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TWO parts of Nantwich have been linked by a
new footbridge which was lifted into place in time for the 12th Nantwich
Jazz, Blues and Music Festival over the Easter weekend.
It was, of course, possible to get between the town centre and Welsh Row
before, but now it is much more direct - particularly if you have parked
on the St Anne's Lane car park off Welsh Row and are going to the
Nantwich Food and Drink Festival in September.
More importantly, it makes the
car park one of town centre ones!
(During the music festival
there are so many venues for gigs that every car park is near to several
places.)
Having parked your car, or
walked in from one of the pubs and food establishments in the street
across the |
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the edge of the car park, a quick walk
over the footbridge and you soon find yourself on Mill Island -
venue of some of the town events - or walking up Mill Street into
town. For the Wood Street car park off the other side of Welsh
Row, the new bridge isn't much use. In fact, it would be out of your
way.
In that case you would walk
across the old stone bridge (vehicles and pedestrians, this time)
over the Weaver at the junction of Welsh Row, High Street and the Waterlode. This is believed to have had a chantry chapel built
astride it in the old days.
Beverley Cope,
Project Manager of
Nantwich Now Market Town Project, confirmed that her organisation
had sourced around £132,000 for the new bridge, working in
partnership with Rural
Enterprise, Nantwich Riverside Project Team, Cheshire County Council
Engineering section, Crewe and Nantwich Borough Council and the
Weaver Valley team at Backford, Chester.
She
added: "We
are currently sourcing funds to replace a large chunk of the old
railings on the Mill Island side and this is looking positive.
''This
will ensure that the ‘grotty section’ near the weir area will look
much better and we will be able to remove the unsightly barriers
that are currently in place (and have been for some time).
"New
lighting will also be inserted along, and by, the bridge and
landscaping will take place to tidy the area up generally."
While I was taking these
pictures, a man in a wheelchair approached the new bridge but
stopped before crossing it. (The approach is a little steeper on the
Mill Island side as that land is lower than the car park side, where
the approach is more level.) "Oh dear," I said. "Is it causing you
problems?" But he replied "No, I am just inspecting the workmanship.
I used to be in the trade." |
