      @wilsjane 5 ปีที่แล้ว

      If you ever travel on the district line between East Putney and Wimbledon. you can see some amazing sights.
      It is the only route for British rail trains into their maintenance depot at Wimbledon park, so you see some real oddities. On one occasion a steam train passed through after it had been on display at an exhibition.

    • @wilsjane
      @wilsjane 5 ปีที่แล้ว

      Talking of steam trains.
      If you look out of the window as your tube train passes through Acton depot on it's way to Heathrow, you will often see a working steam train on the sidings.
      It is in regular use to shunt trains into the maintenance sheds where their are no conductor rails. It is also used to pull trains out of the tunnel when they suffer a major electrical fault.
      It is the only steam train that fits through the tube tunnels and it is quite an odd sight.

  • @Wasserfeld.
    @Wasserfeld. 6 ปีที่แล้ว +4

    Had no idea this existed, don't live too far. I'll visit it eventually! That's the great thing about freight lines, got quite a few little gems and unique stuff.

  • @bp837
    @bp837 5 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    It's like jumping from a quaint South-Eastern village straight into a bustling metropolis.

  • @robinkeeling8314
    @robinkeeling8314 5 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    Walked through that tunnel to the station loads of times when we lived in Gurdon Road.

  • @MMBaus
    @MMBaus 6 ปีที่แล้ว +6

    Wow amazing how tucked away this is! Great vid 👍

  • @RedShedNick
    @RedShedNick 6 ปีที่แล้ว +51

    This is sensational! A ginnel between two houses that leads ti a freight line bizarre, the sort of thing you could dream about? You have to be congratulated for this super footage, and bringing it to our attention.And to finish off with an EWS 66, what could be better? Do tbe 59's pass by, and when was this video shot? Thankyou once again highly enjoyable cheers Nick.

    • @finnpeters7867
      @finnpeters7867 6 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      Red Shed 66077 Dream about? U joking?

    • @RedShedNick
      @RedShedNick 6 ปีที่แล้ว +4

      Finn P what I meant was ti walk between two joined houses then find a rqilway track, the two just dont seem to go together! Surreal is what I was looking for.

    • @garymitchell5899
      @garymitchell5899 6 ปีที่แล้ว

      Houses and railway lines are very often close together. Come on, man.

    • @finnpeters7867
      @finnpeters7867 6 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      Red Shed 66077 Surreal? Boring you mean. Trains aren’t really interesting but paths over train tracks are completely uninteresting.

    • @zeeox
      @zeeox 5 ปีที่แล้ว +4

      @@finnpeters7867 - Why are you here? Lot of time to kill?

  • @trojanette8345
    @trojanette8345 5 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Nicely shot, nicely edited, nicely captioned. Good Job.

  • @billmarsh1971
    @billmarsh1971 6 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    I was on the sureguard storage build project last year, just around the corner in Horn Lane. Got a mate walks his dog along the route you took. Cool vid.

  • @NOWThatsRichy
    @NOWThatsRichy 6 ปีที่แล้ว +14

    Nice little vid, you wouldn't even know that access tunnel was there if you weren't looking for it, that looked a pretty long freight train too.
    Just subscribed you, looks some interesting stuff on here. 👍

  • @7APT7
    @7APT7 6 ปีที่แล้ว +6

    Interesting bit of footage, thank you for sharing it with everyone!

  • @marymills285
    @marymills285 5 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Some years ago I went down there on a 'spotters' trip. When we got to the crossing my husband had got all our friends and neighbours to come along and wave, and there was a big crowd waiting there when we stopped.

  • @davethehat5016
    @davethehat5016 6 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    There is a foot crossing between Trumpers Way, Hanwell and Windmill Lane, Southall that also crosses a freight line. There is a second crossing about 100m up the line taking the footpath from Windmill Lane into the Brent Riverside park.

    • @SCHPANNERMAN
      @SCHPANNERMAN 5 ปีที่แล้ว

      You should apply to Mastermind. Immediatley.

