Bedford Tigers (Rugby League) will be playing Bedford Queens (Rugby Union) in a charity match on Saturday, 20 April 2019, kick off at 2.00 pm, at the Kings Field Sports and Community Centre, Biddenham.
One half of the match will be played with League code rules and the other with Union code rules.
Photo courtesy of Gary Ingerson, Rocket Brand Communications
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The game is Rugby but more specifically Rugby League – if you haven’t seen it live come down and have a look. Game starts at 2:30pm.
The teams involved are Bedford Tigers and Luton Vipers (Two adult teams that play in the East of England league).The Bedford Cup is an annual season opener and the new feature is that the cup has been donated in memory of Lesley Ashton who sadly passed last year and was a popular teacher over many years in the Bedford area.
Following the cup game there will be a set of fixtures starting on 5th May and we will publish the fixture list separately.
This will include games against teams from Milton Keynes, St Albans, Hemel Hempstead, St Ives, Southend, Brentwood, Hitchin/North Herts and Luton. There will also Under 14 and Under 16 activities and games each week.If you love Rugby please come down. Watch the game, have a sit and a cup of tea or a beer and enjoy the fresh air. There is no entry fee.
[The ground is located at the Biddenham end of the bypass]
click photo below
Photos, courtesy Gary Ingerson [Rocket Brand Communication]
As work continues on the housing development at the west, Biddenham, end of the land north of Bromham Road, the access road into the development from the roundabout on the bypass is now being opened up.
Meanwhile to the west of that development, on the other, Bromham, side of the bypass work is going apace on developing the playing fields and the changing facilities are also underway.
And through it all the Canada geese amuse themselves by the large pond between the bypass and the river.
After all our posts on progress with construction, on Monday, 25 April 2016, the ‘Great Ouse Way’ (formally referred to as the Northern section of the Bedford Western Bypass, linking the A4280 at Biddenham with the A6 at the Clapham roundabout) was officially opened by the Major of Bedford, Dave Hodgson. The event was covered by ITV Anglia News and BBC Look East and attended by guests and representatives from the main contractor Breheny Civils and from Bedford Borough Council.
Following the ribbon cutting (assisted by pupils from St James Church of England (VA) Lower School, Biddenham, and Rushmoor School, Bedford), attendees were invited to board an old Routemaster bus which took passengers along the length of the bypass, followed by a convoy of classic cars.
As part of the official opening, volunteers from UK charity ‘sustrans’ took to their bikes to ride on the new cycle and pedestrian path which runs along the length of the new road. Yo Higton, ‘sustrans‘ co-ordinator and one of the cyclists, handed out copies of a walking and cycling map of Bedford and Kempston, which is one of the first maps to include the new section of bypass. Free copies of the map, pictured below, are available from Yo and you can contact her by email (yo.higton@sustrans.org.uk) or phone (01234 276048):
for more information from our major Dave Hodgson click for this post opening news release
On Sunday, 10 April, the new Bedford Western Bypass was ‘opened’ for a sponsored ‘Fun Run and Walk’ event principally in aid of the Sue Ryder St John’s Hospice, Moggerhanger.
This was an opportunity, before it is opened to traffic, to see the full extent of the new bypass, constructed to relieve congestion into Bedford from the west and through the village of Biddenham. In sunny dry conditions the event was enjoyed by the hundreds who took part.
Special thanks to Graham Bates for contributing the stunning aerial photographs and to the Bedford Rotary Club for organising the event. See more photos, courtesy of the Bedford Rotary Club.
CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT MORE AND TO SIGN UP
[The photo featured in this post is from the the Barford Bypass Challenge in 2006]
Walking the new western bypass from Biddenham to Bedford on a sunny Easter Monday afternoon with Storm Katie’s tailwinds behind us was a pleasure.
It was a bit tougher on the return journey with Katie’s winds trying to hold us back. And the errant BBQ wasn’t fired up so no chance of refreshments to help us on our way.
But not long now till a peaceful walk along that route will be disturbed by the traffic for which the bypass was designed.
If you visit YouTube and search under Breheny, you’ll find two videos showing work on the last section of the bypass with some stunning aerial photography. The first from June 2015 looks at the work in general and the second from Autumn 2015 looks specifically at the construction of the bridge over the railway. Well worth a look.
or click on these Youtube links:
update – 7 February 2016
With the new bridge now straddling the Midland Mainline line north of Bedford station, the completion of the Northern Bypass looks very much on schedule (date yet to be confirmed), but …
update – 11 February 2016
At the February Parish Council meeting, Jon Gambold reported that the opening of the bypass may be delayed due to potential major road works required on Tavistock Street that are expected to take six weeks. Concerns were raised that if the bypass is opened before the Tavistock St work is completed, substantial volumes of traffic will come via the bypass to Biddenham and then along Bromham Road to get to Bedford!
So the present plan is to delay opening the bypass until the work on Tavistock St. is completed, it is understood this work has not yet begun – watch this space!
26 September 2015:
some photo’s of the bypass as it continues to stretch towards the new Clapham roundabout + a few shots of the old Biddenham GC – now very overgrown. A lovely evening, sun and clouds combining well with the hot air balloons also taking a view of progress maybe …
the Biddenham blog 