Workington Travel Survey

The floods of November 20th 2009 destroyed or damaged four of the five bridges across the River Derwent at Workington, severing road and pedestrian access. Papcastle Bridge near Cockermouth, the closest road river crossing which involved a long detour, became a bottleneck with long delays for traffic in both directions. Many agencies worked hard to improve the situation and within ten days a temporary station had been built and a free train shuttle service instigated to make use of the remaining bridge. The army erected a footbridge in early December and provision was made for a shuttle bus between settlements on the north of the river, the new station and the footbridge. Thus, between December and April, there was an unusual situation with car journeys between the north and south of the area necessitating a long detour with considerable delays, while the half-hourly train service was free to use and pedestrian access was relatively easy. Cumbria County Council commissioned the Institute of Transport and Tourism of University of Central Lancashire to research the impact this had made on people’s travel. A household survey gave data on 435 people’s travel patterns for typical weeks in October 2009, before the floods, March 2010 while road access was difficult and May 2010 once the temporary road bridge had been opened. The survey found that the number of trips for all purposes had reduced in March and although it had risen again in May, it had not reached the previous levels. Leisure and social trips were the most reduced, partly because of the extra time needed for other travel. Shopping trips reduced and often changed destination and work trips showed most propensity for mode change. Although respondents’ car trips fell by nearly a half, the majority of trips were still made by car. Train travel increased by over 500% and although it dropped in May there were still more trips made by train in May than in October. The consequences of the new travel situation ranged from enjoying the physical exercise and sociability of walking across the temporary foot bridge to feelings of isolation, worry about elderly relations on the other side of the river and, for some, the loss of a job or earnings and severe stress. Household duties could be re-allocated to accommodate different schedules and longer travel times. Most respondents recognised the efforts made by Cumbria County Council and other agencies, although officers themselves worried about the impact of the emergency on other aspects of their responsibilities. Interviews with key stakeholders demonstrated how it was not just travellers adjusting to a new geography around Workington. Several employers redeployed staff so they could work on the side of the river where they lived to avoid a long commute. Services were provided in the north of the area: supermarket, mobile bank, doctors’ surgeries, while other public services (Police, Fire and Ambulance Services) re-aligned their administrative boundaries or practices to adjust to the new situation. The findings suggest there is an ability to change travel patterns when circumstances change, but there remains a high car dependence, even when the alternatives are cheaper and more convenient

The role of familial habitus in shaping children's views of their future employment

As the field of Geographies of Children, Youth and Families grows and diversifies as a testament to the active and vigorous interest in this area of research, the collection of papers presented within this Special Issue proves timely in addressing developing research on education and aspiration. At a variety of spatial scales and from different perspectives, the contributors have shown how educational settings are invoked by politicians, educators and practitioners as sites where the aspirations of future citizen-workers can be managed for perceived individual and collective benefit. It is unsurprising that young people remain the focus of policy attention and analyses in relation to ‘raising’ aspirations, given normative understandings of their chronological proximity to transitions to adulthood. What emerges alongside efforts to affect the aspirations of young people through education is a strand of thought which acknowledges the role of the family in the lives of young people. Research has shown distinctions in parental aspirations for their children according to ethnic and socio-economic background (Coleman, 1988; Portes and MacLeod, 1996), and has highlighted how families are viewed by educationalists as key to the academic success of their children (Holloway and Pimlott-Wilson, this issue). Whilst young people and parents remain central to considerations of aspiration (Nairn et al., 2007), the hopes of young children are also crucial when we take into account the implications which may arise when children judge one path of action feasible as a future goal whilst others appear unattainable. In this article, I argue that the voices of children need to be included in research which considers aspiration, acknowledging the influence of the family on these imagined futures whilst also recognising that children reflexively develop their own perspectives as they encounter new experiences. In the next section of the paper, I engage with policy interest in families and discuss further my conceptualisation of habitus and how this relates to children’s hopes for the future. In the central section I present a case study of children’s future employment plans, putting forward evidence to show that family socialisation predisposes children to consider particular occupational types over others. To this end, I utilise the concept of habitus as a flexible and non-deterministic method for understanding children’s perceptions of what courses of action are most appropriate for their future. Thirdly, I provide evidence to suggest that children’s aspirations are not simply a reflection of parental practices but rather show how the habitus is continually evolving, illustrating children’s agency in their reflexive resistance of particular occupational types in light of family experience. In conclusion, the article calls for further consideration of children’s hopes for the future and the factors which influence the dispositions of individuals, highlighting the imperative for educationalists to remain cognisant of children’s dispositions in efforts to (re)shape aspirations

The effect of depth‐duration‐frequency model recalibration on rainfall return period estimates

