SINCE the 1970s Colchester’s Crouch Street has been a shopping experience of two halves.

The construction of the Balkerne Hill bypass saw a pedestrian underpass also arrive which links the two sides of Crouch Street.

These images from the past four decades show how the street scene has changed but some things do remain the same.

For a start, it has held on to its unique short stay parking spaces despite occasions when there was a real threat of losing them.

And while some businesses have come and gone, others such as H Guntons have weathered the ups and down of the retail world.

The grocery store was opened in 1936 by the late Herbert Gunton.