  • @stephenhayward8865
    @stephenhayward8865 6 ปีที่แล้ว +4

    there is a crossing like this to the west of alesford road crossing on the main line between Strood and Maidstone on the Tonbridge line,like this it has a wharf and a gavel depot

  • @drcurv
    @drcurv 6 ปีที่แล้ว +104

    Hi, Morthren, what a great little video! Very much enjoyed watching it. That's a sweet little twichell leading to the crossing; it was good fortune you didn't meet someone coming the other way - might have got a little tight in there!
    You may like to visit the twichell in Wimbledon that leads between Graham Road and Hartfield Crescent, just a few yards shy of the Dundonald Road stop on the Wimbledon-Croydon tramlink line. This passageway is a little out of the ordinary in that it has a small 'kink' about half-way through, where the back gardens of the houses on the two roads are not perfectly aligned!
    I can't think off-hand of any pedestrian-only crossings (at ground level) in my neck of the woods; as for pedestrian-only BRIDGES in London that are not directly associated with stations, there's the Alt Grove footbridge just outside Wimbledon station, the Elm Grove-Merton Hall Road bridge a little further southwest, and the two West Barnes Lane footbridges in Raynes Park. In addition, the Alric Avenue-Dukes Avenue bridge in New Malden.

    • @qwertyTRiG
      @qwertyTRiG 6 ปีที่แล้ว +7

      drcurv Twichell. What a lovely word.

    • @Hertog_von_Berkshire
      @Hertog_von_Berkshire 6 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      drcurv I have learned a new word, though the web is telling me it's "twitchel".

    • @drcurv
      @drcurv 6 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      Glad you like it, TRiG. Comes from English Midlands vocabulary. Can also be spelled 'twitchel'.

    • @drcurv
      @drcurv 6 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      Hi, Hertog. Both are correct, but I'll admit that ''twitchel'' is the more commonly found spelling, especially in the Midlands. Anyway, glad you liked it, and hope that you will find ample opportunity to impress your friends in the future! :)

    • @Robodick4
      @Robodick4 6 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      "Twichel" is that southern for Ginnell or Jinnell? :-)

  • @triumphofmadness
    @triumphofmadness 5 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    I absolutely love this fantastic, quirky video! Now I want to trace your steps through this alley in person.

  • @Deebz270
    @Deebz270 6 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Love the Dalek-steady camera views. I could sit and watch your perambulations all day. Well done *morthren!*

  • @ukar69
    @ukar69 6 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    I’ve cycled past the wharf many times and see dredgers unloading the aggregate via a series of belts over the Thames path.

  • @Castlebridge-00
    @Castlebridge-00 6 ปีที่แล้ว +6

    Very informative. Thanks for filming it.
    Barry.Devon.

  • @PeterPatterson-vt2cx
    @PeterPatterson-vt2cx 6 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    I dont know why but i loved that video. I find old london so interesting. Imagine back in the day? Thank you!

  • @mikehudson8884
    @mikehudson8884 6 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    Very interesting to watch. Love the fact the entry looks like any other terraced house back entry. You never expect it to actually lead somewhere.
    There is another unusual terraced house somewhere in London I saw on a documentary once but can't recall where it actually is, but it is a frontage of a three storey Georgian terraced house which is not a house at all but a railway bridge complete with false doors and windows, you'd find that interesting.

  • @routeman680
    @routeman680 6 ปีที่แล้ว +7

    The alley must be a public right of way, but the owner of the house on the left most likely has a room or two rooms (front and back) above it. I wonder how responsibility for maintenance works out. Great to have a back gate from one of those gardens into the alley if you had to make a quick getaway!

    • @drcurv
      @drcurv 6 ปีที่แล้ว

      Routeman .. "I wonder how responsibility for maintenance works out" ... that is a blinkin' good point!

  • @davidallen7977
    @davidallen7977 5 ปีที่แล้ว +15

    I agree with most the comments here. Great smooth filming of really nothing, but I liked it a lot, but then in all honesty I'm a bit of a nosey bastard. Keep up the good work. 10 out of 10.

  • @skyboswell
    @skyboswell 5 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    So sorry to read from Alastair Austin that footpath now closed. Thsi is such a great video, I love seeing these little known paths and footbridges.

  • @maplady572
    @maplady572 6 ปีที่แล้ว

    Super video. How 160 people have taken the time to watch the video, and then dislike it, is completely beyond me!

  • @johnw4590
    @johnw4590 6 ปีที่แล้ว +21

    👍good video! Thanks for sharing

  • @JackTaylor-cs8ot
    @JackTaylor-cs8ot 6 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    Best video I've watched all day. Don't know why, it's just nice.

  • @webrumrunner
    @webrumrunner 6 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    Just checked the terrace house prices on this clip - flat £330,000 - house £550,000, I knew London was expensive, but this is crazy money !!

