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BBC News
3 days ago
- General
- BBC News
Plans to fill in Queensbury Tunnel move forward
National Highways has confirmed it will spend £7.5m filling in Queensbury Tunnel in West Yorkshire, which would prevent it from being converted into the country's longest underground organisation said the work was necessary to "stabilise the tunnel safely and securely," adding that proposals to restore and reopen the route would cost £ from Queensbury Tunnel Society have spent more than a decade developing plans for the 1.4-mile former railway tunnel to be reopened as a greenway that could link Bradford and the Department for Transport has supported plans to seal the 1870s structure and said restoration would be too expensive. National Highways took control of the England's disused former railway structures after the privatisation of British organisation has already spent £7.2m between 2018 and 2021 to strengthen the tunnel to prevent parts of it the time, the body said the work was to "ensure that any future plans for the structure can be realised".The organisation has said it would be too expensive to restore the route, but a Queensbury Tunnel Society spokesperson said the £22m figure was excessively high because National Highways want to "gold-plate" the society argued that a study by engineering consultancy AECOM in 2018 found that the tunnel could be repaired for £6.9m. Society spokesperson Graeme Bickerdike said: "The £7.5m that is going to be spent on abandonment could be spent on repairs to make it greenway ready."What we're proposing is a really ambitious active travel network, and nobody's under illusions about how dauting that is in terms of financing it."But you break it down into manageable chunks and spend the money when it's available, rather than the tunnel being lost forever."National Highways said the tunnel would be stabilised by pumping material into ventilation shafts 400 ft above the structure but a spokesperson said "we will not be infilling or demolishing the tunnel".When asked if the work would make the tunnel inaccessible and prevent it from being converted into a greenway, the spokesperson said: "Yes, that's an accurate summary."The government-owned company will now seek planning consent from Bradford Council to carry out the Queensbury Tunnel Campaign has been exploring the possibility of a judicial review that would examine the lawfulness of the decision. Listen to highlights from West Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North.
Irish Times
23-07-2025
- General
- Irish Times
Galway farmer granted permission to challenge Greenway purchase decision ‘splitting' his farm
A Galway farmer has been granted permission to challenge a compulsory purchase order (CPO) made by An Coimisiún Pleanála (ACP) to construct a cycleway that he says would run across his land and 'split' his farm. He has claimed the route built under the Connemara Greenway Project would make his farmlands – in his family since the 1940s – 'unmanageable and landlocked'. At the High Court, lawyers for Oliver Joyce, of Emloughmore, Clifden, Co Galway, successfully applied to Ms Justice Emily Farrell to challenge the ACP's decision to grant a May 2025 compulsory purchase order (CPO) to Galway County Council relating to lands he owns at Doireliagh, Doireclunlaigh, Clifden, in Co Galway. The project aims to install a cycle and walkway going from Galway city to Clifden over 76km (47 miles) that would go through 'the backbone' of Mr Joyce's property along the old Galway-to-Clifden railway line, he claimed. READ MORE Mr Oliver has taken the challenge against ACP's decision to approve the compulsory acquisition, with Galway County Council named as a notice party. In court papers, Mr Oliver said he was conscious that his farmlands were located in a 'highly sensitive environment', which includes marshland and hilled areas that form part of the Connemara Bog Complex SAC, a conservation area. The plaintiff submitted the practice of farming the lands through generations of his family was done 'in perfect symmetry with the environment' and that he is 'very passionate and concerned about this'. Mr Oliver claimed that when the project was first proposed by the council, it was to be carried out on a permissive basis such that the council would be facilitated in accessing the lands, but the lands would remain in his ownership and open so stock could travel across both sides of the farm. He submitted that his lands have a mix of soil types and this variety was essential, in that each part is integrated and grazed with the marshy area providing water during dry periods and the hilly areas providing respite during inclement weather conditions. Mr Oliver said the project, as approved by the granting, was different from the original, in that it now envisages a wider walk and cycleway. He submitted that he was assured by the council that the lands would remain open for stock to travel and that any fencing would only be constructed when they were required by the landowner and that the application to ACP was one based on his permission. Mr Oliver claimed he understood the project to initially comprise of a 2.5m-wide (8.2ft) 'informal track of a type that one would see in the countryside', but that the more recent, larger scheme now involved a 3.5m-wide (11.5ft) asphalt track with full fencing involving 'sheep wire and barbed wire'. The plaintiff said he was 'shocked' that after an initial agreement on the scheme, Galway County Council then said they would 'accept nothing less than full ownership' and sought the CPO. Mr Oliver argued that the 'fundamental basis of the scheme has been turned on its head' by the CPO and that the decision to do so was 'taken without cause or justification'. He further claimed that environmental assessments carried out and submitted to ACP related to the original scheme and that the new elements that arose in the CPO scheme were not previously considered for environmental impact. Ms Justice Farrell granted leave for the judicial review to Michael O'Donnell BL, instructed by Harrington & Co solicitors – for Mr Oliver – and adjourned the matter to September.