In November 2009 and December 2015, two record‐breaking 24‐hr rainfalls occurred in Cumbria, UK, significantly changing the perception of flood risk for local communities. FEH13, the current UK rainfall depth‐duration‐frequency (DDF) model, estimated return periods of around 1,000 years for both events. The previous model, FEH99, received criticism from panel engineers responsible for making technical safety decisions relating to reservoirs for appearing to estimate relatively short return periods for extreme events. Although FEH13 is more consistent with current probable maximum precipitation (PMP) estimates, there is high uncertainty in both models due to the limited number of extremes captured by UK rain gauges. Furthermore, neither model included the 2009 or 2015 event in its calibration. Here, we re‐calibrate FEH13 using additional gauged rainfall data collected in Cumbria during 2006–2016, including the record‐breaking 2009 and 2015 storms. Using the updated calibration data set reduces the estimated return periods of the 2009 and 2015 events to approximately 140 years each. This case study illustrates the considerable uncertainty in short‐sample records, demonstrates the importance of maximising the quantity of relevant calibration data, shows that perception of risk depends upon the method and data used, and illustrates the difficulty of separating trends and natural variability

Developing the framework for a borderlands strategy: a report produced by the Universities of Northumbria and Cumbria

The 2013 report, Borderlands: can the North East and Cumbria benefit from greater Scottish Autonomy?, recommended a new approach to boosting economic development across the Borderland area covered by Northumberland, Cumbria, Carlisle, Dumfries and Galloway and Scottish Borders councils. The report highlighted that the Borderlands have much in common: a shared history; the daily cross-border flows of people for work, shopping or family visits; and also shared experiences of economic and social change which has produced a number of common challenges and opportunities which lend themselves to a collaborative response. In April 2015, The Institute of Local Governance (on behalf of Northumberland County Council and the wider Borderlands Steering Group) commissioned the Universities of Cumbria and Northumbria to produce a detailed Framework Document that would underpin the development of a collaborative approach to economic development in the Borderlands. This study would provide comparative economic and social data which would serve as an in-depth and independent evidence base on which a collaborative approach for the Borderlands could be developed and promoted by the combined efforts of the 5 councils and their partners. The study would review the wide range of existing economic strategies operating across the Borderlands, identifying: priorities; key sectors; assets; challenges, and opportunities for collaboration particularly in relation to Energy, Forestry, Tourism, and Connectivity

Do Bat Gantries and Underpasses Help Bats Cross Roads Safely?

Major roads can reduce bat abundance and diversity over considerable distances. To mitigate against these effects and comply with environmental law, many European countries install bridges, gantries or underpasses to make roads permeable and safer to cross. However, through lack of appropriate monitoring, there is little evidence to support their effectiveness. Three underpasses and four bat gantries were investigated in northern England. Echolocation call recordings and observations were used to determine the number of bats using underpasses in preference to crossing the road above, and the height at which bats crossed. At gantries, proximity to the gantry and height of crossing bats were measured. Data were compared to those from adjacent, severed commuting routes that had no crossing structure. At one underpass 96% of bats flew through it in preference to crossing the road. This underpass was located on a pre-construction commuting route that allowed bats to pass without changing flight height or direction. At two underpasses attempts to divert bats from their original commuting routes were unsuccessful and bats crossed the road at the height of passing vehicles. Underpasses have the potential to allow bats to cross roads safely if built on pre-construction commuting routes. Bat gantries were ineffective and used by a very small proportion of bats, even up to nine years after construction. Most bats near gantries crossed roads along severed, pre-construction commuting routes at heights that put them in the path of vehicles. Crossing height was strongly correlated with verge height, suggesting that elevated verges may have some value in mitigation, but increased flight height may be at the cost of reduced permeability. Green bridges should be explored as an alternative form of mitigation. Robust monitoring is essential to assess objectively the case for mitigation and to ensure effective mitigation

Extensive Urban Survey - Cumbria

The Cumbria Extensive Urban Survey was carried out by Cumbria County Council between 2000 and 2002. The project, part of a national programme of work coordinated by English Heritage, comprised a three-stage survey of the historical and archaeological aspects of each of twenty-three towns selected in Cumbria. The programme aims to re-evaluate the national archaeological resource and to provide comprehensive, rigorous and consistent base-line information against which research, regeneration and land use planning objectives may be set. The programme has three principal outputs: new data added to the Cumbria Sites & Monuments Record, a comprehensive report containing background information on the historical development and current archaeological knowledge of each town, and a strategy report, which outlines recommended management actions

A century of service A brief survey of a 100 years of public libraries in Cumbria 1882 - 1982

SIGLELD:f82/3473 / BLDSC - British Library Document Supply CentreGBUnited Kingdo

Public transport plan 1982-83

SIGLELD:6969.44(1982-83) / BLDSC - British Library Document Supply CentreGBUnited Kingdo

Transport policies and programme submission for the financial year 1982-83

SIGLELD:9025.8585(1982-83) / BLDSC - British Library Document Supply CentreGBUnited Kingdo

Public transport plan 1981/82

SIGLELD:fv81/1406 / BLDSC - British Library Document Supply CentreGBUnited Kingdo