  • @robloxtransportationfans5895
    @robloxtransportationfans5895 6 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    Very nice indeed, like the alley seems like an old river passed through there and under the railway many decades ago by the shape and it was cleared away for the houses but the developers left it there and once the railway was built they turned it into a foot crossing. Someday I'd love to visit that. Seems very intriguing indeed. Wonder how those people feel about having freight trains pass by their houses all the time. Great Video also :) !

  • @jamesgoodwin2450
    @jamesgoodwin2450 6 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    You learn something new every day thanx

  • @freddienz
    @freddienz 6 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    Fascinating. Very enjoyable walk, viewed from New Zealand... I have just looked at Rail Map Online, and it is amazing how many railways and tramways were in and around the banks of the Thames.

  • @HappisakVideos
    @HappisakVideos 5 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    I'm from Woking and we pass huge heaps of aggregate just a little way from the main train station there and I never knew where it comes from until now.

  • @williamcarrington3474
    @williamcarrington3474 6 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    I was half expecting to see Del boy and Rodney appear ! Well done for showing this little gem, best wishes .

  • @simonw4340
    @simonw4340 5 ปีที่แล้ว +7

    My wife walked past while I was watching this and tutted.

  • @JuhaVnt
    @JuhaVnt 6 ปีที่แล้ว +15

    Really nice video! Have to check this out, when i’m in London next time.
    Liked and subscribed your channel!
    Greetings from Finland,
    Juha 😄

    • @Zauchi
      @Zauchi 6 ปีที่แล้ว

      its going to become a new tourist spot. lol

    • @Lisbonized
      @Lisbonized 6 ปีที่แล้ว

      Tervesia suomeen!

  • @tad256
    @tad256 6 ปีที่แล้ว

    Great piece of information for Londoners and for people like me, *who have spent some time in London*.
    This video also make me reminiscent of the time of the time I spend in Woolwich, how I often used to take train from Plumstead Station for London Bridge or 422 / 472 bus for North Greenwich.

  • @stephenannett
    @stephenannett 6 ปีที่แล้ว

    Great video. I love these quirky, hidden London secrets. Makes me want to have a look for myself if I have time next time I’m over.

  • @karen4you
    @karen4you 6 ปีที่แล้ว +4

    Really unique. I had to sub after looking at some of what videos you have. I am from the USA.

  • @ToastedFanArt
    @ToastedFanArt 6 ปีที่แล้ว +54

    This was thoroughly enjoyable

    • @finnpeters7867
      @finnpeters7867 6 ปีที่แล้ว

      Toasted Fan Art I sense sarcasm

    • @ToastedFanArt
      @ToastedFanArt 6 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      Finn P not at all I genuinely enjoyed it, reminds me of the town I grew up in :)

    • @krashd
      @krashd 6 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      I tend to go for "That was riveting!" when I'm being sarcastic because it's not unusual to thoroughly enjoy something, as the Tom Jones song goes. But then again I'm often fascinated by something but can't say "That is fascinating!" because that line is textbook sarcasm, so it seems there's a very fine line between genuine sarcasm and just wanting to express that you've gone all giddy all of a sudden - y'know?

  • @EarlJSmith
    @EarlJSmith 5 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Really very interesting. Loved this video and its simplicity. Little nooks and crannies like this are rare in the States and from what I gather in the UK as well. Nice job.

  • @wiseowlsound
    @wiseowlsound 6 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Excellent footage, love this mate. Cheers!

  • @freebrickproductions
    @freebrickproductions 6 ปีที่แล้ว +65

    Nice! Not really many "secluded" urban crossings like this here in the US, but this does kinda remind me of the pedestrian crossing in Mineola, NY. Also, is that a rail bridge over the A102 at 5:20?

    • @ronleitch7788
      @ronleitch7788 6 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      freebrickproductions I don’t actually know, but I suspect it’s the Woolwich line to Dartford!

    • @morthren
      @morthren  6 ปีที่แล้ว +10

      Close, It is the Greenwich line which joins up to the North Kent Line. It only has four stations along its stretch (Deptford, Greenwich, Maze Hill and Westcombe Park) before connecting to other lines. Westcombe Park is the station just after the bridge.

    • @ronleitch7788
      @ronleitch7788 6 ปีที่แล้ว +4

      morthren Thanks for the info. It’s not a line I’m familiar with, living as I do on the Sidcup Loop Line!

    • @DTD110865
      @DTD110865 6 ปีที่แล้ว

      Mineola's pedestrian crossing has signals and gates and doesn't contain a tunnel under a housing block. Plus there's a normal railroad crossing about a block away on Main Street. I wish I could compare this to the Westwood LIRR station in Malverne, but even that doesn't remotely resemble this crossing.

