Little Eaton: Old railway to become £2.7m cycling and walking route

A stretch of former railway line in Derbyshire is to be converted into a £2.7m route for cyclists, walkers, runners and horse riders.

Derbyshire County Council said the project would transform 3.5 miles (5.6km) of the line between Duffield Road in Little Eaton and Rawson Green.

It said the new "greenway" stretch would form a section of the cycle route from Derby to Ripley.

The work will be paid for with a grant from the government.

Council cabinet member for infrastructure and environment Carolyn Renwick said: "There's overwhelming support in the community for the Little Eaton greenway and we look forward to starting work on the ground to build this off-road route which will be open to a wide range of users."

The county council said it would use a further £300,000, secured from the Government Agency Active Travel England fund, to draw up plans for the White Peak Loop cycle route into Buxton town centre.

The popular cycle route through the Peak District is currently 70% complete.

Mrs Renwick added: "Connecting the White Peak Loop is a long-standing ambition of the county council and this is an exciting step forward towards putting in place one of the missing links for the route which has the potential to attract visitors from all over the UK, as well as promoting greener travel."

Follow BBC East Midlands on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected].