New Footbridge Set to Improve Sandyhills Park Connectivity
A City Deal project to ‘daylight’ Tollcross Burn and improve greenspace within Sandyhills Park is well underway and was recently delivered of a brand new pedestrian footbridge that will form a critical link between residential properties close by, and the park itself, spanning a new watercourse channel.
The bridge arrived on-site fully constructed, and was carefully lifted into place by a large crane. The installation of this new infrastructure represents a significant project milestone which prominently showcases the positive changes ongoing within this east end park.
Hidden, after being culverted through the park in the 1950’s – work is underway to uncover a 425m section of Tollcross Burn that will create an attractive focal point for visitors, reduce flood risk and stimulate biodiversity. Regeneration and investment in the local area will also become more appealing as development limitations caused by drainage constraints are taken away.
Glasgow City Region City Deal (funded by both the UK and Scottish Governments) is providing funding for the project through the Metropolitan Glasgow Strategic Drainage Partnership (MGSDP) – alongside the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) through their Water Environment Fund and Scottish Water.
The project includes work to improve the surroundings in the park, with the removal of some trees from an area of poor quality woodland, compensated for with a robust and high quality landscape design scheme that will encourage wildlife. The design also includes the introduction of standard and feature trees, woodland planting, shallow water planting and meadow planting – all of which suit the natural surroundings.
Through MGSDP City Deal investment of circa £45m, Glasgow is working with partners to deliver a programme of drainage schemes, targeting areas of the city where rainfall negatively impacts communities. The MGSDP is a partnership between public bodies and was founded in 2002 by Glasgow City Council, Scottish Water and SEPA, and has grown to include a wide range of local authorities, public and third sector bodies.
MGSDP projects/schemes aim to reduce flood risk and impacts, improve water quality and bring greenspace improvements through ‘blue-green’ interventions – a term used to describe where greenspace is linked to water. Drainage capacity is also increased, which allows land to be released for new homes and businesses, and so supports continued economic development and regeneration across the city region.
Both the UK and Scottish Governments are providing the Glasgow City Region local authorities with £500million each in grant funding for the Glasgow City Region City Deal.
