CALLS are growing for leading councillors in Cumbria to support proposals for a new footbridge across the Duddon as part of a new coastal path.

Natural England is now consulting on proposals to create a  coastal path in North West England, with several options for how this might be achieved on the table.

The ambitious plans, creating a route from Cleveleys in Lancashire to Silecroft  in Cumbria – via Morecambe Bay and Barrow – will eventually form part of the England Coast Path, taking in the country’s entire shoreline.

Speaking at a recent meeting of Cumbria County Council’s Local Committee for Copeland, councillors have unanimously backed the creation of a new footway for the Cumbria section of the route.

Meeting chairman Keith Hitchen said the bridge would be the committee’s “preferred option”.

And coun Chris Whiteside suggested this proposal was put to the county council’s cabinet, the authority’s decision-making body, as a formal motion.

He said that asking the cabinet to take the committee’s recommendation into account would be a “useful test of the water” and would help them to develop a formal response to the plans.

The country council is a statutory consultee which means that Natural England must seek their views before deciding how to proceed.

Presently, there are three options on the table for this leg of the proposed coastal path.

The first is to introduce “no coastal access proposals”, a move that would see the path end at the seaward limit of the Duddon Estuary, at Millom, and restart at Dunnerholme on the opposite side.

Given the lack of a ferry service, this option would not allow continuous access along the coast for walkers, and not would it offer any improvements to access further into the estuary.

The second option would see the trail extended using existing bridges “where appropriate” and new bridges “where necessary”.

Presently walkers can use the road bridge over the Duddon but coun David Southward MBE, who also serves on the cabinet, described this arrangement as a “death trap.”.

As an alternative to this, Natural England has said it “might be possible” to install a new bridge at some point downstream of Duddon Bridge, at a point “where the river channel is relatively narrow”.

A second bridge would also be required at Kirkby Pool to improve on an existing access and safety issue.

The final option would see Natural England align the trail as far as Green Road station and Foxfield station, on either side of the estuary.

This solution would allow walkers to continue their journey via the regular train service.

This option would also involve the installation of a medium-sized bridge adjacent to the railway viaduct, over Kirkby Pool.

But councillors did not support this option because it would mean walkers would be forced to rely on trains to cross the river.