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08
Jan 2024
Plan for River Wharfe footbridge withdrawn
A plan to build a footbridge over the River Wharfe to connect West Yorkshire with North Yorkshire has been withdrawn.
The proposal was submitted by volunteer group Burley Bridge Association. The group said there have been hopes of building a bridge over this section of the Wharfe for 120 years.
Currently, there is a public right of way connecting the two banks of the river between Burley-in-Wharfedale and Askwith on the edge of the Harrogate district and walkers have to navigate a series of stepping stones.
The association lodged proposals for a footbridge to both North Yorkshire Council and Bradford Metropolitan Council in November 2023.
At the time, the group said the bridge would provide a safe route for walkers over the river which would then connect to its 42-mile Yorkshire Heritage Way trail that links Bradford with Ripon.
It said:
However, the plans have now been withdrawn.
Read more:
- New footbridge over River Wharfe proposed
- ‘Don’t waste our time’ — firefighters issue plea to wild campers
In comments submitted to North Yorkshire Council, Dan McAndrew, principal ecologist at the authority, raised concern that the river is a designated UK priority habitat, which includes "in channel gravel bank features".
While Mr McAndrew acknowledged that the bridge would offer a “sustainable and accessible” route for walkers, he added that the Environment Agency recommends that “in-channel impacts should be avoided through the provision of a single span bridge”.
He said:
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