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More ultra-short walks

Person walking in London The River Thames and Embankment Gardens in London

Hungerford Bridge

Embankment

A four minute walk from the Strand

London ultra-short walk (07)

Next to The Coal Hole pub on the Strand is Carting Lane. Go down the stairs to reach the Embankment Gardens and the River Thames.


The roadway here was constructed in the 1850s as part of a grand project to provide London with an urgently-needed network of underground sewers, overseen by the chief engineer, Joseph Bazalgette.


The river was contained behind a granite wall to reclaim 37 acres of land, allowing for the installation of brick tunnels required for drainage, and also for a new underground railway. On completion, the roadway was laid over the top, running parallel to the river, along with the open space called Embankment Gardens.


Back on Carting Lane, don’t miss the “sewer lamp” about half way along, the last one remaining.