The Manorway at 100 Project (South Essex)

[Claira42]

Dear all, my name is Lisa Sargent and I would like to tell you about a project that I am looking at having local companies, councils, lottery fund and anyone with an interest to help, see this project come to fruition.

The project, which will be called The Manorway@100 Project, will see the combining of a current cycle route through Stanford-le-Hope, Essex, using the Manorway's shared cycle path from Hardie Park and continuing along the Manorway to Coryton roundabout. From there, a new connection will take you out over the Fobbing marshes to Wat Tyler Park in Pitsea, by the use of a specifically made bridge over Vange creek from Fobbing Sluice gate, like the one seen at London Gateway today.

This route will take cyclists away from the many dangerous roads around the area and place them on a dedicated cycleway to Pitsea and Canvey, due its connection potential on that side of the creek, of which the local cycling community have been crying out to be made available for many years.

Suitable cycling surfaces will be provided for over the marshes and fencing will be erected to help keep cattle from straying onto the path and destroying it. Farmers gates, with full access and kissing gates for walkers will be available. It is hoped that connections to the footpaths leading to the World War 2 bombing decoy can be made more accessible, along with the path to Fobbing, which will have onward information boards in view available for the user to decide what options are available to them plus also explaining the history of the area.

I am in the process of writing up a more suitable prospectus, but I am currently writing to everyone whom might have an interest in this project. Especially local companies and councils whom would like to help fund this project and bring it into fruition. This route connects with many walkers routes and could become a proper accessible path to Wat Tyler Park and beyond, which is greatly needed today.

I know that this route could easily become a big part of the local and national cycleway and it is hoped to have this route up and running by the time the Manorway is 100 years old in 2025.

If you require any further information, please contact me by the email below, thank you.


Regards, Ms Lisa Sargent.

E: manorway100@gmail.com

[atlas_shrugged]

Really good initiative - well done.

Re cattle I would advise seeing what they do about this in Cambridge. The paths are open and cattle can wander on and off the paths and have never been known to be a problem. Mini cattle grids are used to keep cattle to their zones and permit walkers and cyclists to cross. IMHO this system works well and also allows disabled access. Farmers gates are not good in this respect - if they do not exclude cyclists then they certainly slow them down.

What is the total length of this path (roughly)?

[Claira42]

Hi, thanks for your email.

I have not been able to measure it yet but the whole of the Manorway is over 4 miles long and I believe it's about another half mile onto the marshes. So, it could be around six miles for the whole route, maybe a little more to Canvey.

Thanks for the info on not putting up fencing, it's just that the farmer has put fencing up that restricts where people can walk so they don't upset their cattle, so I thought I would reciprocate in case of any problems along the way.

When I get the finally draft sorted out I will certainly post on here.

Regards, Lisa.

[mjr]

Thank you for working on this.

The Canvey-Coryton link looks on a map to be an obvious extenstion of National Cycle Route 16, worth contacting Sustrans to offer. I'm less sure about Coryton-Pitsea because it looks like a diversion of National 13 would be longer and use busier roads to cross Basildon, which may limit its audience. Similar problems would also affect a Canvey-Pitsea link but alternative cycle routes for that seem weaker.

[Claira42]

I have always wanted a link over the creek because it can hopefully join up with Wat Tyler to the north, but that road also goes the opposite way to Bowers Marshes with a link over East Creek, so this is why, if one fails, hopefully the other wont. We have no connections at all that way out, which is why we need one.

I have contacted Sustrans and await their response.

I hope that this route is given a good boost as Stanford needs it as the roads in and around the area are not cycle of really anything favorable to the user unless you have a car.

Regards, Lisa.

[Claira42]

Dear all, I have made a set of photos of the whole proposed cycle route in Stanford-leHope Essex, which incorporates Cycle route 13 where it is hoped that the route I have planed will take you via the Manorway to Fobbing Sluice where a bridge will be built taking you over Vange Creek to Pitsea via the landfill road. It is also hoped that an opposite route will take you to Canvey.

