If you visit the Hempstead Valley Shopping centre from Hempstead Road you might have spotted signs for Chapel Lane that joins it to Hempstead Valley Drive but this tiny section is all that remains of the original Chapel Lane that ran from Hempstead to Bredhurst. The name is derived from the old Lidsing Chapel that once stood next to the current allotments opposite the Marks & Spencer store on Hempstead Valley Drive. Lidsing Chapel - St Mary Magdalene Chapel by ALAN WARD
When Hempstead Valley was originally opened in 1978 Chapel Lane was incorporated into Hempstead Valley Drive and then ran off to the right hand side of the road prior to the roundabout.
The photo below was taken on Chapel Lane looking towards Hempstead Valley. M&S would now be to the left of the buildings shown and Hempstead Valley Road runs across the picture below the fence.
The photo below shows the roundabout for Sharsted Way junction with Hempstead Valley Drive. Chapel Lane is to the left of the picture. The photo above was taken to the left of the wooden fence that goes across the frame.
Interestingly Google Maps still shows Chapel Lane in its original location despite the road not being there for nearly 40 years. It does however usefully show what the route of the road was before it closed. As you can see from the map below Chapel Lane heads directly away from Savacentre towards Lidsing and joins up with Forge Lane to go across the M2 motorway bridge to Bredhurst and The Street.
This isn't the first route that Chapel Lane took. Until the M2 motorway was opened in 1963 Chapel Lane ran directly from Hempstead to Bredhurst and ended up at the Bell public house. You can see the route veering off at right angles to the currently marked Chapel Lane and both sides of the road meeting with the M2 in between.
The close up view is clearer below
For years there was a sign on Chapel Lane as a dead end road as a drive out of Hempstead so I finally stopped and got a few photos back in 2012. This was a road that I remember driving down when I was learning to drive and shortly afterwards was closed. I've not found any information why Chapel Lane in Hempstead was closed to traffic in 1987 but most of the road remains in place with just a gate blocking the entry. The yellow sign is no longer present but the road is still blocked off and no longer exists as you reach the woods before Hempstead Valley.
Chapel Lane Hempstead runs from Forge Lane (which leads to Bredhurst) near the junction with Lidsing Road through Chapel Hill Woods and joins Hempstead Valley drive near Savacentre/Hempstead Valley shopping centre M&S entrance. The road is still shown on Google maps with no indication of its closure. The road is narrow and maybe was unsuitable for large numbers of vehicles but would ease traffic on the Capstone Road/Hempstead Road junctions.
Some more information about Chapel Lane and the Chapel of St Mary Magdalene, Lydsing is here Lidsing Chapel - St Mary Magdalene Chapel by ALAN WARD
