Work to improve active travel links between County Durham communities along the route the historic Stockton and Darlington Railway is to begin this summer. Durham County Council is investing £7m from its allocation from the government’s Levelling Up Fund to develop new walking and cycling routes along a 19-kilometre stretch of the former railway.
The new routes will be in place ahead of celebrations marking the 200th anniversary of the Stockton and Darlington line in 2025. The routes will involve the creation of walking and cycling paths between Witton Park and its boundary with Darlington Borough, south of Newton Aycliffe. They will take in the train stations of Shildon, Newton Aycliffe and Heighington; and the National Cycle Network as well as linking to Locomotion rail museum. It is also hoped the route will include Gaunless Bridge, the world’s first iron railway bridge, which was designed by ‘father of the railways’ George Stephenson.
We recently secured funding from Historic England for restoration of the bridge’s abutments. A mixture of tarmac paths and dust tracks will be created with Stockton and Darlington Railway-branded waymarker signs along the route. Forty landowners have been engaged while planning the route of the tracks. The work is funded from the £20m the authority received for the Bishop Auckland parliamentary constituency in the first round of the Levelling Up Fund. This money is also contributing to work at Locomotion, including its New Hall development, which will create one of the world’s largest collections of historic railway vehicles.
The council will be running information sessions at settlements along the route prior to work starting. Information on these will be released in due course.
South West Durham News covering news across County Durham.
