Alternate commuting options between Colchester area and Brightlingsea. (Updated March 2019)

 Note: Updates to the blog are at the bottom of the blog, scroll to this if you just want to read the update.

If you live in the Colchester area, the chances are you've gone & visited the coastal town Brightlingsea. And those in Brightlingsea no doubt have more than likely travelled out of the town to Colchester or the surrounding area.

Now, what's the roads like travelling? Not great are they? Coming in & out of Brightlingsea is just one road & can often snarl up due to congestion, weather conditions & maybe a road accident.

Now if only there was another option? How about using the bus services? No?

Not surprised, its unreliable at times & if the drivers get caught up on traffic due some issues on the road, a bus service will too...

Ever tried to cycle or walk it or even considered these options? No??

Can't say I blame you, not the nicest of roads to go onto on with 2 wheels or feet. Actually some of the roads don't appear to be suitable to walking on at all. One major issue I've seen when using the roads seem to be Tenpenny Hill. Definitely not nicest to cycle up & I couldn't see paths along it too & sure doesn't look safe to walk it anyway.

 

Now if only there was an option to sort this, well there are. Government could get another road built into the town but that would be very costly & very unlikely as well as just add more cars on the road & clog up like the rest eventually.

I was thinking something a lil more affordable, easier to do & part of the route already exists & just needs linking to Brightlingsea which would help encourage those going in or out of Brightlingsea to walk or cycle, it's also something I have looked into & thought it through & do feel it is needed. If it was to happen this would help ease traffic flow in & out of the town & benefit all. It's also something I have discussed with others travelling to & from Brightlingsea or who have travelled between Colchester & Brightlingsea & they love the idea I am about to explain.

So you're no doubt asking How? Well if you're familiar with the area you will know there's an old rail line that's now used to walk on along the river bank & acts as a sea defence too, go far enough & you'll come across the footings to an old rail bridge & on other side of the river the route continues to Wivenhoe. 

 

So what I was thinking was if a path suitable for walking & cycling was created along this old rail line & over a new bridge in place of where the old bridge over the river was & then follow the coast line to Wivenhoe to then join up with the shared path route known as the Wivenhoe Trail, you will then have a direct route to Colchester for those walking & cycling as well as a walking/cycling direct link from Brightlingsea to Alresford & Wivenhoe.

Now I know some of you will be screaming out, 'but this idea has been suggested before & failed to get the funding' & yes you are right. But why is that? Wrong time to suggest it or just the fact it was being suggested as a leisure route. Doing so, it's no wonder it was set to not get far...

Others are probably thinking 'The bridge would be an eyesore'. Would it? Have you seen designs used in places like the Netherlands? They are beautiful to see & can actually enhance the area & some are being built in the UK too.

To be honest We need to think bigger! We need to have more sustainable routes for travelling, roads are congested due to over capacity. People would like to walk or cycle but there's no safe route to do so on the roads joining Brightlingsea, we need to get routes suitable for walking & cycling not for just leisure but to actually commute.

So with a bridge built in place of the old rail bridge, upgrade the paths suitable for walking & cycling all the way from Brightlingsea to Colchester. Then we will have a viable alternative for those wanting to travel by foot or bicycle, then when those who want to do so the number of those driving will fall & it will help ease the congestion.

And now I have got that in your head, we need to get Councils to listen. Councillors & the public to discuss this as a viable option. Its affordable if you consider what it will benefit for all & I for one would use it as I just love going to the cafe at Batemans tower.

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Now if this was possible, here's a seed of thought to implant in your mind following the blog. How about if we could expand it, just think what if we could link Points Clear to Brightlingsea? Then we could possibly have a walking cycling route along whole coastline to Clacton-on-Sea & beyond from what I have read in the local news of new shared paths in that area.

Just think how that would be so much easier to get from Colchester/Brightlingsea or any route in between to Clacton or beyond. Especially in Summer, I've seen those miles of traffic trying to get into Clacton-on-Sea & next to no parking. Cycling it would be so much better with a direct safe route.

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Update November 2018

It's been some years since I wrote the original blog & is still relevant now as it was then due to the increasing motor traffic levels & less appealing roads to travel between Colchester & Brightlingsea. It has been correctly suggested I expand on this blog with further information regarding linking Colchester & Brightlingsea to benefit others in between the 2 towns, thanks Edmund for the suggestion.

So when I wrote this, I was writing on the basis of travelling to & from Brightlingsea from Colchester but it benefits those in the towns in between in any direction, both Wivenhoe & Alresford as well as the adjoining area. Now those who live in these areas can already benefit the Wivenhoe Trail to walk/cycle to areas close by & Colchester but Brightlingsea is not so easy to get to for them as it is for those in Colchester, as it is for those in Brightlingsea can get to Wivenhoe or Alresford.

You can see the distance isn't much different & for Alresford the road route is the shorter route but if you know the area, you know cycling on Tenpenny HIll is not pleasant at all or safe & if the route that I have suggested was done to a standard suitable for all to walk or cycle alongside the river it would be more pleasant & safer so the lil extra distance would not feel so bad to walk or cycle along.

We should also include the University too, how many of those in Brightlingsea have to rely on the bus services to get there & on time, often stuck in the motor traffic congesting the only road in to & out of Brightlingsea, which also would cost money to travel. Same goes with driving to & from the University, adding to the congestion. 

There really is not much difference in distance to travel but again it is the route which would be more pleasant & safer to use, not to say be more reliable to cycle, not contend with motorised congestion on the roads & most of all financial beneficial.

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Update March 2019

I follow some Bloggers & one of those is Bicycle Dutch who posts many great examples of infrastructure in the Netherlands or adjoining areas & I came across a post from him of A cycle bridge in Rijswijk which swings around to open up the river for boats.

This would be a perfect way to put a bridge across the river where the old rail bridge was & keep the river open for those using it in their boats.

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All we have to do is now get the Councillors to listen, Cycling groups & organisations to push for this & get it to happen. For past 3 years I have pushed & mentioned this every opportunity possible & get positive feedback, except we need action to get things rolling which we know requires Political Will.