I have sectioned the whole route for you into images, to study and amend. If you want to add anything, please comment below.

Image 1: The town route through Stanford and Corringham. Shared cycle route to Rookery Hill starting around the Hardie Park area which meets up with cycle route 13 with backward compatible routes.

Image 2: Rookery Hill to Coryton roundabout. With possible diversion to route via Rookery Hill because of blind corner at the bottom of the hill. (If so desired). Shared cycle route.

Image 3: Oozedam Farm and Fobbing marshes route needs to be looked at for possible diversion and farm animals intrusion. (If so desired). Shared cycle route.

Image 4: Fobbing Sluice cycle bridge solution and shared routes to Pitsea via Veolia route and to Canvey over East Haven Creek to Northwick Road. Shared cycle route. Pitsea route meeting up with cycle route 16 with forward compatible routes. This side of the route might be changed if Veolia route is not viable.

[Richard Fairhurst]

This looks like a great project.

Generally, for this sort of initiative, I'd suggest getting a strong, keen local campaign group together should be your number one priority. If you can prove a groundswell of local support then talking to the powers-that-be becomes so much easier. Plus it means that you don't have to do all the work yourself!

It looks like Sustrans did a survey of options in the local area for the Thames Estuary Path: see https://thamesestuarypartnership.org/wp ... 80-103.pdf . The Thames Estuary Partnership (who look after the path) would definitely be worth talking to.

Have you contacted the RSPB? http://www.southendrspb.co.uk/reserves.htm says "In the longer term we plan to have a footpath connecting the [Vange Marsh North] site to Wat Tyler Country, via a bridge over Pitsea Creek". I guess they might be thinking of something further upstream than at the sluice, but there could be common ground around improving access.

[Claira42]

Hi Richard, thank you for your email. I'm checking the marsh land around there and I believe that Pitsea Creek is Vange Creek. Hopefully that means that they are planning a footpath to connect Fobbing or Corringham to Wat Tyler as there is no connection anywhere else that is needed as its already connected to Canvey via East Haven Creek.

If a path is run across further up then they would have to cross two creeks, so I don't know exactly where a path would go, but closer to the railway line or closer to Fobbing sluice as these are the only closest crossing areas with no problem is around the landfill site. Although, someone did say that there is a footpath from Marsh Lane in Fobbing to Wat Tyler at the railway station end, but I have not seen any footpaths expressing that route.

I don't know many groups in this area that could help advertise this project, but I have contacted Thurrock Council to see what their plans are and what they have in mind. I've given myself 5 years to get this project done. My next plan is to actually get out there and see which route is viable.

If you would like to help me in any way, please let me know.

Regards, LIsa.

[Vorpal]

The folks in local cycling clubs may also be a good resource:

Essex Roads
Maldon & District Cycling Club
Southend Wheelers
Basildon CC
Gateway CC
Traditional Touring Club

possibly others

I would also recommend contacting Cycling UK. There are a number of active campaigners in south Essex, and they might be useful, not just for helping with the project, but also having contacts with the various councils, experience with getting such projects implemented, etc.

Having cycled in the area myself (I used to work in Basildon) it looks like an excellent and much needed link.

Good luck.

[Claira42]

Thank you for your interest. I do feel that this or a route that is closer to the railway line is needed as all other routes are covered.

I personally feel that the Manorway is the best way to go because it is a dedicated road and local people use the route all the time, but the marshes is the stepping stone that might be the problem.

Fobbing sluice seems like a good connection because of the area on the other side, which connects both ways to Pitsea and Canvey.

If they find a way closer to the rail line then that is my hopes for getting the manorway used as a through route instead of a dead end is lost, but at least I know what the options are.

I will do my best to get some kind of route from the marshes to Pitsea sorted.

Thank you, Lisa.

[Claira42]

https://consult.thurrock.gov.uk/Manorway-Footbridge

This is a petition that I have set up for anyone interested in voting on this route.

Regards, Lisa.