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WITH the arrival of better weather (apart from
a cold set-back) I ventured,
camera in hand, to the river bank of the town's waterway, the Weaver. One
of the things I saw was the "wire walk" that carries the
riverside path under the Nantwich to Shrewsbury railway line.
After some delay, the section of
footpath
was
finally completed. But - as I reported in  January - dog owners were
complaining that the widened footpath under the bridge was not canine
friendly.
There is a wire mesh footway for
the pedestrians to walk on and a
special solid path for the dogs - but not near to the wall where, it
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seems, dogs like to walk! Also, the walkers
said they and their pets had to give way to cyclists.
This suggests the
riders were using the "doggy path" - although the report in the Nantwich Chronicle
of January 11 didn't say as much!
Left, you can see the
"wire walk" passing under the railway line.
That "tie-shaped" object in the centre of the
walk is the solid path for dogs - also used by cyclists(!). Actually, why
can't the solid part have a dog symbol at the end of it (below left) in the same way
that cycle lanes by roadways are marked with a cycle?
 The picture,
left, is a view looking down
on the tricky open mesh part of the walkway which is a threat to paws
and claws.
Through it can be seen the river.
I would not be surprised to hear that some people cannot look down as
they use this part of the riverside walk.
I have a friend who
cannot cross a bridge if it
is
slatted - that is, it has gaps in it through which
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she can see the water below. As I took these pictures I was met by a
small dog happily walking along the solid way (not a cyclist in
sight) and it didn't seem at all bothered by not walking against the
wall. Makes a change from what dogs normally do against walls. There was a short interval
before the owner appeared (above) with a second dog on a lead, but
whether this was because the first dog had walked on ahead, or the owner
had stopped to put the second dog on a lead before tackling the river
crossing I don't know.
l
See the
January 2006 letter.
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CHANGES have now been made to the cycle and walkway
- as it is now called - and both sides should be happy.
As promised by former Nantwich Councillor Edith Williams,
who was a Crewe and Nantwich Borough Councillor until last May's
elections, the gap between the central walkway and the wall
has been filled in with a stretch of metal and two-thirds of the path
coated with what looks to me like gravel.
Earlier this year, Mrs Williams told me: "It's a
wonderful solution. Common sense has prevailed." She has pledged to keep
an eye on the situation.
As I confirmed with a man
and woman in the area, the path is now wider.
What looks like a solid
pathway is, in fact, suspended on the wire path way. Held up by cantilever
brackets, the man assured me.
Dogs seemed much happier about walking on
the area.
No cyclists appeared to give me their views. |
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NEARBY- although perhaps I shouldn't be too
precise about the location in case there are any local vandals reading
this (!) - I found an example of the Nantwich in
Bloom Committee being hard at work.
More hanging flower baskets?
A clean-up
of an untidy area? A spot of mass replanting? A little
arm-twisting on reluctant land owners? No. None of these.
The people who have helped to
bring about success for the town in the Britain in Bloom competition
(ably assisted by the town's gardeners, of course!) have been putting up
bird nesting boxes.
It seems there is more to
blooming success than flowers. Nesting boxes and the residents - as part of the general
floral ambience of an area - are some of the things the judges look for! More power
to the Committee's collective elbows.
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