Salford City Council and From The Other announce Make Tracks, a free day of live music and activities on Sunday 8 September from 12-4pm at Walkden’s Parr Fold Park to celebrate the new and improved walking, wheeling and cycling links between Walkden, Worsley, Boothstown and RHS Garden Bridgewater.
The new transport links connect residents of Boothstown, Walkden and Worsley with RHS Garden Bridgewater, providing 6.2km of new or upgraded walking and cycling routes, 4.6km of which are traffic free, including a link along the north towpath of the Bridgewater Canal.
For one day only, Parr Fold Park will be filled with the sounds of some of Greater Manchester’s best musicians and DJs as they take over the bandstand and start a party in the park as part of a very special event curated by From The Other (the team behind Sounds from the Other City) in collaboration with Salford City Council and the Friends of Parr Fold Park.
Make Tracks will be hosted by powerful soul vocalist Yemi Bolatiwa, and you can expect electrifying performances on the bandstand from her band Yemi Bolatiwa & The Jam Jivers, vocalist, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Ada Grace Francis, and the world music, jazz-fusion, new jack swing, neo soul, hip-hop, rock, and afro-inspired fun blending NGUVU, while steelpan soloist Zola Steelpan and ukelele band The Streetgate Strummers will be busking on the park’s pathways, and Manchesters’ legendary drum and bass songtress DJ Jenna G will be behind the musical wheel of a travelling disco leading a procession of skaters, dancers and, of course, enthusiastic attendees on a merry journey around the park.
It’s not just mega music either; get involved in workshops to decorate or fix up your bike, planting activities and gardening tips from the RHS and Friends of Parr Fold Park, while beginner skateboarders can pick up some tips and tricks from Projekts MCR, and dog owners can get a portrait of their pup by a ‘PhoDographer’. In addition, there will be a food stall, as well as refreshments from the Pavillion cafe.
RHS Garden Bridgewater is also offering 50 free tickets for people to enter the gardens on the morning of Make Tracks for a free tour, followed by a guided history walk led by Suzanne Hindle through Worsley to Parr Fold Park (approx. 1 hour walk), or a group cycle led by Bee Pedal Ready from RHS Garden Bridgewater to Parr Fold Park (approx. 15 minute cycle) where you can then join the party – there are 25 slots on each. To grab a free ticket, all you have to do is register via visitsalford.info/maketracks.
Councillor Mike McCusker, Lead Member for Planning, Transport and Sustainable Development, says:
“Salford City Council is fully committed to playing our role in helping achieve national NetZero goals and we are immensely proud to celebrate this addition to our continuously expanding Bee Network. The RHS Cycling and Walking Links scheme provides 6.2km of new or upgraded walking and cycling routes linking local communities to RHS Garden Bridgewater in Worsley and to other facilities, including Parr Fold Park, Walkden train station and Boothstown Marina.
“We are delighted to host an exciting event that brings people together for a day filled with music, entertainment and activities. As well as being enjoyable for all, Make Tracks will offer an opportunity for people to find out more about the many advantages of active travel. Together, we can embrace a greener future for Salford.”
Richard Nickson, Active Travel Network Director at TfGM, says:
“It’s so exciting to see the completion of Salford’s new active travel scheme connecting RHS Bridgewater to Boothstown, Walkden and Worsley.
“The new Bee Network route will enable residents and visitors to walk, wheel or cycle either all the way to RHS Bridgewater, or simply access part of the route they need to.
“We’re adding new high quality active travel routes to the wider Bee Network all the time and we hope our latest addition will enable more people to opt for those more sustainable means of travel for their journeys.”
Georgie Edwards of From The Other, says:
“In addition to our passion for championing grassroots culture and emerging music, we are also a team of walking, cycling and garden enthusiasts, so we’re thrilled to be curating an event that brings all our favourite things together! We’ve put together a joyful line-up of music and performance, including a few wheel-based surprises, so we’re looking forward to joining our local Salfordians in the park on Sunday 8th September.”
The £3.2m RHS Cycling and Walking Links scheme is part of the Bee Network, Greater Manchester’s vision for a fully-integrated transport network, connecting all modes of public transport with the wider walking, wheeling and cycling network.
RHS Cycling and Walking Links was developed in partnership with Salford City Council, Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM), the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), Peel L&P, the Worsley Park Marriott Hotel and Country Club and Asa Homes.
For updates on stage times and additions to the Make Tracks programme keep an eye on the Visit Salford website: www.visitsalford.info/maketracks.
