A contract worth over £600,000 has been awarded to complete a cycle path in Bury.

The Woolfold Gap project will complete a missing link in the Kirklees Trail providing an off-road route from Greenmount, Tottington, Woolfold and Brandlesholme to Bury town centre.

Work starts to transform the Kirklees Valley

Much of the trail follows what was the railway line from Bury to Holcombe Brook.

The Kirklees Trail is a 2.5 km shared use path for walkers, cyclists and horseriders.

Councillor Dorothy Gunther, cabinet member for environment and transport at Bury Council, said: “This project has been planned for many years and, with Lottery funding, it’s finally about to become a reality.”

The work is expected to take most of 2011 and will be carried out in two main phases.

The scheme forms part of Sustrans’ Connect2 programme. Sustrans is a sustainable transport charity.

Connect2 was awarded £50m by the Big Lottery Fund in 2007, following a public vote. Part of this grant is being used to fund the project in Bury, alongside funding from Bury Council and Persimmon Homes.

The £654,291 contract has been awarded to Graham.

Twelve schools in Hammersmith and Fulham have a new way to lock up their bikes and grow plants at the same time.

The schools, who work with sustainable transport charity Sustrans to encourage more children to cycle to school, received a ‘Plantlock’ each, to keep pupils bikes secure whilst they are in class.

Plantlock - Pic J Bewley/Sustrans

The Plantlock’s – a steel plant pot with a frame each side to lock a bike to – are designed and made in London, and were a finalist in the Design Museum’s ‘Design of the Year’ Award in 2009.

The schools have received the locks through funding from the borough’s School Travel Team.

Sustrans Bike It officer for Hammersmith and Fulham, Owen Powell, comments, “These Plantlock’s are a brilliantly simple design, lovely to look at and fun to use. Keeping your bike safely locked up is easy to do, and the Bike It schools can grow flowers and vegetables at the same time.”

Sustrans works with 12 schools in the area, in partnership with NHS Hammersmith and Fulham and the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, to help children overcome whatever it is that is preventing them from cycling to school.

Participating schools across England have seen levels of cycling treble within a year– bucking the trend in declining numbers of children cycling to school.

About the Plantlock

The Plantlock is designed and made by the Front Yard Company of London.

Weighing in at around 75kg when fully planted the free standing container is considered to be an “immovable object” to lock bicycles to.  For added security it can be secured to the ground through the base.

The Fens riverscape is dramatically changing with the latest addition of the new Reach Lode Bridge which has just been installed.

The bridge is part of a new walking and cycling network from sustainable transport charity Sustrans who are working with the National Trust to create the Lodes Way – a 14.5 km virtually traffic free greenway.

Reach Lode Bridge - Pic Sustrans

This scheme is one of many new routes being created across the UK by Sustrans to connect communities and make walking and cycling the easy, practical and more sustainable choice for local travel.

Countryside access is restricted in this part of Cambridgeshire by the Lodes, which link the villages with the River Cam.

This new walking and cycling route will make these journeys easier and shorter as well as more memorable,  sustainable and helping to create better links with Wicken Fen and the villages of Burwell, Reach and Lode.

It will also form part of the National Cycle Network, between Cambridge and Wicken Fen,  on the route between Cambridge and Ely.

Designed to blend into the surrounding landscape, the bridge has gently sloping ramps providing easy access for walkers, cyclists  and horse riders.

It is not yet open and is waiting for the completion of the linking paths.

The bridge together with a new walking and cycle path across Burwell Fen will be officially opened on Sunday 12 September.

It will also bridge the gap in Route 11 of the National Cycle Network, between Waterbeach and Wicken Fen, allowing faster access between Cambridge and Ely.

Designed to blend into the surrounding landscape, the bridge has gently sloping ramps providing easy access for walkers, cyclists  and horse riders.

The bridge together with a new walking and cycle path across Burwell Fen will be officially opened on Sunday 12 September.

Nigel Brigham, Sustrans Regional Director said,

“It’s great to see this simple, elegant and practical bridge become a reality so that the communities can start to really use these walking and cycling routes for local journeys”.

This scheme will provide vital links to connect places and people and will give communities more choice about how they travel around this area and how they can do it more sustainably.

Watching the lifting operation with residents of local communities, Chris Soans, Wicken Fen Property Manager said:

“Construction of the bridge has created a great deal of interest in the local communities. The bridge represents a significant step in the development of the Lodes Way”.

For the first time walkers and cyclists will be able to take a cross country route between Wicken Fen and Bottisham and explore new areas of our magnificent countryside.

The anticipated cost of this scheme is in excess of £2.0million, and is being financed with a combination of grants including £600,000 coming from Sustrans using part of a £50m Big Lottery Fund award won in 2007 to create nearly 80 new walking and cycling routes across the UK.

Other funding comes from the Department for Communities and Local Government via its Housing Growth Fund.

It is anticipated that the entire Lodes Way will be completed by 2013.

It has been a busy weekend for Rob Brydon – not only was he honoured at the Bafta Cymru ceremony with the Sian Phillips Award, but he also met a life-size steel version of himself as he paid a visit to a newly installed artwork near his hometown of Port Talbot in South Wales.

Rob Brydon. Pic credit : Peter Knowles

Rob Brydon was chosen to be immortalised in steel alongside acting legend Richard Burton and a local man – forest ranger Dick Wagstaff – all local heroes to the community in the town of Cwmafan near Port Talbot .

