Latest news with #walkway
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
New Botley Road walkway tunnel is on schedule
A new walkway being built by Network Rail contractors will be ready by the end next month. The rail infrastructure company closed the Botley Road at the rail bridge in April 2023, as part of a major scheme to revitalise the station. The project includes replacing the rail bridge, with better access provided for pedestrians and cyclists, creating a new western entrance to the station, and building a new platform to improve East West rail links. The scheme has been hit by repeated delays and the Botley Road is not due to reopen until August next year. READ MORE: Allotments space could be used for Botley Road buses The cost of the project has increased due to the delays, and the £161m total cost has now increased to about £230m, according to rail minister Peter Hendy. However, the pledge to complete a new walkway helping people get past the bridge works, into Frideswide Square, will be completed soon Network Rail bosses are promising. The pathway leading from Botley Road to the square has been reconfigured on numerous occasions to accommodate the ongoing work. A poster advertising the new walkwayA spokesman said: "'Work is progressing well and we are currently on track to open the new wider walkway in Botley Road, improving accessibility for cyclists and pedestrians, at the end of next month.' In a newsletter, residents have been told the first new walkway/cycleway route will open at the north side of bridge at the end of August. The newsletter said: "We're creating a strong, level base for the concrete structure that will support the bridge and carry pedestrians and cyclists underneath. "We've also been making good progress with the retaining wall that will tie in the new railway bridge to the additional track planned as part of the future station expansion. "We've installed sheet piles and drainage - and removed obstructions - ahead of the planned installation of pre-cast concrete sections that will form part of the wall. "This work, in the area of the former YHA building, is needed before we can open the new walkway/cycleway as planned." Work in the Botley Road area has led to buses being diverted into Abbey Road, Cripley Road and Cripley Place so they can turn around. For a short time, after a water main burst, the buses were switched to the Osney Mead industrial estate but now they have returned to the Abbey Road area where residents, including campaigner Julian Le Vay, claim they face several hundred bus movements in the neighbourhood every day. Julian Le VayHe has campaigned to hold Network Rail to account for their failings relating to the scheme, and wrote a booklet documenting the losses of local businesses, and recording the experiences of local residents. He said earlier residents in the Abbey Road area have been left feeling "desperate". A proposal to use a strip of allotments space off Botley Road as a bus turning circle is being considered by Network Rail, as an alternative to buses using the Abbey Road area.
RNZ News
19-07-2025
- General
- RNZ News
$25,000 spent making Wellington bridge more comfortable for dogs
Teddy, a dog. Photo: SHANON STEVENS / SUPPLIED Paw-friendly panels have been added to a new water pipe bridge in Wellington, making it more comfortable for dogs to walk across. Greater Wellington Regional Council completed a new water pipe bridge in the Kaitoke Regional Park late last year. Nick Leggett, chair of Wellington Water - which manages water pipe bridges for the council - said the bridge formed part of a popular walkway loop, and the park was visited by 350,000 people last year. He said the bridge combined "a critical piece of infrastructure with something that people can use and enjoy". But feedback from the community found the bridge walkway's grate design was both uncomfortable and offputting to dogs, who disliked being able to see below and needed more grip. "The feedback was really positive, but it's just that point where you've got [50] percent of the water supply for the Wellington region coming under this bridge but you've also got 350,000 people who use that park, and it's important that both are catered for. "But we can combine critical infrastructure with critical walking infrastructure." Cr Ros Connelly and her dog Cuba, and Wellington Water chair Nick Leggett with his dog Teddy. Photo: SHANON STEVENS / SUPPLIED Work began in 2022 to replace the existing pipe bridge due to age, leaks and a lack of seismic loading resilience. Leggett said the total budget for the bridge was $41 million and the panels cost $25,000. "Within that wider budget that's pretty small, but it is still significant - and it's significant for the people [who] will get the benefit of walking across the bridge with their dogs." Leggett and his dog Teddy, a black Cavoodle, tested the bridge on Friday, along with Greater Wellington regional councillor Ros Connelly and her dog, Cuba. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
CBS News
15-07-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
Colorado governor wants public input on proposed pedestrian bridge outside the Colorado State Capitol Building
Gov. Jared Polis wants Coloradans' opinions about a proposed new pedestrian bridge outside the Colorado State Capitol. The proposed walkway from the Capitol across Lincoln Street and into Veterans Park is expected to cost up to ($18 or) $28 million. Polis launched a statewide survey about the plans at "Now is the time where we have to figure out is this going to happen or not," Polis told CBS News Colorado's Shaun Boyd. "So, what do people want? Do they want to see a celebrate 150th with a 150 walkway? Do they want small projects in other parts the state? Or do they want nothing at all?" People on social media have criticized the bridge since the Capitol Building Advisory Committee agreed in an 8-4 vote to refer the project to the legislature's Capitol Development Committee. One person on Instagram wrote, "Like putting a bumper sticker on a Ferrari."
