New Mills dog walkers ‘howling with joy’ as Millennium Walkway reopens

The walkway - opened in 2000 to mark the turn of the century - was closed on safety grounds due to the drainage issue.

Derbyshire County Council had been working with others including Network Rail to trace the problem in the very old drainage system.

However they announced on Tuesday that there was no longer any contamination present at the site and it was now safe for the public to use.

New Mills town councillor Barry Bate said dog walkers who use the paths which the walkway connects would be ‘howling with joy’ at the news.

He said: “Everybody in town is happy about it - but also a lot of dogs.

“The paths are so popular with dog owners so they were the most vocal about the problem.”