Major route opens amid £33m revamp
A key route has reopened to pedestrians and cyclists as part of ongoing works to transform a town centre into a green "bus boulevard".
The Whalebridge end of Fleming Way in Swindon can now be used by walkers, and the overall project is on target to finish later this summer.
Pedestrians faced long diversions and drivers have suffered traffic disruption since September 2022, when Fleming Way closed for works to connect the bus and train station to the town centre.
The project faced delays when it was discovered telecommunication cables were not buried deep enough for the new designs.
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Cyclists will have dedicated lanes alongside the bus lanes which will be controlled by traffic lights, allowing pedestrians to cross safely.
There will also be new greenery to support local wildlife, and make the walk between the town centre and bus and train stations "a lot more pleasant", according to the council.
Councillor Chris Watts, the council's cabinet member for environment and transport, previously said: "Those visiting the town centre are sure to notice how different the road now looks when compared to earlier in the scheme."
More than 180 trees and 23,000 shrubs and bushes have also been planted creating a bus boulevard, he added.
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Town centre revamp 'on target' for summer opening
Subway to be demolished in town-centre revamp
Swindon Borough Council

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CNN
34 minutes ago
- CNN
London's newest and most exclusive hotel penthouses start at $50,000 a night
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Yahoo
37 minutes ago
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How entry fees took over Britain's countryside
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And just 8pc of land in England is covered by the right to roam – making it one of the worst rate rates in Europe, according to a separate 2022 study. Lewis Winks, of the Right to Roam campaign, said: 'From entry fees for historically open parks, to pay-for-permission wild camping and river swimming, the paywalling of the countryside is quietly shutting the public out. 'Britain already has the lowest levels of nature connectedness in Europe – we should be making it easier for everyone to get outside, not creating more barriers.' An entry fee to England's most accessible national park, the Peak District, has been suggested by its chief executive Phil Mulligan. The authority's financial troubles have been blamed on a fixed government grant that has not accounted for inflation or other costs such as the rise in the minimum wage. 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'Are you going to have a national park funding model whereby you have to pay a hiking licence, like you have to do in some countries every time you want to go for a walk?' The prospect of enforcing entry fees to access our national parks – which would need to be greenlit by the Government – has split opinion. Diane Drinkwater, of the British Beekeepers Association, believes access to nature 'should never become a luxury', and stresses that revenue raised must be ring-fenced and reinvested into the natural world. Kate Ashbrook, of the Open Spaces Society, said the group 'would certainly object to a fee just to enter an area', while regular Peak District hiker, Chloe Groom, said: 'The people who will be hit hardest are those that visit the national park two or three times a week. This takes enjoying the outdoors from a free and accessible activity to one that has a price tag.' Reacting after news broke of the potential £1 charge, Telegraph reader, Lee McLoughlin, commented: 'Here begins the monetising of outdoor spaces. Hell awaits society.' Mike Ross, who labelled the proposal 'ridiculous', said 'soon we won't be able to visit any part of the country without paying fees. What is life coming to?'. A Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs spokesman said: 'Our national parks are a source of great national pride, which is why this government is providing them with a capital uplift of £15m. 'This is in addition to the £400m we are investing in restoring nature across the country. We are also helping national parks cut through bureaucracy and take an entrepreneurial approach to boost earnings.' Cash-strapped authorities have also been accused of exploiting Britain's beauty spots via their car parking fees. A minimum stay at Snowdon's popular Pen-y-Pass car park costs £20. Staying for a full day sets visitors back £40. 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CNN
41 minutes ago
- CNN
London's newest and most exclusive hotel penthouses start at $50,000 a night
In travel news this week, the most elite penthouse stays in London's legendary Mayfair, phenomenal natural landscapes from Turkey to Utah, plus the brothers who want to help find you a one-euro home in Sicily. Struggling to find a four-bed suite in London's most upscale and centrally located neighborhood, but with panoramic 180-degree vistas over half the district? The five-star Mandarin Oriental Mayfair hotel, which opened one year ago in storied Hanover Square, has just the ticket. Its newly launched penthouse, on the 11th floor of Mayfair's first new-build hotel in a decade, luxuriates over 5,000 square feet of lofty prime real estate. If the handpainted wallpaper, marble bathtub, array of post-Impressionist art and serenely chic design by Studio Indigo don't entice, perhaps the two levels of view-blessed wraparound terrace might. The cost? Ah well, there's the rub. The starting rate is £40,000 a night (or $54,210), which could get you nearly 15 months at the budget Travelodge hotel in nearby Marylebone, for example. The new offering is at the very top tier of London's accommodation options for super-rich jetsetters with expansive wallets, with the seven-bed Royal Suite at the Lanesborough and the six-room Manor House Wing at the Rosewood being among the ritziest of the glitziest. Prev Next The crown, however, has to go to the £60,000-a-night Penthouse at Claridge's ($81,490), which opened on the rooftop of the 169-year-old Mayfair hotel in November 2023. The 11,840-square-foot suite has four bedrooms, a private garden and swimming pool, 360-degree views over the London skyline, a Steinway piano and the world's largest private collection of works by artist Damien Hirst. Frankly, with all that on offer, I don't know how the global 1% find time on their trip to pick up Tower Bridge fridge magnets or make it down to M&M's World in Leicester Square. To coincide with CNN Original series 'My Happy Place,' CNN's anchors and reporters have been taking us to visit their favorite destinations. Bill Weir's 'happy place' is Utah's Buckskin Gulch, home to one of the longest slot canyons anywhere in the world. The beautiful undulating canyons have been sculpted by water and time and offer a peacefulness rarely found elsewhere – but watch out for the rattlesnakes and scorpions. In southwest Turkey, Lake Salda boasts white-sand beaches and vivid turquoise waters. There's a little more to this body of water than meets the eye, however. Scientists say it's the only place on Earth that's analogous to the Jezero Crater on Mars. How'd this happen? To answer that, we need to go right to the bottom of the ocean and through to the interior of the Earth. There are 24 more of the world's most unusual landscapes to explore in our roundup of must-see phenomena, from colorful sinkholes to waterfalls of molten lava to towering snow 'monsters.' For the best record of your travels, you'll want a good camera. Our partners at CNN Underscored, a product reviews and recommendations guide owned by CNN, have this guide to the best travel cameras for 2025. Nearly 10 years after his father died, travel writer Will McGough wanted to honor his memory by scattering his ashes in the pristine wilderness of Antarctica. He made the journey to the White Continent, his father's remains in a bag in his pocket, but the wished-for ceremony did not go ahead as planned. The Mount Kinabalu earthquake of 2015 claimed 18 lives, including Singaporean students and teachers who had traveled to Borneo on a school expedition. A decade later, survivors returned to the mountain to climb again. One told CNN, 'We honored what our friends never got the chance to finish.' Aircraft mechanic Max Comer has built a huge social media following with his fun, quirky and informative 'Airplane Facts with Max' videos. His life as an online star only began in 2022, however, after the unexpected death of his wife turned his world upside down. 'During that time, I had a hard time wanting to just keep going day to day. It gave me something to look forward to — a creative outlet I really needed,' he tells CNN. A family of raccoons recently broke into an Airbus factory in Canada. The momma and five babies reportedly left a trail of urine and chewed wires. There are plenty of one-euro homes hidden all over Sicily. These brothers want to find them for you. American skies may soon open up to supersonic travel. But there's still a big problem. He moved to Thailand with minimal savings. Now he plans incredible vacations for the rich and famous.