Walkers, riders and runners benefit from towpath upgrade

Councillor Kim Groves, chair of the West Yorkshire Combined Authority's transport committee, cuts the tape to open the upgraded stretch of canal towpath between Lodge Hill Bridge at Riddlesden and the Keighley Road bridge at Silsden. The 2.7km  route has been newly surfaced as part of a £2.9 million scheme by the authority to  improve cycling and walking access to four canals. Also present at the ceremony at Silsden on August 18th were Bradford Lord Mayor Councillor Zafar Ali, who is pictured on the left holding the tape, Keighley MP John Grogan, fourth from left, who chairs the All Party Parliamentary Group for the Waterways, and Silsden Town Mayor Councillor Peter Robinson (fifth from left).

Bradford Lord Mayor Councillor Zafar Ali is pictured with Bradford councillor Rebecca Whitaker, of Silsden, who represents the Craven ward, Bradford council cycling champion Councillor Taj Salam (left), who is a member of the Combined Authority's transport committee, and Satwant Singh, who cycled from Bradford for the official opening. A super-fit cyclist, he has biked the 127 miles of the Leeds-Liverpool canal towpath among the hundreds of miles he covers each year.

The event, which included information stalls and refreshments, was well supported by community groups and residents.

An absorbed angler: not everyone was caught up in the canal-side buzz at the official opening, which included music by the Hall Royd Brass Band from Shipley, which stepped in because the Silsden Town Band was engaged elsewhere.