Cycle route connecting two coastal towns set for improvements

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00:00Hello once again people of Somerset, it's Daniel Mumby here, your local democracy reporter

00:07for our third and final attempt at live streaming from Burnham-on-Sea this morning. It's not

00:13always possible to do a full reconnaissance when doing these live streams, you kind of

00:17assume that there'll be a certain amount of signal all along the route you wish to walk

00:21and 95% of the time we've been lucky but this is one of those times where we've fallen a

00:27apologies that our previous two attempts kicked you out after a few minutes or a few seconds.

00:32I had originally intended to walk along National Cycle Network route 33 aka the stop line way

00:40all the way from Pearse Street on the seafront of Burnham-on-Sea round Apex Park which is off

00:45in that direction round those bends we're just alongside the River Brew here and then coming

00:50out on the River Brew in Highbridge to basically talk about the possible investment in the future

00:56of this path under the Somerset Council local transport plan which is going out for consultation.

01:01I've decided in light of the fact that the signal keeps dropping out and I don't want to try your

01:05patience I'm just going to take a seat here on this bench overlooking the brew estuary with all

01:09of these boats hanging around I believe that's the Burnham-on-Sea sailing club and we'll talk

01:14about things from here for a few minutes just so you can get all the information that you need

01:17hopefully the wind doesn't pick up too much so that we can have a pleasant discussion. As per

01:23usual if you have questions as we go along drop them in the comments and I'll try not to disturb

01:27the various ladies and gentlemen as they come along the path let me know if you're out in

01:31Burnham-on-Sea and if you're around this section of the River Brew in the next 5-10 minutes by all

01:35means come and find me we'll have a drink together. So just to recapitulate if you didn't see the first

01:40stream and like I say we had so many signal problems that I don't blame you if you didn't

01:44Somerset Council has published its local transport plan which essentially lays out the possible

01:49improvements that it's going to make to Somerset transport network over the next 10 to 15 years

01:54and that plan includes road improvements it includes new railway stations and the associated

01:59infrastructure it includes walking and cycling links like the stop line way that we are sitting

02:04on at the moment as well as more so to say less intensive measures looking into traffic calming

02:11and parking measures and so on and so forth obviously parking is quite a hot potato subject

02:16at the moment given the possibility of parking fees across the county going up or being

02:20standardized as part of the upcoming budget but we're not talking about that today what we're

02:25talking about today and the reason I've come out to Burnham aside from the fact that it's a beautiful

02:28February morning and not actually that bitterly cold which makes a huge difference is the local

02:34transport plan does make a in-principle commitment to improving this section of National Cycle

02:40Network route 33 which if you take the whole section it runs from the edge of Western Supermayor

02:46down the seafront at Burnham round into Highbridge and then down through into Bridgewater and

02:51eventually through Chard and Ilminster not in that order and ending up on the East Devon coast at

02:56Seton I thoroughly recommend exploring it certainly the Chard and Ilminster stretches which we have

03:01live streamed in the past they are really picturesque a lot of it forms the forms the older

03:06railway lines that were taken up as a result of the beaching cuts in the mid-60s and they've been

03:10beautifully preserved in no small part thanks to Sustrans which is the government's active travel

03:15charity now like I say the the National the local transport plan that Somerset Council has put out

03:21it doesn't make a specific funding commitment to a specific scheme but what it does do is it makes

03:28an in-principle commitment to improving certain areas and then as a result of public consultation

03:33and any feasibility studies that are needed doing these schemes will take shape over the coming

03:38months and years so I'm just going to read you the relevant section of the transport plan with

03:43relation to this part of Burnham and there is a whole section I recommend reading it in full it

03:48is a 50-page document so I appreciate you might not get through it in one sitting even as a

03:53government journalist it's quite tricky to wade through but there is a whole section on improving

03:58transport links within coastal towns like Burnham and Highbridge and within that is a commitment to

04:04walking and cycling links and this is what the plan says I will read it

04:10our coastal towns provide a vibrant economy based on tourism and holidays we know there

04:14is a thriving economy that uses the sea as a valuable resource for people visiting the local

04:18area that supports fishing and pleasure boats and it is important that these areas continue

04:22to have access to the water and to enable deliveries and services this is the relevant

04:25part of what we're talking about there are high levels of walking and cycling to access work

04:29services and leisure in Burnham-on-Sea and Highbridge benefit from the National Cycle

04:33Network 33 active travel route which joins them together with an aspiration to extend

04:38the route to Bridgewater. New development presents an opportunity to provide EV charging as well as

