Dee Coastal Path

Following the recent completion of the first phase of the Dee Coastal Path between Aber Road and Dee Cottages in Flint, Flintshire County Council has begun constructing a further 10 miles of off-road cycle path in Connah's Quay and the Deeside Industrial Park and from Shotton to Chester. When completed, the scheme will provide over 34 miles of high quality, traffic-free, walking and cycling routes alongside the River Dee between Chester and Prestatyn. The Welsh Assembly Government has reinforced its support for Flintshire's Dee Coastal Path cycle project by recently allocating an additional £900,000 to the initial grant of £3.5million.

Hawarden Bridge cycle route - work in progress during the earlier phase

Councillor Aaron Shotton, Executive Member for Environment & Regeneration said:
"We are investing £1.5 million over the next four months to construct this particular phase and this has only been possible with the co-operation of a number of private landowners such as the Environment Agency, National Grid Transco, Powergen, Sustrans, Toyota and the Welsh Development Agency. We are also pleased to be working in partnership with Chester City and Cheshire County Council."

Richard Flood, Senior Engineer for Cycling & Traffic Management, added:
"The Shotton to Chester section that we've recently started to construct will create the new Regional Route 89 which will connect to Chester's proposed riverside promenade running from the Old Port, around the racecourse, and towards the Groves. We are confident that the Dee Coastal Path scheme will help reduce traffic congestion and encourage more people to get healthy by using their bikes."

The £4.4 million scheme will link residential communities and major employment areas along the River Dee and is specifically designed to encourage walking and cycling to work in order to reduce the impact of road traffic on the environment - as well as providing a new long-distance leisure cycling route.

This current phase of construction work will be completed by June 2005 and will introduce cycle routes from:
· the Powergen entrance in Oakenholt to Dock Road in Connah's Quay (providing a new section of National Cycle Network Route 5);
· the Chester / Connah's Quay Greenway (existing National Cycle Network Route 5) to Zone 3 of the Deeside Industrial Park, and;
· Shotton to Chester along the north bank of the River Dee (providing the new Regional Route 89 and forming a 13-mile circular route with existing Route 5).

Further phases of construction work will provide cycle routes from:
· Dee Cottages in Flint to the Powergen entrance in Oakenholt;
· Deeside Industrial Park Zone 3 to Zone 4;
· Deeside Industrial Park Zone 4 to the Wirral;
· Shotton to Chester - along the south bank of the River Dee, and;
· Flint to the Denbighshire Boundary.