    • @DTD110865
      @DTD110865 6 ปีที่แล้ว

      For those who aren't familiar with the crossing that freebrickproductions is talking about, here it is;
      commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mineola_LIRR_Station;_PedXing,_Nassau_Tower_and_Substation.jpg

  • @southwest455
    @southwest455 6 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    Great Video Morthren!

  • @benters3509
    @benters3509 5 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Just imagine all those trucks full of aggregate that are NOT on our roads thanks to this one train. Thanks to the foresight of people keeping this little railway line open. The alleyway was nice. I know it sounds weird, but I was bought up in alleyways in my boyhood years. The streets where I lived all had a network of alleys. I used to walk the two miles or so to school through this tortuous network of alleys, crossing streets every now and then. It was safe then, and great memories.

  • @Fiddling_while_Rome_burns
    @Fiddling_while_Rome_burns 5 ปีที่แล้ว

    Used to play on that railway line as a kid, if you walked up the line to the right it went to the river, but before getting to the river was overgrown waste ground, disused warehouses and a WWII pill box, it was one giant adventure playground. Nowadays its ASDA.

  • @drcurv
    @drcurv 6 ปีที่แล้ว +31

    I clicked 'send' too soon! I've just remembered there's a pedestrian foot crossing on the Wimbledon-Croydon tramlink line just south of Merton Park station. It can be reached by the twichell from Dorset Road, and leads across the tracks to a patch of rough ground, from which one can gain access to either the station or the western end of Melbourne Road.
    In your video, I noticed that several of the aggregate wagons had a thick 'L'-shaped patch on the side; presumably this was where a previous owner's logo had been removed. Would you happen to know whose logo it was, please?

    • @officialmcdeath
      @officialmcdeath 6 ปีที่แล้ว

      drcurv might well be Hanson

    • @geoffwallis7800
      @geoffwallis7800 6 ปีที่แล้ว +5

      More likely to be Lafarge

    • @conkeroonee
      @conkeroonee 6 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      Cemex

    • @finnpeters7867
      @finnpeters7867 6 ปีที่แล้ว

      drcurv Why does it matter to you what company use to own the train?

    • @jusb1066
      @jusb1066 6 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      @finn, might as well ask why does it matter that a train goes a long a track to a goods yard

  • @DigitalDiabloUK
    @DigitalDiabloUK 6 ปีที่แล้ว +7

    Good video. What stabiliser are you using?

  • @WELLBRAN
    @WELLBRAN 5 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    Something out of Sherlock Holmes railway, dark path, with archway, foggy night, footsteps behind you. Etc.... Lol

  • @tayoran1
    @tayoran1 5 ปีที่แล้ว

    I like the way you framed the footage with approaching the houses and then leaving via the same tunnel.. Very informative.

  • @chewy5563
    @chewy5563 6 ปีที่แล้ว +4

    From the start I was expecting you to come out in Diagon Alley

  • @franlooving4203
    @franlooving4203 6 ปีที่แล้ว +69

    Really fun video. I love the beautiful old bricks. Incredibly sad that taggers don't respect the old or the fact that it is someone else's property and still do their ugly spray paint. I strongly dislike the damage they do!!! Thank you for the upload.

    • @MikayeYakovlev
      @MikayeYakovlev 5 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      Fran Looving Was are you from the US? In the UK, graffiti is not really ‘tagging’ (there really arent that many gangs around), more of a subculture....

    • @sabersz
      @sabersz 5 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      @@MikayeYakovlev personally I think graffiti where not asked for is just annoying but I don't mind it either

    • @greeninlondon
      @greeninlondon 5 ปีที่แล้ว +4

      Used to use this crossing all the time to get my fish and chips

    • @therightreverendrawhide7587
      @therightreverendrawhide7587 5 ปีที่แล้ว +4

      @@sabersz one mans 'graffiti' is another mans 'art '....

    • @chrisbarlow2131
      @chrisbarlow2131 5 ปีที่แล้ว +5

      @@therightreverendrawhide7587 if art is an ugly eyesore so be it

  • @peachesandcream.2612
    @peachesandcream.2612 5 ปีที่แล้ว

    Very interesting how I found such a simple video of such a simple thing so calming and relaxing! Many thanks for posting 💕

  • @Passengervehicles
    @Passengervehicles 6 ปีที่แล้ว +17

    Great video