A PLANNING application for a footbridge over the River Wharfe at Burley-in-Wharfedale has now been submitted by the Burley Bridge Association (BBA) to Bradford Council and North Yorkshire County Council.

The association has campaigned for a bridge for many years and the authorities are being asked to approve its construction at Greenholme Farm, Leather Bank in Burley.

The bridge will follow the line of the public right-of-way across the river, which at present consists solely of a row of stepping stones. The BBA feels that the public deserves a safer and more practical method of crossing a wide and fast-flowing river and says the design by bridge engineers Ramboll UK is considered an excellent solution to the challenges the site presents.

Chairman of the BBA, Peter Bayer, said: “A footbridge over the River Wharfe at Burley is long overdue.

“There is a lot of support for it in Burley and it will give local people a direct footpath route to the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty at the other side of the river.

“A bridge will benefit residents of Askwith too, and they will gain an attractive new route to the shops and public transport links of Burley.

“It is a fact that the time has come to resolve the issue of a safe crossing of the Wharfe at Burley and the need for a better crossing has been a local topic for over 100 years.”

The present campaign started in 1996 and planning permission was given in 1999 for a footbridge over the weir near Greenholme Farm, though this bridge did not go ahead. The minimal impact footbridge now proposed was suggested to the BBA by the local authorities and is seen as an answer to a long-standing need.

The BBA is undertaking a public awareness campaign and will provide details of the proposed bridge at sessions to be held in Burley Library. Committee members will be on hand at times to be widely advertised.

Visit www.burleybridge.com