The photo above shows an area on the Kennebunk Sand Plains where ground-water sapping has resulted in a large gully containing a spring. Many small hillslope springs have been developed near roads in Maine. Often, a pipe is driven into the hill to help concentrate the discharge so that passers by can use the spring. The Maine Drinking Water Program has an interesting web page discussing these springs. In some cases, the road itself may focus ground water discharge.
Road cuts are good opportunities to observe man-made springs.
These springs also demonstrate that ground water flows through the fractures in bedrock. The picture above is taken from the water science page of the U.S. Geological Survey. It shows the concentration of discharge from fractures in the bedrock on a road cut. Water can also find its way to the surface through natural bedrock fractures, or through a sand layer sandwiched between clay layers. These more permeable collectors, again, serve to focus the flow of ground water so that it flows from a small area instead of seeping from the entire hillside.