The 19th-century granite trackway along Commercial Road

Commercial Road was constructed at the beginning of the 19th century to connect London's docks with the City.

As Jago Hazzard explains in this video, a smooth granite trackway was constructed along the road in 1828 or thereabouts to speed the flow of goods away from the docks.

When the trackway was taken up is even less clear, but in 1840 a conventional railway that ran parallel to Commercial Road was opened, reducing the need for it. The road, which was opened as a privately owned toll road, was taken into public ownership in the 1860s.

You can support Jago's videos via his Patreon page. And why not subscribe to his YouTube channel? I know I do.