Open and shut - a new series of Stoke-on-Trent alley gatings

It appears that Stoke-on-Trent City Council is quietly using the lockdown to lock up a wide range of alleys and footpaths, with new residents-only 'gated path' arragements. Regrettably their set of final draft orders all lack maps.

'Location 53' is Palmers Green. They don't appear to have closed the Palmers Green gated footpath known as "Palmers Way", which is absolutely vital to a key public walking-route between Newcastle-under-Lyme and Stoke. But the 'back-alley' path leading around the back of the houses up to reach this vital footpath does appear to have been closed to the public. Access to Palmers Way still seems to be possible by walking up the quiet green cul-de-sac of Palmers Green, which would anyway have been the preferrable walking route. But obviously walkers need to keep a close eye on the continued accessibility of "Palmers Way".

The other regrettable loss is at the very end of the document. The very long alley that runs behind the Leek Road, and that enabled relatively pleasant and quiet walking from Hanley Park / Cauldon Canal down to the Royal Mail sorting office. While usefully avoiding student grot and huge pavement-hogging bins on one side, and the fumes and noise of the main road traffic on the other.

Most of these "residents only" alley gatings appear to being put in place to deter druggies and flytippers. Yet another example of how we all suffer because of measures needed to deal with a tiny minority.