The artwork is part of a national project called the Portrait Bench – from sustainable transport charity Sustrans who are one of the largest commissioners of public art in the UK.

This is the first of 80 benches to be installed across the UK on newly created walking and cycling routes.

The bench is accompanied by three life-size effigies of local heroes chosen by the local community to represent them, their culture and their history.

The figures are cut from corten steel (like the famous Angel of the North) so that they will rust and weather to become a natural part of the landscape.

Rob Brydon, said

“This is a great honour and I look forward to offering weary cyclists the chance to catch their breath. I love the thought of becoming part of the landscape alongside Dick Wagstaff and the great Richard Burton. I’m hoping that my  sculpture might be able to persuade Burton’s sculpture to quote some poetry of an evening, or at least a bit of War Of The Worlds.”

Richard Burton’s family have also visited the bench and were thrilled to see Richard  placed in the  Valley he loved so much,

Graham Jenkins – brother of Richard Burton and local man in Cwmafan where the bench was placed, said,

Rob Brydon, Richard Burton and Dick Wagstaff. Pic credit : Peter Knowles

“Its wonderful that my brother will be commemorated in this way – our family are thrilled.

He never forgot where he came from – the Afan Valley – and I know he would be tickled pink to see himself become an actual part of the landscape in.

This portrait is fantastic.

We were born in this Valley and it’s wonderful that the people here have chosen Richard he would have absolutely loved this.

We just live nearby so we are looking forward to coming for walks and maybe having a rest to enjoy the scenery with Richard for company.”

Katy Hallet, Director of Arts at Sustrans and the creative force behind this community art project, said,

“Portraiture is a normal and traditional way for communities to recognise loved and admired ones or people who have inspired them.

These three figures say something about this community and when all 80 benches are installed, there will be over 240 figures to show us snapshots of how communities across the UK see themselves and their history.

Each bench is similar but each is very different.”

The Portrait Benches are part of the Sustrans Connect2 project which is funded using a £50m grant from the Big Lottery Fund.

The charity won a public vote in 2007 to create new walking and cycling routes across the UK to help people make more short local journeys on foot or by bike.

Three local heroes are to be immortalised in a piece of art which will be placed along a new pedestrian and cycle route in the Afan Valley.

Life-size images of the late great Richard Burton CBE, comedian and actor Rob Brydon and local man Dick Wagstaff, will be created in a weathering steel that will decorate a ‘Portrait Bench’ to be placed along a new route connecting Port Talbot to Cwmafon and the Afan Forest.

The Portrait Bench – is a new art initiative from sustainable transport charity – Sustrans – which will soon be appearing all over the UK on newly created routes for pedestrians and cyclists using a £50million grant from the Big Lottery Fund.

Afan Valley residents are the first to choose their local characters for the bench and it will be installed in the spring but each bench will be individual to each community with nearly 80 installed across the UK by 2013.

Sustrans is one of the largest commissioners of public art in the UK with over 2000 original artworks along the 12,000 miles of National Cycle Network.

Graham Jenkins, brother of the late movie legend Richard Burton and local resident, said,
“Its wonderful that my brother will be commemorated in this way – our family are thrilled.

He never forgot where he came from – the Afan Valley – and I know he would be tickled pink to see himself become an actual part of the landscape in which he was born and grew up.”

Example characters showing the design concept. The finished art installation will feature the locally selected characters sited behind a bench - Credit: J Bewley/Sustrans

Rob Brydon, comedian and actor, said
“This is a great honour and I look forward to offering weary cyclists the chance to catch their breath. I love the thought of becoming part of the landscape alongside Dick Wagstaff and the great Richard Burton.

I’m hoping that my sculpture might be able to persuade Burton’s sculpture to quote some poetry of an evening, or at least a bit of War Of The Worlds.”

Dick Wagstaff, Manager Ranger at the Afan Forest Park, said,
“I am so flattered to be a part of this. I’ve worked in the Afan Valley for over 35 years so to be a part of it in a piece of art is a huge honour. I can’t believe my image will be alongside such famous local sons as Burton and Brydon. ”

The three local heroes to adorn the bench were chosen by the local community in Cwmafon.

International acting legend Richard Burton has long been a celebrated local son and Rob Brydon is a much loved comedian and actor still with strong local links in the community.

Local hero Dick Wagstaff has worked at the Afan Forest Park since 1974 and is seen by many people as truly making the area the beautiful place it is today.

Sara Rees, Senior Arts Officer, Sustrans Cymru, said
“It’s great that the Afan Valley is first to choose their Portrait Bench characters.

We can’t wait to see the bench installed in spring and see it really become a part of the landscape.

Sustrans supports public art that local people can see and enjoy every day and the Portrait Bench is a great example of how our everyday journeys can be made attractive and interesting.”

Sustrans part-funded the £2million scheme in Afan Valley with £400,00 from the Big Lottery Fund which was part of £50million grant awarded to the charity in 2007 after winning a national TV vote.

This funding is being used to create many new routes, bridges and greenways for pedestrians and cyclists across the UK so that local communities travel is ways that benefit their health and the environment.

Sustrans has worked alongside Neath Talbot County Borough Council and the Forestry Commission to create this route including a new river bridge near the Afan Forest Park Visitor Centre, and with the Cwmafan Residents Action Committee, a local community group, who have secured funding from BBC Breathing Places and Welsh Assembly Government Tidy Towns for local environmental enhancements.