| Bricklayers Arms | |
|---|---|
_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1766302.jpg) | |
 Interactive map of Bricklayers Arms | |
| Location | |
| Southwark,London | |
| Coordinates | 51°29′39″N0°05′08″W / 51.49425°N 0.08555°W /51.49425; -0.08555 |
| Roads at junction | |
| Construction | |
| Type | Roundabout interchange |
| Maintained by | Transport for London |
Bricklayers Arms is the road intersection of theA2 and theLondon Inner Ring Road whereBermondsey[1] meetsWalworth[2] andElephant & Castle in southLondon. It is the junction ofTower Bridge Road,Old Kent Road,New Kent Road andGreat Dover Street. It comprises a four-way green roundabout plus one-wayflyover and one-way bypass lane.
The latter help traffic using any of the six road bridges west ofLondon Bridge to access the arterial road to and from the south-east quadrant of theorbital motorway, Old Kent Road. Specifically, eastbound traffic from New Kent Road to Old Kent Road can use the flyover; the reverse flow can use the ground-level bypass lane.
The junction is named after acoaching inn that stood here, in turn related to the prowess ofKent in brickmaking. It is centred 500 metres north-west of Mandela Way which was at the heart of the maingoods and locomotive sheds named the Bricklayers Arm depots and similar.
A succession of inns, the original name which may have been the documented Bricklayers Arms, served this junction for more than six hundred years. Excavations during the rebuilding of the inn in the 1890s came across very old foundations and a hidden hoard of ancient coins.[3]
After the mid-18th century building ofWestminster Bridge (and associatedNew Kent Road) this was where the many mid- and east-Kent, such asDover,Maidstone andCanterbury coaches using theOld Kent Road to or from theCity of London set down or picked up passengers travelling to or from theWest End.[4] The inn's landlord was always theCity of London Corporation. Its sign was thecoat of arms of theWorshipful Company of Tylers and Bricklayers. The road – and nearby yards – were busy with the supply of bricks to London. Majorbrickearth deposits, regionally, are inKent, particularly on theNorth Downs dip slope and on theHoo peninsula, sections of theMedway andStour valleys. Its mineral content is critical to its applicability inbrickmaking and requires precise proportions ofchalk,clay, andiron.[5]
Approval of plans for construction of the roundabout and flyover to replace the junction of, and some buildings at, the Old Kent Road (A2), New Kent Road (A201) and Tower Bridge Road (A100) was given by theLondon County Council in December 1962 with an initial budget cost of £3,510,000 (equivalent to £95,000,000 in 2023). Works were scheduled for 1967.[6] Such construction involved demolition of buildings in all three roads and surrounds as part of a larger regeneration programme. The north end of the Old Kent Road has since the 1750s been bifurcated into Great Dover Street and Tabard Street. These briefly re-combine north of this junction and have taken the greater street's name since the roundabout was built.
In the 1970s a plan ofGreater London Council envisaged a road to link the roundabout and the north approach to theBlackwall Tunnel, crossing the Thames in two tunnels (one adjacent toTower Bridge) and providing a link toCanary Wharf.[7]
The work done madepedestrian underpasses from adjacent roads into the roundabout heart, asLondon Underground safeguarded a possible extension route of theBakerloo line from its terminus atElephant & Castle tube station. This could run along and under the main road under the route of tracks of the demolished station and branch, to join surface services atSouth Bermondsey station. The roundabout could host a station, akin toOld Street station. Neither remains in the budgetedBakerloo line extension toLewisham. In 2013 the circuitous subways were filled in and levelled, becoming wider pavements.[citation needed]
Since 2009,pelican crossings exist across New Kent and Old Kent Roads, as pedestrians preferring to crossat-grade were causing accidents.
