We live underneath Spaghetti Junction motorway – we’ve got our own ‘beach’…we’re proud to live here
Local residents who live under the Spaghetti Junction freeway say they have their own “beach” – and are proud to live there.
The Gravelly Hill transport hub near Birmingham is the UK’s busiest hub with 200,000 cars rushing through it every day.
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But beneath the five tangled traffic levels and 559 concrete pillars lies a cluster of single-family homes.
Father-of-one Brian Thomas, 45, joked that the neighborhood had its own “beach” — a pile of industrial sand under the flyover.
He said: “I don’t mind, I find the traffic quite calming. You get used to it and, as you can imagine, the transport links are good.”
“We also have our own beach, so to speak. What more do you want?”
“It’s a nationally recognized landmark. I’m kind of proud to live near here.”
Shopkeeper Aqeel Naeem, 35, said: “I don’t live far from here at all, I’ve lived there for 10 years.”
“It does not bother me. I actually enjoy it, otherwise it gets quiet.”
“The road is mostly used by people who want to take the freeway to get off it. It can get pretty dusty.”
“One good thing is that you can tell someone the direction of the company, it serves as a landmark.”
SPAGHETTI CAR BONANZA
Meeka, 33, a mother of two, said: “At first it bothered me that it was so close but it has triple glazing so you can’t hear it.”
“I only hear the trucks honking or an ambulance driving by.
“It’s not all the time. It doesn’t bother me that much now.”
“I don’t think about pollution at all. There’s a patch of forest, so there’s a section that absorbs the noise.”
“Because there is a lot of traffic, there are a few homeless people at the traffic lights.
“But I was woken up at night by the racers racing by.
“I can hear them racing. You have to do it on the Autobahn.”
UP THE CROSSROADS
Father-of-two Mark McKinley, 52, said: “Noise can be an issue in the evenings.”
“It’s more of a problem when the race starts in the evening. There have been a few accidents.”
“If you don’t hear sirens, you worry. You get used to it.”
“It’s constant. The carriages do not stop on the M6. We have all roads here, everything is a mess here.”
“We get a lot of dirt from the traffic. I have a brand new car and I have to clean it every day.”
“The amount of dust and trash that comes out is ridiculous.”
He added, “If someone were to fall there, they would have to dodge to avoid the house.”
“There are people who throw away rubbish. There are many cars that have overheated and are dumped on our street.”
“When Aston Villa is playing, it gets overrun with cars. People park here and tip the cars everywhere.”
“They literally park across the road all the time
“I would be woken up early if they blew their horns or sirens early.”
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