Roy Phillips, of Carlton Place, Teignmouth, writes:

Contrary to recent press reports abut the proposed development of a pedestrian/cycle path alongside the River Teign from Teignmouth to Newton Abbot being considered and discussed for the last ten years, to my certain knowledge a proposal was made in l981 – 30 years ago.

In l981, as part of the discussion and consultation on Teignmouth's economic and social future – one part of the Teignbridge Dann Plan – my good friend Bob Pope and I, on behalf of the local Liberal Party, submitted a set of proposals to Teignbridge which included this pedestrian/cycle path.

We proposed that the path should run alongside the River Teign wih two restaurants/cafes and with sailing dinghy launch pads sited at suitable locations. Our emphasis was that, as with many lakes in Switzerland, this pathway should run alongside the banks of the river.

Devon County Council and Teignbridge Council have had 30 years in which to plan, obtain planning permission and secure the necessary funding. I know that during the 12 years I was at Teignbridge this proposal came up fairly regularly – the two main snags, repeatedly stated, being funding of the project and securing the necessary rights of way.

So what we have learned recently is that progress on both these fronts remains relatively unchanged. Now Teignbridge has a golden opportunity – it can use, initially, some of the money from Broadmeadow to construct our section of the path to Bishopsteignton. If Newton Abbot was to start their end, then both county and district councils can fund the rest.

If a minimal charge was to be made for the full length, and/or per section, the money received could first help maintain the pathway, then income from the restaurants/cafes and the dinghy facilities could be used to reimburse Teignmouth and Newton Abbot for their individual investments.

I believe that the benefits to our respective towns and to those villages along the way, in recreation and tourism gains, will be significant and long lasting, and gain our towns a far firmer footing in the tourism market.MORE LETTERS ONLINE