Speed bumps, locked gates, loose chippings and new dismount signs - Making cycling inconvenient on the Ashton Canal

When I walked along the Ashton Canal back in April the resurfacing was still underway. Progress was promising, with a good quality tarmac surface being laid, though the work did seem to be rather slow. This route is part of the Velocity plans, so the money has come from cycling budgets.



Four months later and the final touches are mostly done.

Final touches designed to make cycling uncomfortable, noisy, dangerous and inconvenient.

Speed bumps

Yes, speed bumps!

So, you put down a decent tarmac surface, then ruin it with these cobbled bumps. There are scores of them all along the path. Total waste of money, money that's supposed to encourage cycling not discourage it.

Locked Gates

Yes, gates which have been open are now locked.

This was last year...



and now. Try getting a bike and child trailer through this - impossible without lifting it over. Remember this is a Velocity route that is supposed to encourage cycling not discourage it.

Loose Chippings

Remember that lovely smooth tarmac surface in the first photo?

Well forget it!

Almost the entire route has been covered in a thick layer of loose chippings. This makes progress along the path slow and noisy, and if that dog runs out in-front of you your brakes will simply lock up so don't bother with the front brake if you want to remain upright.



and then there are the holes, but I'll get to them later...

Cyclists Dismount

Yes, the signs of failure are everywhere, many of them new, presumably paid for with Velocity money. So cycling money is being spent telling people to get off and walk.



There have always been dismount signs on this route, but they are multiplying, thanks to Velocity funding.



The main excuse for them is the narrow path under the bridges.



But no attempt has been made to widen the path or provide alternatives, and in most cases nothing has been done to repair the poor surfaces under the bridges.



Likewise the cobbled surfaces by the locks have not been repaired, despite being in a dreadful condition.

Lighting

Yes, there has been some attempt to put in lighting - solar powered lights in the path, white, except above some locks



where they are red. However, they are unlikely to provide sufficient lighting to persuade most people to cycle along this route in the dark. Many of these lights are shaded by fences & trees so they won't charge up in the winter when they are most needed.

Only a few of these lights have gone in so far at the Manchester end, the rest of the path is covered in holes.



I know from posts on Twitter that many people have gone back to cycling on the road, because the Ashton Canal path is now really inconvenient for daily commuting. Looks like TfGM and the Canal and River Trust have managed to divert cycling money into upgrading a footpath whilst discouraging people from cycling on it.

Hollinwood Branch Canal 2 - Droylsden Junction to Stannybrook Road

This post is the continuation from Hollinwood Branch Canal 1 - Sunnyside Road to Droylsden Junction north and east towards Daisy Nook Country Park.

At Droylsden Junction the original aqueduct has been replaced by a narrow bridge with a wooden base. It is quite safe, but a bit unnerving to cross.



The path opens up after the bridge, somewhat overshadowed by buildings on the left.



Soon you reach the former location of a swing bridge that gave access across the canal to Lumb Farm. However, you first have to negotiate a pretty dreadful (anti)cycling kissing gate where tricycles and tandems will have to be up-ended or lifted over.



Lumb Farm is now the location of a large industrial operation called Hadfield Wood Recyclers. Watch out for the HGVs entering the site.



Across the wide entrance road you can get to the next section of canal through the gap on the right of the fence, the gate is locked, and then through a wooden (anti)cycling kissing gate. Again trikes, trailers and tandems will struggle.



Just beyond the gate this sign marks the beginning of the Hollinwood Branch Canal Nature Reserve which includes all of the rest of this section of the canal.


The sign reads...

Owned by Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council and managed by Cheshire Wildlife Trust. The Hollinwood Branch of the Ashton Canal is an excellent example of its type of a standing water system in the Greater Manchester area. This coupled with the number of regionally and nationally rare species found within it, lead to it being notified as a site of special scientific interest. The main habitats are swamp and fen. The open water areas are particularly diverse, containing species such as Water Soldier, Arrowhead and Frogbit, as well as a varied aquatic fauna - Dragonflies, Common Frog and Common Newts. Pike, Rudd and Common Bream are found in open water with Mallard, Moorhen and Reed Bunting. The towpath along the length of the canal makes up part of the Medlock Valley Network and walkers can view this interesting habitat from a convenient position.

This is the point where the path begins to look like a proper canal towpath alongside something resembling a canal. The first part is overshadowed by the barrier of trees on the left, but this is soon left behind. The boundary on the left of the towpath is the dividing line between Oldham and Tameside.



The trees on the left become a hedgerow and the far bank has farmland beyond.



The path itself is however is quite narrow and quite rough, but rideable on a hybrid bike.



Here you enter a hidden gem, an almost secret area, it's one of my favorite paths in the whole of my exploration of Greater Manchester.



As the canal curves gently to the right the canal passes under Cinderland Bridge which carries the path to Cinderland Hall Farm.



