Making the case to restore Yorkshire’s Cinder Track

Sustrans has developed renovation plan for walking and cycling route along disused Scarborough to Whitby rail line

A stretch of disused railway between Scarborough and Whitby which could be given a new lease of life as cycling and walking route.

Sustainable transport charity Sustrans has used a grant from the Coastal Revival Fund to develop a plan for a restoration of the old Yorkshire railway line, which is now referred to as The Cinder Track.

The draft plan will be presented to Scarborough Borough Council for consideration.

The just over 21-mile route route is currently used for recreation, tourism and daily transport by lots of people including walkers, horse riders, cyclists, runners and dog owners.

The restoration plan recognises that the pathway needs substantial investment and proactive management to protect it for future use.

The plan sets out broad principles for improving drainage, path construction, managing vegetation, controlling vehicle use and improving access for a wide range of user. Sustrans has also drawn up 41 section-by-section maps depicting proposals and suggestions.

An initial assessment of ecological issues has been made, but the plan acknowledges that more information needs to be gathered so further work is being undertaken to ensure that the Cinder Track thrives as a wildlife corridor and ancient woodland is protected.

Information about the economic and wider benefits of restoring the Cinder Track is also included in the plan. There is a summary of a cost-benefit analysis that shows the proposed works would deliver “very high” value for money, especially in terms of health, journey quality and local economy benefits.

A steering group made up of the North York Moors National Park Authority, Friends of the Old Railway, Gateway Whitby, Scarborough Borough Council and Sustrans has been involved in the plan’s development, which has taken into account the views of more than 1,000 people who took part in an online consultation earlier this year.

The consultation was carried out for Sustrans by Groundwork North Yorkshire. It revealed that 78% of respondents agreed that the Cinder Track needed to be improved. The track’s drainage and surface were the most commented upon aspects and this feedback has been used to help shape the proposals.

A separately commissioned study for the Whitby end of the Cinder Track has been incorporated into the plan.

Rupert Douglas, Sustrans network development manager for Yorkshire, said: “We are very clear that a tarmac surface is not suitable and is not appropriate for the whole 21.5m, so we have provided information about alternative surface options for consideration at sensitive locations such as in the North York Moors National Park. There’ll need to be more consultation with local communities about these options in more detail as part of the planning process.

“We feel that sympathetically restoring the track to a high quality and all weather, user-friendly route for all while preserving the habitat the route provides for flora and fauna will give the local community an asset to enjoy and be proud of. It will also have a very positive impact on the visitor economy of the Yorkshire coast in the long term.”

Parish and town councils and other interested groups have also been given opportunities to make comments on the draft plan, ahead of its submission to Scarborough Borough Council.

The council intends to present the plan to its overview and scrutiny board for consideration during September. Depending on the outcome of that meeting, the draft plan will then be the subject of a report to the council’s cabinet in the autumn. If the cabinet approves the restoration plan as a way forward for the Cinder Track, further work on the ecological assessment and the finer details of the proposals will be carried out.

If funding is obtained, the proposals will be subject to planning permission involving North York Moors National Park and Scarborough Borough Council, which will include statutory public consultation.