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Went for first time in a while yesterday so saw the bridge between the Follow The Dog and the Monkey Trail for first time. 'Great' we thought, then were gobsmacked to see it only goes over the railway so you still have to cross that busy road. I guess Network Rail paid for it but seems like a missed opportunity to kill two birds with one stone...
Priorities innit!
Which do you think stops easier? A 1 tonne car doing 60 or a 2-300 tonne train doing 60?
I'd imagine the road bridge will appear in the next spending splurge. Or a Toucan crossing?
Agreed.
Sadly, the inevitable accident will probably force the issue soon enough.
That stretch of road it crosses is the proving ground for the Cannock **** Drivers club.
Never thought there was much of an issue crossing either the road or the railway...
I felt relieved for the people who must have to listen to the gates opening and closing thousands of times a day at the weekends...until I remembered their house practically sits on the railway line 😀
So they do something positive (apparently, never bothered me) and people are still not happy? Did you never learn to cross a road as a kid?
It's just a road ffs! Look left look right, repeat if you like and the cross of there aren't any cars coming.
Missed a trick with the bridge not making it mildly technical or something.
Sounds like much ago about nothing...
I've never had an issue with crossing that road, its not rocket science. As Tom says look both ways, if you see a car coming don't cross...
If people can't cross a railway line, then they certainly can't cross a road!!
Money could of been better spent IMO
Can you still cross the rails anyway or are we forced to use the bridge now?
Maybe there should be a campaign for a lollipop lady.
Rail crossing fenced off with temporary fencing and barrier tape R.Dog. As an aside, the WHOLE of Cannock is open at the moment including the section before the rail crossing that has been recently closed for thinning. Quite a novelty to go round the whole dog/monkey circuit without a diversion. Add the current dry dusty trail conditions and it all seems a bit surreal!
Anyone gonna post a pic of the offending bridge?
Spoke to the guys building it the other day and they said they wanted it to go over the road too but the Highways Agency said no.
Missed a trick with the bridge not making it mildly technical or something.
It's not just a bridge for bikes, it's part of a shared trail so has use by walkers, horses and such like.
I believe the house next to the track crossing has been owned by the train companies for a while, don't think anyone lives there.
It looks like they've spent some money on it. Yes it's a shame it doesn't cross the road but I'd imagine the costs would be massive.
Looking left & right is easy, I'll agree, but try crossing half a dozen excited kids. One mistake & all of a sudden that car that's barreling down on you at 70mph is on top of you.
There's always two or three cars parked at that house and a TV on inside! Pretty sure people do live there!
Braking bumps have started to appear on the bridge!!!
1.5 million for a bridge,
The bridge needs a name!
'Monkey Bridge'? Or just the word 'Monkey' in large funky graffiti up the side.
Project - 1.5million for a bridge?! Where did you get that figure...that seems ludicrously expensive (granted I'm not a builder or engineer).
£1.5m is the figure quoted in the press which I suspect is the overall project budget including the cost of building the bridge itself.
As mentioned above the bridge was built by Network Rail. It appears that Network Rail's approach to cost / benefit analysis differs from Staffs Highways who are responsible for the road.
Neither of the organisations have any other links to the trails, the Forestry Commission or Chase Trails who are jointly the ones who provide you with Follow the Dog and the Monkey ;o)
coming from kitbag hill side there are some wicked smooth corners to practice pumping on!
I love the bridge!
Project - 1.5million for a bridge?! Where did you get that figure...that seems ludicrously expensive (granted I'm not a builder or engineer).
Its the price quoted in the newspaper link above, and probably includes tghe costs for the TOC, to divert trains or pay for buses while they build the bridge, and other costs, like the land each side of the railway.
jekkyl - Member
Missed a trick with the bridge not making it mildly technical or something.
It's just a bridleway version of the Network Rail standard London-Midland pedestrian footbridge. You'll see similar design at many stations if you look closely. The actual manufacturing cost for the steelwork of the bridge was about 5% of that quoted project cost.
jekkyl
Missed a trick with the bridge not making it mildly technical or something.
Use the "horse side" and bunny hop the wooden stepover cross bars as you do so!
😉
Pretty sure that if HS2 gets the go ahead they will pay for electrifcation of this line.If its by live rail then a bridge is needed to prevent crispy critters.If Rugeley power station converts to biomass burning that means 28 trains every 24 hours.
Project - 1.5million for a bridge?! Where did you get that figure...that seems ludicrously expensive
They had to buy the house, Marquis Drive side of the tracks too, I'm sure I read that was £660k or so, nice house too. I'd have it (cheap), as long as they let me park the car somewhere down the hill.