Step forward for Blackford footbridge

Members of a Strath community have been updated on proposals to build a new railway footbridge.

Blackford Community Council met with Network Rail at their last meeting of the year to discuss the plans to close the pedestrian level crossing near the village and replace it with a footbridge instead.

Network Rail initially announced their plans to close the level crossing at a community council meeting back in March 2016, and have since been surveying the Blackford area to look at how to replace the facility with a footbridge over the railway line.

Lesley Ann Cain from Network Rail provided a follow-up presentation on the proposed footbridge to the recent meeting.

Janet Law, chair of Blackford Community Council, said:“Our recent study to identify cycle routes from Blackford to Auchterarder concluded that there are serious constraints to moving around the Blackford area.

“The constraints identified are primarily the A9 trunk road and land use patterns, in particular large and increasing areas used for golf.

“The Panholes Level Crossing is on a very popular route which gives access to green space and quiet roads. Network Rail came to a community council meeting in March 2016 and told us that this crossing is to be closed, but that a bridge is to be built to replace it.

“This bridge is vital as it is one of only a couple of routes that residents of Blackford have to the lovely countryside around the village without having to cross the busy A9, where traffic levels are 70mph.”

The community council was also told of Highland Spring’s plans to build a new path to link the existing core path to the new bridge near the village, in order to fulfil a condition of their planning consent for a rail yard, which involves a diversion of the core path.