My favourite local areas

"The past few months have given many of us the opportunity to explore our local areas more than ever before! Whether you walk, run or cycle from your house, you will pass historic and new civil engineering projects that we take for granted as it allows us to live our lives and get from A to B. It may be that you don’t realise it’s civil engineering or don’t really notice it as it’s a piece of historic infrastructure that’s always been there – but we’re surrounded by it and I’ve explored my local area to find new and old projects on my daily walk."

"Hucknall is a town to the north of Nottingham in the East Midlands. Historically, Hucknall was a town known for mining, in turn attracting railway construction to the area. First was the Midland Railway, followed by the Great Northern Railway and finally the Great Central Railway. Hucknall Airfield was constructed in 1916, which Rolls Royce used for testing from 1927 and have had a factory there ever since. More recently Hucknall has become a predominantly residential town with great transport links into Nottingham. My photos show some historical and modern engineering and the development of infrastructure here."

1. Tin Bridge, Butlers Hill

This is Tin Bridge in Butlers Hill, Hucknall, a footbridge I frequently use to get to the local lakes and country park. It passes over the tram and train line to Hucknall Station. Although now a modern tin bridge, this bridge was first constructed in 1892 over what was the Midland and Great Northern railway lines.

2. Bestwood Bridge archway

This bridge is hidden away from the road covered in greenery providing access to a number of properties. However, this beautiful brick arch way was once part of the Great Northern Railway through Bestwood Village.It wasbuilt to carry coal from theLeen Valley Pits between 1881 and 1964.

3. Bestwood Footbridge

Further along Moor Road from the Great Northern Railway Bridge is this footbridge into Bestwood Country Park. Now providing access for lots of walkers, runners and cyclists, it again was once a railway bridge through the village. Enclosed by lots of established trees, this bridge sits perfectly in its landscape.

4. Bestwood Winding Engine House

At the entrance to Bestwood Country Park is The Winding Engine House, that last remaining part of what was Bestwood Village Colliery. This provides a reminder of Victorian Industrial Engineering in the area and a family favourite as my grandad and great-grandad were miners here!

5. Hucknall station

Heading into Hucknall Town Centre is Hucknall Station. Over the past couple of years, a new bridge has been installed to replace a 140-year old structure with a new bridge over the Robin Hood line. Hucknall Station allows travel across Nottinghamshire using the trains, trams, buses and the cycle park available here, creating a transport hub for the town.

6. Hucknall housing development

New housing developments in Hucknall have been a common sight for the past 10-15 years. To the north of Hucknall, I found the start of a new housing development and the start of the new bell mouth for the access road. This will provide the turning off the existing roundabout to access the site.

7. Hucknall High Street

As part of a regeneration scheme in Hucknall, the main high street has been pedestrianised.

This has prioritised an open space for shoppers on the high street and has provided open spaces for the local market, outdoor seating and reduced the traffic in the town.This is a great example of civil engineering providing a positive social sustainable impact for the local community!

8. Wind turbines

Renewable energy and clean energy sources are key to civil engineers to design infrastructure for a sustainable future.

It’s great to see wind turbines being constructed to provide energy for the local area and reduce our reliability on fossil fuels.

9. The M1

The M1 is the main motorway through Nottingham. Connecting London and Leeds, the M1 is one of the backbone road networks in the UK and was the first inter-urban motorway to be completed in the UK. It has recently been upgraded to a Smart Motorway, allowing four running lanes to increase the capacity of the motorway.

10. Harrier Park

Through the fields is a new industrial building at Harrier Park. Blending in with the grey skies, it’s part of a new industrial and distribution business park between Rolls Royce and Muse Developments. There is the opportunity to provide one million square feet of employment space which can be built to suit the needs of those using it, allowing flexible working which will attract a variety of businesses to the area.