Chesterfield Canal Restoration February 2024

Welcome to a long overdue update from the Chesterfield Canal Restoration. We’re up at Staveley to look at work starting for the Staveley Town Deal project.

Plans have been released for the Trans-Pennine Trail bridge, which will be built this year and will cross the canal. This is where the old Great Central Railway Bridge once stood, but was demolished some years ago. It will carry the TPT and the Arkwright Trail over the canal. In preparation there has been tree clearance ready for the ground works to start.

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[Music] hi I’m at hollingwood this morning I’m having a walk down to stav this is part eight of my Chesterfield Canal restoration Series going to have a walk down the canal tow path up to up to stavely up to Hartington um we’re going to have a look at some of the work that they’ve started doing over the last few weeks two boats today beautiful crisp late February morning this morning uh first time the sun’s been out this week I think um but don’t let the sun fool you it is pretty cold this morning it’s about 3° [Music] seems like years ago doesn’t it since we started talking about the the stable Town deal uh and starting the work um finally started to see some movement in the last few weeks navigate this this flood made a bit of a mistake coming around the outside of the arbor but already got wet feet so never mind see how much rain we’ve had over the last uh last week or so in fact the whole winter everywhere is just an absolute fck Fest isn’t it so we’re expecting some real progress an actual building work starting um over the first half of 2024 and in particular uh subject of today’s video is the work that stting on the new impending trans penine Trail bridge think it was July wasn’t it the last time I did a video when they were just starting to do uh they were just doing some of the surveying uh what’s it call where the drill the holes into the ground uh getting ready just exploring the next stage of the stable puddle bank so just to remind you here’s the end of the curent [Applause] canal and this is the next bit in line isn’t it so bit of news on on this little bit actually because this this bit this hs2 has been a big delay in getting this sorted as well as funding Etc but um this has been up in the air uh an hs2 is not happening now this was going to be like a spare off to a Depot um I don’t think it’s ever really has any feasible chance of happening as it this little bit but there’s always been that hold it’s always been protected and I think that protection runs out this summer so in the original plans there was meant to be a lock cuz if you look I mean that’s pretty much you see that’s the level of the Railway at the top and then the canal they was having to lower the canal through a lock and send it underneath the new Railway that they were going to build um they don’t have to do that now so there one less light so that’s going to take quite a bit of a chunk of of cost off isn’t it off this next section so they’ve not started actually building this bridge yet but they have started clearing away all the banking of vegetation uh getting ready for that initial initial groundworks for the foundations Etc to go in so you can see there there been quite a lot of clearance work done on this side because this is going to be the course of the canal and all this has been cleared a lot more open now and the bridge is just going straight across straight across here of course the canal is going to be cutting straight across this foot path that we we’re on at the moment so there’s where we’ve walked from spin you around that’s where it’s going off in that direction I’ll get get down there and we’ll we’ll sh show you properly all the paths have been widened as well around this around this little spot no work going off today I’m just coming up to the site now where the bridge is going to be going over so don’t forget it’s not um It’s Not A New Concept having a bridge in this location the Great Central Railway which I’ve covered in other videos um other the Railway videos I’ve done here came straight across the CH top of the canal here so the chance penan Trail is just a replacement for that bridge that was uh that was cut um many years ago you can see all the the trees that have been felled did I read I think I read somewhere I think that’s it for the tree felling now that’s all the that’s all that they’re planning to take out I understand the only thing I’ve really shown you on this video is that someone’s done a little bit of vegetation clearance um but I just wanted to show you just that something is happening there’s uh there’s more things going to be coming on the horizon so I’ll uh I’ll keep doing short update videos as things start to progress so wet recently I don’t think I’ve ever seen this deric bit of the canal so full of water let’s just walk up to the end here and we’ll uh we’ll get a view over how the puddle banks are looking at the moment cuz this is the next section isn’t it this is the stuff that they’ve been doing the surveying on of the uh the ground surveying and there’s the puddle Bank sneaking off down towards Ren Shore um but I’ll cover all these bits in more detail when we start to see developments on these next sections I have an interest in canals and I have an interest in disuse things and abandon things so putting putting the two together get out of there Cordo putting the two together is is fascinating for something like this the restoration of this old canal on my doorstep I find it really really really really exciting but as always when you’re spending money from Grants and public money um not everyone is so positive about these things and I’ve noticed there is unfortunately quite some vocal negative commentators popping up on social media and I’ve had I’ve had a message um about a month ago from someone in response to a Facebook post that I put up about this work that’s carrying on I won’t give the name it wasn’t wasn’t a real name anyway it was an alias but um I just wanted to clarify a few points so dear wobbly if that is in fact your real name great start to the email um I won’t read out the full message um but just to pick out a few points why spend the money on a canal canals of Victorian technology Victorian technology I think I think you’re uh at least a century out there it’s not um George II I think was uh the mon when this canal was built why is the money not being spent on New Roads judging by the potholes coming down here I think I’ll just Sid step that question housing for homeless schools improving local Health Care activities for children Etc um this money wouldn’t be coming to stable if it if it wasn’t for the canal it’s not let’s substitute it and spend it on something else how is a bridge worth5 million I don’t think the bridge is worth5 million I I think the overall deal including the uh the harbor and all the Redevelopment around there is part of that as well plus a lot of the other work how do I respond to promoting the destruction of Nature and homes of endangered species I don’t know anything about that I’m sorry what long-term future does the canal have um well hopefully we’ll be able to see boats um coming from the canal Network to this section I think that’s that’s the ultimate long-term goal isn’t it the ones who have anything to do with the canal are old people I thought this one was mly disrespectful um I see a lot of young people using the canal there’s youngsters fishing on there today so you know I don’t think it’s I think that’s a little bit wider the Mark just saying it’s only old people that are interested in the canal I know people my age that are am I old I don’t know then it goes on to point out that my views don’t count cuz I’m not local um I can walk I can walk here from my house I know I’m not from stavely um but I class this as local I can water to various stages of the canal disused and the working sections from uh from my house so I do have a an interest so I will sign off there so cheers for watching this short update I’ll get more of these out as more stuff progresses as more interesting things to show you so as always I just want to put on my record I think the people who do the the the work for the Chesterfield Canal Trust all the volunteers everyone who’s involved I think you do a fantastic job under challenging circumstances it’s things are difficult at the moment aren’t they MoneyWise um so as always cheers for watching take care we’ll see you soon bye God 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