The bridleway from the common over Young Stroat Bridge to the island and then Chertsey Road  adjacent to Fairoaks Aerodrome was only formally recognised in about 1970 It runs over a piece of agricultural land that was a land swap in 1959. As such it has only been lightly surfaced. Being alongside the Bourne the water table is near the surface during the winter and some of Bridleway 2 has become very muddy. In co operation with Surrey County Council, the highway authority responsible for maintaining a right of way, and with approval from WBC, HCPS has engaged a contractor to do some improvements. You'll have to forgive the poor quality of my photo, my hands must have been shaking.



I decided to take a leaf from the previous road makers on the common and enhance it a bit. We have quite a few instances of raised tracks across the common, noticeable at grasslands opposite Viggory Lane, where the footpath has gradually migrated south of the original raised track. Traditionally the track was raised by taking soil from either side, to form ditches, and then adding this to the crown of the track, to raise it a bit. I've added a bit of strength  by incorporating a "pillow" of shingle inside a wrap of geo textile, this should allow water to freely percolate through without mud  getting mixed with the stone. As the area was all low lying we've taken some dredging spoil from alongside the Bourne to make a 150mm cover. We know we may have to add some stone or woodchip as a wear course but will wait and see how the 100m raised track fairs over the coming winter.

One of the reasons I'm keen on this type of approach is that the soil surface remains more natural and less urbanised than other approaches.

I'm expecting comments both good and bad!