Planning starts on TPT upgrade in Dearne area

Cash for the project has been found from community infrastructure levy payments, paid by builders as part their planning consent, to Rotherham Council.

Details of what form the upgrades will take have yet to be finalised, but the objective is to both improve the trail itself and make it easier for people in the area to get on and off the path - in the hope of encouraging more people to use it.

That is seen as a way to improve public health.

Staff from the Trans Pennine Trail have now held a meeting on site, and were joined by Rotherham Council’s public rights of way officer and other experts.

The purpose was to walk the route to try to identify the best ways to improve the trail.

A TPT blog stated: “The goal is to balance the needs of different user groups, such as walkers, cyclists, wheelers and equestrians, while addressing challenges like surface erosion from seasonal flooding, busy road crossings, and ensure the safety and accessibility of the trail for all legitimate users.”

It is expected the programme of improvements and changes will take between two and three years to complete, with a promise to “stretch the budget as far as it will go”.

Some resurfacing and other improvement work has already been done on a nearby section of the trail, running from Wombwell to Worsbrough in Barnsley.