THE CHARITY behind Warwickshire’s longest traffic-free greenway says it ‘should have been clearer’ when it said the ‘Lias Line’ was linked to the National Cycle Network (NCN).
In July, walking, wheeling and cycling charity Sustrans opened the £5.1million Lias Line – which follows part of the old railway route from which it takes its name – claiming it ‘diverted 2.5 miles of the NCN off road’.
But, responding to claims the route in its current form is ‘a two-mile cul-de-sac,’ the charity has clarified the greenway will not connect to the NCN until the next phase of the project is complete.
Sustrans had claimed the new route created ‘a safer and more direct link between Offchurch Greenway and Long Itchington’.
A 120 metre gap at the western end of the route means it is not yet connected to the National Cycle Network.But a Warwickshire resident told The Observer: “There is no way NCN Route 41 can be diverted onto it right now. The Lias Line ends abruptly about 100 metres before it reaches the Fosse Way – unless there is some way of by-passing the steel barriers, crossing the Fosse Way and then onto the Offchurch Greenway.
“There are no warning signs that it’s a dead-end, telling the cyclist, walker or horse-rider they will have to turn round and re-trace their steps back to Long Itchington.
“The Offchurch Greenway is an overgrown, single-track walkway which cannot be used by the casual cyclist. And there is a difficult detour because of the HS2 workings – they have laid a wide temporary pathway using large, loose stones which are very dangerous to ride over.
“Before NCN Route 41 can be diverted along Offchurch Greenway and Lias Line Greenway, the bridge over the Fosse Way must be built, the existing Lias Line Greenway must be extended to go over this bridge, all the HS2 excavations and detours must be gone, and a great deal of work must be done to bring the Offchurch Greenway up to the same spec as the Lias Line.
“I met so many people on the route who had high expectations, but were totally disappointed with the whole thing.”
A Sustrans spokesman pointed out that its July press release made it clear further work would take place next year to close the 120-metre gap at the western end of the route.
He added: “However, we should have been clearer that the redesignation of the National Cycle Network itself will not take place until the next phase of work is completed, and HS2 has left the site.
“For clarification, this involves work such as the 120 metre gap and the Fosse Way overbridge. These improvements are part of our Paths for Everyone programme, which is helping to bring us one step closer to a National Cycle Network that is safe and accessible for everyone.
“We’re extremely proud of the new greenway we’ve built in Warwickshire. Given the appetite by the local community to get using and enjoying the path, we chose to open the route at the earliest opportunity, and ahead of some aspects completing, such as the new signage. This signage is expected to be in place by the end of September.”
The new greenway follows the ‘branch line’ of the old Lias Line railway route, named after the stone buried beneath it, which closed in 1985 after 134 years of transporting minerals and passengers.
The improvements were largely funded through a government grant, supplemented by further money raised from the British Horse Society, Warwickshire County Council, Warwick District Council and Rugby Borough Council.
In the long-term, and subject to funding, Sustrans plans to make use of the old railway ‘main line’ to create a new off-road track to improve connectivity with Birdingbury, Rugby and other nearby villages. The third and final phase will follow the branch line route south to the Stockton reservoir.
Visit https://tinyurl.com/2p9a5b6x for more information about the Lias Line and Sustrans.
