Tyneside 240522 4335
Tyneside structures. Newcastle housing, looking up to the 'Byker Wall, a name sometimes given to the whole of the estate, but which really applies only to the high rise blocks seen at the top. The 620 maisonettes that form the actual wall were built with little view to the north, where it was intended that a motorway would be built on that side (it wasn't), but with extensive views across the Tyne to Gateshead and County Durham. The wall would also provide a sound barrier for the larger numbers of low rise dwellings at lower levels.
The Byker estate was built between 1969 and 1982, but the nearer blocks are all of later date. Most of the development is in the area known as Walker, which extends along the river bank, with steep connecting roads. The steepness of the roads led to a local saying, 'you can bike from Byker to Walker, but you have to walk from Walker to Byker'.
Tyneside 240522 4335
Tyneside structures. Newcastle housing, looking up to the 'Byker Wall, a name sometimes given to the whole of the estate, but which really applies only to the high rise blocks seen at the top. The 620 maisonettes that form the actual wall were built with little view to the north, where it was intended that a motorway would be built on that side (it wasn't), but with extensive views across the Tyne to Gateshead and County Durham. The wall would also provide a sound barrier for the larger numbers of low rise dwellings at lower levels.
The Byker estate was built between 1969 and 1982, but the nearer blocks are all of later date. Most of the development is in the area known as Walker, which extends along the river bank, with steep connecting roads. The steepness of the roads led to a local saying, 'you can bike from Byker to Walker, but you have to walk from Walker to Byker'.