BreakingNews.ie
23-07-2025
- General
- BreakingNews.ie
Galway farmer granted permission to challenge Greenway purchase decision 'splitting' his farm
A Galway farmer has been granted permission to challenge a compulsory purchase order made by planning authority An Coimisiún Pleanála (ACP) to construct a cycleway under the Connemara Greenway Project that he says would run across his land and "split" his farm, making it "unmanageable and landlocked". At the High Court, lawyers for Oliver Joyce, Emloughmore, Clifden, Co Galway, successfully applied to Ms Justice Emily Farrell to challenge the decision of ACP to grant a May 2025 compulsory purchase order (CPO) to Galway County Council relating to lands he owns at Doireliagh, Doireclunlaigh, Clifden, Co Galway. Advertisement The project aims to install a cycle and walkway going from Galway city to Clifden over 76 kilometres that would go through "the backbone" of Mr Joyce's property along the old Galway-to-Clifden railway line, he claims. Mr Oliver has taken the challenge against ACP's decision to approve the compulsory acquisition with Galway County Council named as a notice party. Mr Oliver, in court papers, submits that the lands in question have been in his family since the 1940s and that he is conscious that his farmlands are located in a "highly sensitive environment" that includes marshland and hilled areas that form part of the Connemara Bog Complex SAC, a conservation area. The plaintiff submits the practice of farming the lands through generations of his family was done "in perfect symmetry with the environment" and that he is "very passionate and concerned about this". Advertisement Mr Oliver claims that when the project was first proposed by the council, it was to be carried out on a permissive basis such that the council would be facilitated in accessing the lands but the lands would remain in his ownership and open so stock could travel across both sides of the farm. He submits that his lands have a mix of soil types comprising wet marsh land and dry hilly areas. He said this variety is essential in that each part is integrated and grazed with the marshy area providing water during dry periods and the hilly areas providing respite during inclement weather conditions. Mr Oliver says the project, as approved by the granting is different to the original, in that it now envisages a wider walk and cycle way. Fencing fencing and barbed wire will run for 2.8km, "splitting" the farm and making it "landlocked" and "unmanageable" as stock moves between the two portions of land on a daily basis. He submits that he was assured by the council that the lands would remain open for stock to travel and that any fencing would only be constructed when they were required by the landowner and that the application to ACP was one based on his permission. Advertisement Mr Oliver claims he understood the project to initially comprise of a 2.5 metre-wide "informal track of a type that one would see in the countryside" but that the more recent, larger scheme now involved a 3.5 metre-wide asphalt track with full fencing involving "sheep wire and barbed wire". Ireland Peter McVerry Trust seeks injunctions against alle... Read More The plaintiff says he was "shocked" that after an initial agreement on the scheme, Galway County Council then said they would "accept nothing less than full ownership" and sought the CPO. Mr Oliver argues that the "fundamental basis of the scheme has been turned on its head" by the CPO and that the decision to do so was "taken without cause or justification". He further claims that environmental assessments carried out and submitted to ACP related to the original scheme and that the new elements that arose in the CPO scheme were not previously considered for environmental impact. Ms Justice Farrell granted leave for the judicial review to Michael O'Donnell BL, instructed by Harrington & Co solicitors - for Mr Oliver - and adjourned the matter to September.
