Public Access Strategy - Action Area B Kilsyth and the Kelvin Valley

Description

The Kelvin Valley, and the area in and around the town of Kilsyth, provide an important lowland corridor for access within North Lanarkshire.  The town is surrounded by a dense network of routes, many of which are claimed rights of way, whilst others have been developed through project work, by the Central Scotland Countryside Trust and in the Dumbreck local nature reserve.  The Forth and Clyde Canal and Antonine Wall form important long distance routes cross through the southern end of the area.

There is scope to make more of the area's potential for countryside recreation and sustainable tourism development.  There are a number of 'key nodes' in and around Kilsyth, which should be linked together to provide a more coherent visitor resource.

The following priorities have been identified in this area:

• Tourism is clearly important in the area.  There are a number of key opportunities that would help to further develop access in line with a wider commitment to sustainable tourism development.  In particular:
  • the opening up of the Forth and Clyde Canal as a result of the Millennium Link project provides a key opportunity for rural tourism development.  As a result, local links with key nodes on the canal, including proposed landing sites for boats and canoes at Wyndford, Auchinstarry and Carigmarloch should be investigated further.  The aim should be to encourage long distance walkers and cyclists to divert onto the local network, particularly where this could provide local economic benefits. These longer distance routes also have potential as part of more local access networks.
  • access to the existing view point, planned interpretative facilities and a possible high profile Antonine Wall Visitor Centre at Croy Hill
  • links from Banton to Colzium to Craigmarloch are also important.
• The need to take action on signposting has been raised by many members of the community, and by the Local Plan.  Whilst many local people know where routes are, they are often less obvious to visitors.  North Lanarkshire Council should work with the local community to develop a local signage strategy which beings together attractions in the area.  A potential key signage project, could be the development of a 'round-Kilsyth' route as proposed by the Central Scotland Countryside Trust.  In effect, a complete circuit of the town already exists, but better signposting could be used to make it more easily recognisable to both local people and visitors. A similar scheme should be considered for paths around Banton Loch.
• Taking signage a stage further, visitor interpretation could also be provided through literature linking with access areas and leafleting. Local accommodation providers and visitor services could be involved in distributing information.  The North Lanarkshire Council website could also play a role.
• Whilst land managers in the area are less concerned about access than in some of the more urban areas of North Lanarkshire, it is important that local farmers in particular, are involved in access management in the area.  The local farming community could play a positive role in encouraging people to learn more about the countryside as a means of encouraging responsible access, and as an integral part of sustainable tourism development.  Potential conflict between users and land managers, arising to the east of Kilsyth should be investigated as part of this.
• Conflicts between cyclists and walkers has been noted as a concern in the area.  There are no purpose built cycle paths in the area. Scope for developing the disused Kelvin Valley Railway Line could provide a long distance route for cycling and horse riding that extends westwards through Twechar and Torrance and into Glasgow.  Much of this route has so far remained free from development, and it could provide a valuable off road resource.  This will require continued liaison with neighbouring authorities.
• Specific problems with maintenance have been raised including rough surfacing, overgrown branches, flooding, etc, on key routes. These problems should be investigated further, with a view to remedying them as a priority within this area.

Such detailed local knowledge cannot be gathered regularly across the Council area, other than by involving local communities themselves.  The local access group and members of the local community should therefore be responsible for checking the condition of local paths in the area, and informing North Lanarkshire Council of the need for action.

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