‘I braved Britain’s roughest street filled with dog poo, drunks and fights every night’

On the train from Birmingham New Street to Gravelly Hill you pass under the city’s notorious spaghetti junction, a winding knot of carriageways feared by motorists and a marker for what feels like the edge of the city.

The south end of Slade Road sits in its shadow, a residential area where life is presided over by the most complicated motorway junction in the country.

Upon arrival in sharp winter sunshine, I made my way down from Gravelly Hill station to the notorious street.

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If you survive slipping on ice or stepping in dog poo the first thing you notice is the sound of souped-up exhaust pipes from cars with multiple men in.

Overhead planes jetted by at low altitudes making their final approach into Birmingham International and delivery lorries unloaded palettes of fizzy drinks to the street’s many corner shops.

Chatting with the locals it immediately became obvious that the area has gone downhill. “It used to be a nice area,” said one bloke who had lived there 40 years.

He explained how people with addictions had come to dominate the area. Like many of the people I spoke to he discussed ominously how the place was dangerous after dark.

Also like many of the residents, he felt an increase in the number of people renting in the area and homes with HMOs had led to a change in the street’s identity.

“This time of the day it’s kind of OK. It starts when everyone wakes up and they come here and they start buying booze from next door and then there are cans everywhere,” he said.

“There are people throwing litter and spitting and gobbing everywhere.

“It used to be a nice area but not anymore.

“New people have moved in and you don’t know them. Most of these properties are rented.”

Along the street, music blared from the occasional upstairs window.

A bloke, 56, sitting on a chair in the sun, appeared to know everyone who walked or drove by, with waves of car honking the soundtrack to our brief conversation.

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He agreed the area had got worse with “drunkards”, “crackheads” and “prostitutes” – some of which he said offered their services for as little as £5 – dominating the street.

Down the road by a corner shop with a bus stop outside, a group of young men with quick movements and glints in their eyes laughed loudly as a woman waiting for a bus pretended not to hear them.

Litter was noticeable on the street but wasn’t astonishing. The odd bag leaned against a bin and a surprisingly high number of mattresses rested soggily on people’s driveways.

Andy, 56, a father who had been living on Slade Road for 22 years and has “hated every day of it”, said the addicts who wander the streets were “generally ok”.

“It’s the youths [you want to watch out for],” he added.

“The best time is on a Sunday afternoon, they come up here, you get about 30 kids on motorbikes and stuff – I guarantee none of them are owned, or insured.

“They don’t care about traffic,” he said, showing with his hand how they would go over pavements and islands in the middle of the road.

Pointing to a closed-down pub, he added: “There used to be fights every night in there.

“There’s no sense of community.

“It’s like with this coronation lark you’ve got coming up – if every street were to have a street party this one wouldn’t.

“There’s probably about three people along here that actually say hello.”

But despite the decline, some hoped for better.

A middle-aged dad explained how he thought Birmingham City Council needed to “take an active role in improving this area”.

He said there was nothing for his children to do and was terrified by the speed cars drove.

“If there’s no intervention by the local council and they don’t do anything about it there will be accidents and people could die,” he said.

“Three times a minor accident happened.”

He felt bitterly let down by local politicians.

“When the local election was coming they put more cleaners on the street and I think they put more lines on the roads,” he added.

“Other than that, I’ve not seen any improvement.”

Walking back up the hill to the station, the sound of two-stroke bikes and big exhausts echoed.

The Daily Star has approached Birmingham City Council for comment over the resident’s claims.

The council previously said: “We are working hard to improve the condition of the city’s roads and carry our regular inspections.

“We aim to clear fly-tipping within two working days but white goods can take up to 14 days. If we have evidence we will prosecute.”

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