BBC News
23-07-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Campaigners seek judicial review to save Queensbury Tunnel
Campaigners hoping to convert a disused railway tunnel into a cycleway are raising funds for a judicial review after the government ruled the scheme was too of the Queensbury Tunnel Society met Transport Minister Lilian Greenwood in a last-ditch attempt to reverse the decision, but were told the tunnel would be effectively sealed Tunnel closed in 1956 and was part of a line that linked Bradford and Halifax with a branch to Department for Transport (DfT) said: "This has been a difficult decision but ultimately, we have a responsibility to safety and delivering value for the taxpayer." A judicial review would see judges examine the lawfulness of the McWilliam, leader of the society, said: "We are talking about seven-and-a-half million pounds to permanently destroy the tunnel."Her (the minister's) reason is that there's a safety issue, which we don't accept."The only way to do it is to close the tunnel, which we don't accept."She said there isn't any money to restore the tunnel. We accept that, but there could be at some point in the future."The tunnel could just be left as it is, there is no urgency."She said the society needed to raise £6,500 initially to allow solicitors to prepare a submission to start the case for a judicial said: "If we progress through to a judicial review then it would cost a hell of a lot of money, around £60,000." The DfT said the continued deterioration of the Queensbury Tunnel meant National Highways had been instructed to carry out works to maintain public absence of local funding to develop it as a transport link was also a factor in the decision-making process, a spokesperson said. Re-use of the tunnel as a greenway was first proposed as a Tour de France legacy scheme in 2014 after the Grand Départ of the world-famous cycle race was held in Highways inherited the tunnel after the privatisation of British Rail and abandonment would reduce its 2018 and 2021 it spent £7.2m on strengthening the tunnel, saying the work would "prevent further uncontrolled collapses, ensuring that any future plans for the re-use of the structure can be realised".But it started filling the 1.4-mile (2.25km) tunnel with gravel in 2021 to prevent collapse. Listen to highlights from West Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North.
BBC News
22-07-2025
- General
- BBC News
Council to decide on plans to stop on-street parking on Ely road
Plans to stop on-street parking on part of a city road have received more than 100 objections. Cambridgeshire County Council will discuss a proposal to paint double yellow lines in Lynn Road, traffic regulation order (TRO) was made by Orchards Green developer, Hopkins Homes, so it could create a pavement and City of Ely Council objected to the plans and said it would "not be suitable for this stretch of road" due to the loss of on-street parking for residents. However, the county council pointed out the developer had to deliver an off-site cycleway scheme on Lynn Road, from the junction with Egremont Street to King Edgar Close, to adhere to planning permission double yellow lines would enable this by preventing parking, allowing the pavement to be widened. East Cambridgeshire District Council shared support for the plans, said the Local Democracy Reporting were also 20 responses in support of the plans, which said the cycle lane would "benefit more people than existing on-street parking".The City of Ely Council said it expected to see a cycle route from the development to the city centre, but encouraged the district council and county council "to find an alternative route".An objection due to safety concerns was also raised by the charity Cycling said the shared-use path would cause "disquiet to all users" and would not guarantee an increase in safe was also backlash to the plans from 109 people, with the loss of on-street parking being their main council officers have recommended rejecting the application following a "significant" number of added that the loss of on-street parking would be "particularly significant" for people living between 46 and 76 Lynn Road, as there was no alternative off-street application will be considered by councillors on 28 July. Follow Cambridgeshire news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
