Council refuses CPO on South Devon bridge

DEVON County Council has again turned down a call to use Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) powers to acquire the South Devon Railway’s Bulliver Bridge at Totnes Littlehempston so it can become part of a cyclepath from St Austell to Dover.

A cyclepath was planned into Totnes via Littlehempston, but it depended on permission being granted by the heritage line for cyclists to use the bridge. The railway has refused permission for the bridge to become a 24 hours a day public right of way because of security issues.

On March 11, the council’s cabinet recommended that no further work should be undertaken on investigating whether the bridge over the River Dart could be used by the public and that a CPO cannot be justified.

The decision was made despite Nick Oldridge, chairman of the South Devon Cycle Link campaign, handing in a petition of 3,655 signatures, asking the railway to share the bridge.

A railway spokesman said: “While we support the principle of a cyclepath between Totnes town and Littlehempston as part of National Cycle Route 2 and cycling in general, we do not support the proposed route via our pedestrian footbridge and the private South West Water-owned lane.”

The bridge was built in 1993 to enhance tourism. It cost £172,000, of which 50% was contributed by local authorities, including the county council, but is now owned wholly by the railway. Campaigners have already begun design work for an alternative bridge.