04:44further walking cycling and public transport links to and through the towns and there is also

04:48a section there which talks about step-free access at Highbridge and Burnham railway station on the

04:53other side of the town. Further into the plan there is a specific commitment to upgrading the surfacing

04:59and lighting of National Cycle Network 33 between Burnham and Highbridge as well as junction and

05:04highway improvements for active travel and you can just pan across here the actual surface

05:09and this section of the path is a little stony and bobbly uneven you can easily get a mountain

05:13bike through it but it's a little bit tricky otherwise if we sort of squint into the distance

05:21there is a sort of more pockmarked tarmac section that runs up onto the beach front

05:26itself and then that's all smooth concrete and tarmac up to the pier so it is uneven to say the

05:32least but you can get a mobility scooter and a wheelchair along here just as easily. So there is

05:38an in-principle commitment to that like I say Somerset Council as we have reported extensively

05:42is not in great financial shape it doesn't have a spare million quid or two kicking around

05:46to enhance this under its own steam however this section of cycle route is different because it is

05:53part of the National Cycle Network and therefore it falls under the remit of Sustrans

05:58and a recent announcement from the Department of Transport provided an extra 30 million pounds in

06:04the coming financial year to Sustrans to deliver improvements across the National Cycle Network.

06:09Now we don't yet know how much of that will be coming to Somerset in particular or the

06:13southwest in general but we do know that will fund capital works across the southwest it's

06:19not designed just for maintenance of fixing surfacing issues that are already there it's

06:23about creating new routes as well and we had a couple of statements through in support of that

06:28funding first of all from the National Active Travel Commissioner Chris Boardman and here's

06:33what he had to say making it simple and safe to walk wheel or cycle to schools and shops and

06:38workplaces is one of the most effective actions we can take to improve the nation's health

06:42economy and get to net zero all in one free exercise zero emissions and no risk of getting

06:48stuck in traffic are benefits already being enjoyed as standard by our European neighbours

06:53and it's time we had the same life improving choices this funding will help make our towns

06:57cities and villages happier healthier and greener places to live we also had a statement through

07:03from Simon Lightwood who is the Minister for Local Transport and he said walking and cycling is an

07:08affordable way to get around and it's hugely beneficial for both mental and physical health

07:12we're making sure local authorities deliver high quality and easily accessible schemes for everyone

07:17investing in our local cycling and walking infrastructure is a key part of our mission

07:21for growth and today's investment will not only provide better connectivity but boost

07:26local businesses grow local economies and ease pressure on the NHS helping to deliver the

07:30government's plan for change Simon Lightwood there the previous statement by Chris Boardman

07:35that gives you a good comprehensive overview of where the funding could be spent and what is being

07:41targeted towards it's all very much about health and well-being as well as economic growth

07:46and like you say this this whole section you can see we're sort of right on the fringes of

07:51Burnham-on-Sea so it's relatively easy to navigate it in the daytime and to take in

07:55the wonderful scenery you might also be able to see the Hinkley Point construction just in

07:59the distance but I think there'll be many people in this community or who visit the town whether

08:04for business or tourism or just to take out with the family who would welcome some extra

08:08investment in this route making it easier to get from one side of Burnham-on-Sea round the

08:14Bureau Estuary and checking out Highbridge as well it would also give Highbridge's economy a

08:18shot in the arm I imagine bringing some people round from Burnham and all the people who are

08:23moving into the new housing estates on the eastern part of Highbridge it forms part of

08:26that wider network allowing people to get to work or school or medical appointments much easier

08:33so that's about it for me today I mean I like I say I had intended that we would

08:36we would walk and talk like we usually do like we did on the Steam Coast Trail

08:40last weekend turns out that Washford has better 4G than Burnham-on-Sea and that surprises me as

08:46much as anything it would surprise you but hopefully this has given you a good background

08:51gist as it were of why I'm out here and what improvements could be coming to this part of

08:56Burnham-on-Sea thank you very much for your company and if you've missed any part you can

09:00obviously scroll back through just to let you know under new Facebook guidelines any live stream

09:06video that we post is only going to be available for 30 days but rest assured we are looking at

09:10ways to download that and keep them on our websites in perpetuity so if you need to access

09:14this content you can and I shall be back on Tuesday morning all being well for another live stream

09:20again talking about act to travel but this time we're going to be up in Glastonbury

09:24just on the edge of Glastonbury walking to Wales and hopefully the 4G gods will be kind but in the

09:30meantime from the edge of Burnham-on-Sea on a sunny February morning this is Daniel Mumby your local

09:34Democracy Report

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