It is a tight squeeze to get under the bridge, because as the land subsided the banks of the canal were built up to keep the water in. North of the bridge was a dam and the canal returns to its sunken level.



Now there is some open water in this section of canal. Brookdale Golf Course is on the left of this section. The surface is smoother here, though muddy in places.



However, this soon ends and it becomes clogged with plants again.



The canal swings to the right again, heading almost due east and reaches the site of an old swing bridge, now replaced by a fixed wooden structure. By now the roar of traffic is beginning to assault the ears.



From here the path swings away from the canal and upwards as the traffic gets ever louder.



Soon you hit the bridge over the M60.



This eight lane scar through the landscape is completely out of keeping with the surrounding landscape and severs the canal at this point.



The path drops away on the other side returning to the canal route.



However from here there is no water in the canal.



In places it has been infilled above the level of the towpath, which changes the character of the route considerably.



The path then widens and moves over the canal bed as gates come into view.



This (anti)cycling kissing gate leads out to Stannybrook Road, and the road beyond leads into the car park of Daisy Nook Country Park.



This is a really dangerous crossing, it drops steeply to the left,



and to the right there is another junction, hidden from view to anyone crossing into the park, and there is nothing to protect people crossing the road from the speeding traffic.

Ashton to Oldham Greenway

This route begins about half a mile from Ashton-under-Lyne town centre, just to the north of the site of a short tunnel under Lordsfield Avenue and follows the path of the Oldham, Ashton and Guide Bridge railway most of the way. There are the usual set of barriers to make access difficult for non-standard cycles, but nothing out of the ordinary. I rode this route with Ian Tate who features in many of the photos.



To get to the start of the path go up Turner Lane, past the railway station, fork right to avoid going down Turner Street and the path entrance is at the end of Turner Lane. To get here from the end of the Ashton Canal is a nightmare, and we ended up walking most of the way.



The path has been designated NCN Route 626.



The first notable landmark on the route is the three arched bridge under Cranbourne Road.



The next bridge carries a footpath that connects to Waterloo Road,



which is soon followed by this new structure that takes the path under Wood Lane.



After Wood Lane the character of the path changes. It looks like the cutting has been filled in, and the path goes between two modern housing estates, mostly hidden by the trees.



There is another barrier where the path crosses between Meadowbank and Bristol Avenue.





The path then enters the countryside, where at Alt Hill Lane, the old bridge has been removed. There are the usual barriers



and a notice reminding you that this is not a right of way...



After Alt Lane the path climbs back up to the track bed. Be warned this part of the path is often used by novice horse riders so watch out!



As you approach Park Bridge, just before the location of the old railway station, the path then curves away to the right, taking you off the main trackbed and onto the route of a siding that ran quite steeply down to the ironworks. The main line went over a viaduct at this point, but it was demolished in 1971.

There was a bid to build a replacement bridge at this point as part of Connect2, but it failed to get funding.



Here the path descends and has another set of barriers at Alt Hill Road.

Watch out for the horse shit!

At this point it is quickest to turn right down the road and descend into Park Bridge.



However, you are guided across the road and here the tarmac path gives way to a soft sandy surface.



After looping round 180 degrees you cross this wooden bridge and enter the village past the remains of the ironworks. At this point you can join the Fairbottom Branch Canal and Tramway - Waterhouses Junction to Park Bridge route.



Now you have to climb back up through the village



past the Heritage centre, which was closed



and then turn left up Dingle Terrace.



At the end is the path access through this horrible anti-cycling barrier.



There is then a further steep rough slope to regain the level of the old trackbed.



Initially the path runs somewhat to the east of the old railway line,  but then goes round the edge of this field. This is roughly the location of the local authority boundary between Thameside and Oldham.



and rejoins the trackbed at this right turn.



The path now regains the character of an old railway for a while.



Here there is open land to the east, and Hathershaw to the west



There are the occasional strange markings in the tarmac...



A bit further north there is a lot of new housing and other development going on and it looks like this has been used as an access route.



The path then swings to the right, leaving the track bed where there are football pitches on the right hand side.



Here there is another barrier as the path now turns into Kings Road.



Here Honeywell Lane turns left and becomes Kings Road.



The path now can be seen to the left, where it gets back on to the old railway trackbed.



Here the path is part of a linear park that runs alongside the road.



This sign marks the path across to Alexandra Park and the Wheels for All project.



The path then sweeps gently to the right



before ending, somewhat abruptly at Park Road in Oldham.



Here the sign gives no clue as to where the path goes next.



On the opposite side of the road is a huge Matalan outlet.



The car park is roughly the site of the old Clegg Street Station, but there is no sign of it now.



This is more or less the end of the Oldham, Ashton and Guide Bridge railway, and the next section of line will be the subject of a separate post.



Map showing the whole of the Oldham, Ashton and Guide Bridge Junction Railway (in yellow) and connecting lines.