Tin Bridge Mural

"The Tin Bridge Mural"

Residents walking up the line will not have failed to notice the fantastic piece of artwork which has recently been completed at the "Tin Bridge". The artwork depicts the working day of a colliery and there is particular emphasis on the importance of the train and railway to transport the coal mined from beneath the surface.

The work was completed by two young men from the area who had been apprehended by the Waggonway Wardens graffiti-ing in the locality. The young men explained that there were no areas to create pieces of artwork. It was suggested that they create a unique piece of artwork for the Waggonway Project as restitution for their previous misdeeds.

The artists designed and painted the mural and evidence suggests from similar projects that the incidents of graffiti in the area may decline as a consequence of the artwork.

The North Tyneside "Waggonway Project" commenced in March 2004 and is funded by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's Liveability Fund and is due to be completed in April 2006. The Funding has been used to improve and up-grade nearly 30km of historical, former colliery railways or Waggonways, to create safe, pleasant, environmental sustainable routes for walkers, cyclists and horse riders. It is hoped that the improvements to the paths will encourage more people to use the network for recreation, as routes to the shops, to work and to school.

The project will also create a "Waggonway Warden Service" to maintain the routes once the improvements are in place. The Wardens patrol the tracks, undertaking grounds maintenance and cleansing tasks and have enforcement powers covering littering and dog fouling. The wardens are the main contact point for walkers and riders, reporting problems such as graffiti, fly-tipping and illegal use of motorbikes.

Burradon & Camperdown has two important historical Waggonways, the Seaton burn Waggonway, (which runs between Weetslade Colliery and Front Street) and the Killingworth Waggonway (runs from Burradon Road to Killingworth Way). The Waggonways have been up-graded by the project. The surfaces of the paths on the Seaton Burn Waggonway been improved and street lighting will be installed along the first 200m of the path. Environmental improvements have been completed which included tree and shrub planting behind Festival Cottages, and improvements will be made to the road crossing at Front Street.

For people new to the village "The Tin Bridge" was an old footbridge which spanned the main east line railway which is near the A189 by-pass. The bridge was constructed approximately 100 years ago and when you walked over the bridge you could see the railway track below between the wooden slats,(not for the faint hearted).

The project is also keen on hearing from local people who may have old photos/ historical records about these former railway lines so that they can be incorporated into display boards leaflet to interpret the areas social and industrial heritage.

For further information contact Jim Cowan 219 2421