Our Way Is Clear

To the many Joggers, dog walkers, hikers and bikers and parishioners who take pleasure in travelling through our parish byways, I am delighted to report that the long-standing flooding problem on Snuff Mill Lane at Stodday has finally been drained.

Adjacent to United Utilities Water Works this track leads to the popular River Lune walkway and cycle track where there is an amenity area with very pleasant views across the River Lune. For many years now, a damaged and deeply buried drainage pipe has caused the Snuff Mill Lane ditch to back-up and deeply flood the track

Eventually, a solution was arrived at and I am most grateful for the help and support of County Councillor Gina Dowding, City Councillor Tim Dant and a generous monetary donation from United Utilities via their area manager Simon Wong and plant engineer Paul Ingleby.

Excavation of the damaged and deeply buried culvert was impractical, so this area was bypassed by extending the ditch to a point where the drainage system could be accessed successfully.

The contractor, Tony Worledge and his team have spent nearly two weeks, clearing undergrowth, excavating the new ditch, scraping back and widening the existing road surface and re-surfacing the trackway with hardcore.

Although the area looks a little spartan at present, now that Spring is here, the bare earth left by the construction work will soon green up and the roots of the plants will stabilise the embankment.

Nick Webster, Parish Chairman