Work has just started on the Saffron Walden Town Council’s new path across the south (bottom) of The Common. It is intended to link Common Hill, the East St footbridge, the playground, and Chaters Hill.
The Common South Path will run from Common Hill to Chaters Hill, via the East St Bridge and playground.
The new multi-function all-weather path, championed by R4U councillors, will be used by pedestrians, pushchairs, mobility scooters and bikes, allowing them to get to and from the town centre without having to jostle with traffic and pollution on East St.
The all-weather path will be tucked away between the trees behind the old Police Station.
Up until now both sides of the bottom of The Common have been connected by an often muddy path with many tree roots, making it especially difficult for pushchairs to access the children’s play area. Things have become worse over the past few years due to the development of more housing along Radwinter and Thaxted Roads. The path is expected to be open by Christmas, with completion of the remaining works in the early New Year.
The existing path is rough and unpaved, and gets muddy in the winter…
…and there is no path for pushchairs to access the playground at all.
The first part of the works is to lay the foundations from the Common Hill to the East St footbridge.