BBC News
10-07-2025
- BBC News
New pedestrian-priority route planned in St Helier
A new pedestrian-priority route is to be created in St government's Infrastructure and Environment (I&E) department said the continuous walkway would be created across the King Street and New Street for Infrastructure Constable Andy Jehan said the previous traffic arrangements on New Street and New Cut would be changed for an initial 12-month trial main change would be the removal of access across Kind Street for buses and taxis, along with a minor alteration to permitted access times for commercial unloading, he said. I&E said a recent traffic survey showed during core retail hours about 50% of vehicles using the route were taxis and 8% were said removing access to these vehicles would support pedestrian safety and reduce pedal cycles and essential commercial deliveries between 20:00 GMT and 10:00 will be permitted to cross King Street via New Cut under the taxi rank locations were being sought in town, he said, but the rank at Library Place would said the number of blue badge car parking spaces would not be affected and a map of blue badge spaces across the island would soon be issued.A more in-depth look at the work on New Street would be published shortly, he added.
RNZ News
14-06-2025
- RNZ News
New bridge, walkway protecting historic Hauranga Pā in Taranaki opens
NPDC project delivery manager Sean Cressy says it's great to get the project over the line. Photo: Supplied/NPDC A new bridge and walkway protecting the historic Hauranga Pā site near Ōākura in Taranaki has opened. The project, led by New Plymouth District Council in collaboration with mana whenua and the Kaitake Community Board, focused on a walkway given the name Te Ara Tahuri Hau (pathway of wind changes), which was supported by a rock revetment protecting the wāhi tapu site and allowing access around the headland at high tide. It also included a replacement for the footbridge over the Whenu Ariki Stream destroyed during ex-tropical Cyclone Dovi in 2022. Ngāti Tairi and Ngā Mahanga hapū raised concern that people crossing the pā were damaging it, a claim supported by two archaeologists' reports. As a result, informal walking and cycle trails had developed, damaging the pā , a heavily populated site in pre-European times, and exposing archaeological features. New Plymouth District Council - which managed the Weld Road Coastal Reserve - approved a $570,000 bridge, rockwall and walkway traversing the headland in 2021 and Taranaki Regional Council consents were granted last year . The completed project cost about $2 million, with about $440,000 of funding from the NZ Transport Agency. Ngāti Tairi representative Keith Manukonga says Hauranga Pā is one of the largest pā in the Tataraimaka district. Photo: Supplied/NPDC NPDC project delivery manager Sean Cressy said it was great to get the project over the line. "A lot of time and effort has gone into protecting the sensitive heritage and ecology of the site, and we've had widespread community and hapū support for the new bridge and walkway, which showcases our historic and scenic coastline for locals and visitors. "NPDC is committed to protecting the historic Hauranga Pā, so we designed the bridge and pathway together as a great route for walkers and cyclists to enjoy the coast while still respecting the archaeological and wāhi tapu site. "The sensitive coastal environment required extensive technical input into the project." Ngāti Tairi representative Keith Manukonga said Hauranga Pā was one of the largest pā in the Tataraimaka district, and held deep cultural and historical significance to mana whenua. "Te Ara Tahuri Hau will help people to respect this site and its significance. It's a very nice walkway and we trust people will use it and enjoy it.". Cressy said the construction window was tight to work around the penguins and other wildlife during nesting seasons. Ramps and handrails on the new bridge were built with help from seven Taranaki students in the Build a Bridge training programme, a partnership of NPDC, WITT Te Pūkenga and the building industry to give teenagers valuable job skills. Cressy said in recent years, it has been a popular link for walkers and cyclists between the Timaru and Whenu Ariki streams, and this was regarded as a risk to the site's archaeological features. On the new shared pathway, cyclists must walk their bikes around for the safety of other users. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
