Lancaster and Morecambe cycle path to be made safer after attacks

The cycle path connecting Lancaster and Morecambe is set to see safety measures after a successful funding bid.
By Gayle Rouncivell
Published 13th Apr 2022, 12:27 BST
Updated 14th Apr 2022, 11:26 BST
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Lancaster City Council has been granted almost £20,000 towards making the Lancaster to Morecambe Greenway cycle path safer for its users.

Council officers are now looking at how the money could best be used, with CCTV among the considerations.

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The news follows a call to make the path safer for walkers and cyclists after a pensioner was attacked last week.

Police at the scene of the assault on the cycle path, close to Ovangle Road, in Lancaster on Tuesday April 5. Photo: Luke EdmondsonPolice at the scene of the assault on the cycle path, close to Ovangle Road, in Lancaster on Tuesday April 5. Photo: Luke Edmondson
Police at the scene of the assault on the cycle path, close to Ovangle Road, in Lancaster on Tuesday April 5. Photo: Luke Edmondson

A 32-year-old man from Heysham was arrested after a woman in her 70s was assaulted on April 5.

The victim remains in a serious condition in hospital after being found with a head injury on the cycle path close to Ovangle Road, near Asda, at 7.30am.

The man has not been charged with an offence at this stage, and has been released on police bail until May 5.

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A 53-year-old woman is also recovering in hospital from serious head injuries which left her in a coma after an attack near her home in Scale Hall in February, just a few hundred yards from the assault on the pensioner.

The attack was the latest in a spate of incidents on the cycle path in recent months.

In response, concerned residents have launched a petition calling on the council to install CCTV along the route to improve safety.

"A change must happen,” said Luke Edmondson, who started the petition, which you can view and sign here.

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“And that change has to be better lighting and CCTV cameras to make people feel safe walking on their own down that route.”

A Lancaster City Council spokesman said: “As a result of a survey carried out last year to gather feedback on how safe people felt using the Lancaster to Morecambe Greenway, we have now been successful in applying for £19,000 from the Office of the Lancashire Police Crime Commissioner to enable the council and its partners to address some of the concerns that were raised.

“As a member of the Lancaster District Community Safety Partnership, discussions have taken place with the police on how the funding can best be used to improve public safety along the length of this mixed use path linking Lancaster and Morecambe. The installation of CCTV is one of a number of considerations.”