IMPROVEMENTS to a muddy public path in Wallyford, which used to be a vital rail link for the local coal and brick trade, have been welcomed by local residents.

East Lothian Council is providing hardcore and whin dust to cover the walkway near Dury Way free of charge.

The work is being carried out by offenders who are carrying out community service ordered by the court.

Weed suppressor material was also supplied free of charge by the St Clements Wells development ground worker, I H Brown.

The new-look path will enable villagers from new and existing housing better access to the public park which leads to the rail station.

The project was spearheaded by Wallyford Community Council, which approached the council for help to upgrade the 200-metre walkway. It is part of the wider path network in the area, connecting Wallyford to Pinkie and Musselburgh via ‘The Drift’ core path.

Alister Hadden of Wallyford Community Council said: “As Wallyford is going to double in size with new housing, it gives another opportunity for people coming into the area to explore the park, walkways and cycleways which link up with the Battle of Pinkie Cleugh battlefield trail. Before the path was muddy and wet but now there is a nice access to the park and beyond into the railway station. It also links up with the buses that go into the park and ride.”

Improving the path had also been highlighted during the recent ‘East Lothian On The Move’ active and sustainable travel public consultation event.

Stuart Baxter, area partnership manager, said: “Active and sustainable travel is good for people’s health and for the environment.

“Musselburgh Area Partnership is keen to introduce improvements to encourage more walking and cycling.

“This is one of our main priorities and we will be working closely with East Lothian Council to introduce further improvements over the coming months.”

Roger Powell, senior countryside ranger, added: “Part of our access policy is wanting to have paths which link strategic places, it is actually going to and from somewhere. You want this kind of network of paths in and around communities.

“A path network is a bit like a wildlife corridor with vegetation either side of it. You get foxes, birds and insects. Those pockets are really important for wildlife.”

The path improvements sparked fond memories for several local men who recalled when the route was used to carry coal from the local pit and bricks made at the Wallyford brickworks. The wagons were transferred to a train on the main East Coast Rail Line, which runs alongside what is now the public path.

The supplies were pulled in wagons by a ‘pug’ or short steam engine driven by Sam Kennedy, whose son Sam, 83, is looking forward to walking his spaniel Tilly along the new-look path.

A stone buffer for the ‘pug’, known locally as “the pound of cheese” due to its shape, still sits in the public park as a reminder of the village’s mining heritage.

Jim McLeod, 84, had a career spanning more than 35 years in the mining industry. He started working at three local pits – Carberry, Woolmet and Monktonhall – when the National Coal Board took over from the Edinburgh Coal Company in 1947.

“We stayed in Drummohr Gardens and the children all played on the line which came from the brickworks where the industrial estate is now located and across the main road at what was the Cooperative next to the church,” he said.

“In the days before that, coal was brought along the line. The clay to make the bricks came from the local pits. The main colliery when we were teenagers was Carberry. The bricks would be used for housebuilding and the coal went on to Leith Docks to be exported.”

Angus Bathgate, 77, added: “During the general strike, a lot of people raided the wagons for coal for their houses. I also remember when we were at the school, we could hear the pug. When the school finished for the day and we were going home, they would shut the gates and we would wait on the pug coming down. We would shout ‘Uncle Sammy’ and we always got a wave. That went on for years.”

Double gates were opened to allow it to cross the road at the local care home, where, it was said, even the Queen and Royal Family, were stopped to allow the ‘pug’ to pass when they visited Lady Elphinstone, the Queen’s aunt, at her home at Carberry Tower.