Landmarks: The Westway

When the A40 / M Westway was first driven through this area of London in the mid- 1960s, it destroyed a great deal of the Victorian fabric of North Kensington, and there was a lot of opposition both before, during and after its construction.

Planning for the road took place in about 1963, which meant that it was prior to there being any kind of planning policy on urban motorways, whereby social and environmental aspects were taken into account. At two and a half miles long it was the longest continuous concrete structure in Europe at the time. It took six years to build and was completed in 1970.

Because it is elevated, so many different functions are able to take place in the 23 acres below. There's a nightclub underneath, an area of the market under a giant tent, a sports centre and shops and offices.

Most inner-city roads just cut through a community, dividing it in half, and one is left with no links anymore because no one can actually get across the road. The Westway is different because, although it does function very well as a road, at times like during the Notting Hill Carnival when the Westway is quite empty, you can look down and see this mass of people thronging around below and people living and working within the structure itself.

There are downsides to an elevated construction like the Westway in that it attracts danger, especially at night, and can be a haven for drug activities in the area.

Stuart Robertson is a partner in 23 Architecture, 13 Basing St, London W11 (071-727 0133)

(Photograph omitted)