Come along to see live music, and join in the Egg-cellent Easter-Egg Hunt with a photo trail spread across the waterfront. Attend our interactive springtime workshop held in the Norwegian Church and soak up the Easter atmosphere in Cardiff Bay.

From noon – 6pm on Monday, March 24, there will be live music on the
waterfront; with artists such as Sheelanagig and Julia Harris performing
throughout the day from the bandstand between Wales Millennium Centre and the historical Pierhead building.

You and your family are also welcomed to join in the FREE springtime workshop at the Norwegian Church. All children can participate in making Easter hats and cards and can take away their handiwork as a memento!

Workshops take place from 12noon – 4pm.

The Cardiff Bay Visitor Centre, known locally as the Tube, will host the start of the Egg-cellent Easter Egg Hunt. From 12pm onwards, children can collect a route map from the Tube, and along with their parents work through the clues that are spread around the Bay. The last entries will need to be returned to the Tube by no later than 4pm.

On completion of the Egg-cellent Easter Egg Hunt children will receive an Easter egg and will be entered into a FREE prize draw.

As the Tube is open throughout the day, every family who visits this Bank Holiday Monday will have the opportunity to join in, so no-one should be disappointed!

Councillor Nigel Howells, Executive Member for Sport, Leisure and Culture said, “Cardiff Bay is flourishing, and is becoming a year round destination of choice for residents of and visitors to Cardiff. However, there is no question that with the start of springtime, the Bay comes alive from the Easter weekend. This Easter Bank Holiday Monday Egg-stravaganza marks the beginning of an excellent calendar of events for 2008.

Our Easter celebration clearly demonstrates the close partnerships between Cardiff Harbour Authority, Cardiff Council and local businesses. As you know this is the first of many FREE events here in the Bay over the coming months.”

Rowing enthusiasts from across Wales and the UK are heading to Cardiff on March 1st for an ‘oar-some’ event along the River Taff.

Starting at Cardiff Castle, this 3,500m challenge of speed and endurance sees crews of rowers competing to gain the fastest time as they cross the finishing line into Cardiff Bay.

Hosted by Cardiff Bay Yacht Club, participants have the opportunity to compete in a range of classes on one of the best stretches for rowing in Wales. All abilities from Beginner to Expert can take part in the fun, with trophies and medals presented to the highest performers in each class.

Local residents and visitors to Cardiff Bay can also enjoy rowing and other paddle sports at the Cardiff Bay Water Activity Centre, offering courses for all ages and abilities in sailing, canoeing, kayaking, windsurfing and even white-water rafting.

The majority of courses are hosted from the Centre on the 200 hectare freshwater lake of Cardiff Bay, together with the protected waters of the Rivers Taff and Ely. Activities such as white-water rafting are organised further afield accompanied by experienced and qualified instructors from the Centre.

Connect2 and Pont y Werin have been successful in the £50 million Big Lottery bid!

79 communities around the UK, including Cardiff’s Pont y Werin, will now benefit from Sustrans’ winning the £50 million grant in the Big Lottery Fund’s: The People’s £50 Million contest. Connect2 has beaten 3 other organisations, with approximately 42% of the public voting Connect2 online and via a telephone number.

The biggest Lottery prize ever, will be divided between the 79 schemes and Pont y Werin is earmarked to receive £1.15m towards implementing the £3.5m bridge.

Pont y Werin which is proposed for the River Ely between Cardiff and Penarth, through to the Vale of Glamorgan is a 140 metre bridge that would enable pedestrians and cyclists to cross between Penarth at Cogan and the International Sports Village at Cardiff Bay. It will also link up to a future cycle route through to Barry and the Vale of Glamorgan.
 

Nationally Connect2 will build bridges, foot and cycle paths, and even reinstate a ferry, giving people easier and healthier access to their schools, workplaces, shops, parks and countryside.

Cardiff Council Leader Rodney Berman said: “Firstly I would like to thank everyone for voting Connect2 and giving us the chance to win the lottery funding. The £1.15m we will now receive for Pont y Werin is a huge boost in moving forward with this much needed bridge that will bring sustainable links between Cardiff and the Vale of Glamorgan for cyclists, wheelchair users and walkers. As you know, this bridge is one of the key strategic projects for Cardiff Council and is essential to the development of a continuous walkway around Cardiff Bay. It will also provide the first safe, pedestrian access path between these two counties, and securing this funding is a great step towards completing the project.

“I am thrilled we have won and think its fantastic how the people of Cardiff and the Vale got behind the bid, to bring about a change in providing more sustainable forms of local transport. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank all those involved for their time and hard work leading up to the vote.”

__________________________________________________

PONT Y WERIN                                                 OCTOBER 2007

A major project to get millions of people walking and cycling in Cardiff and Penarth came a step closer today as Sustrans’ Connect2 Lottery bid entered the ultimate stage of the Big Lottery Fund’s: The People’s £50 Million contest. The final shortlist was announced today and TV presenter Lorraine Kelly and former minister Charles Clarke will lead the sustainable transport charity’s bid to transform local travel opportunities in Cardiff and Penarth and across the UK. Adam Hart Davies, Wayne Hemingway and Ken Livingstone are among other high-profile supporters.

Pont y Werin is the proposed 140m bridge earmarked for the River Ely that would connect Cardiff Bay and Penarth. Pont y Werin would provide a vital link for cyclists, walkers and wheelchair users between the International Sports Village and Cogan, completing a route around Cardiff Bay. The innovative design would open, allowing river traffic to pass through.
 

Four organisations, including ‘Sustrans’ Connect2 project, are competing for the £50 million grant to be decided by public vote on ITV1 in December. Each project will be the subject of a television programme on ITV1 in the week commencing 3 December.

Sustrans' Connect2 will be featured on Tuesday 4 December. Full programme details will be released in mid November.

Voting will take place online and by phone vote following the TV shows.

Online voting for The People’s £50 Million Lottery Giveaway will open at 9am on Monday 26 November at www.thepeoples50million.org.uk.

Telephone voting will be over the weekend 7-10 December.*
* - ITV reserve the right to change schedules.
 

Connect2 will improve local travel in 79 communities across the UK by building walking and cycling bridges and tunnels, developing links, and even re-instating a ferry. Connect2 will also bring people closer together by making journeys quicker, healthier and more convenient.

From cyclists and leisure walkers to commuters and schoolchildren, everyone will have a better quality of life thanks to Connect2. Across the UK six million people live within a mile of the proposed schemes, including one million schoolchildren. It is estimated that 79,000 tonnes of
carbon emissions could be saved annually once the schemes are completed.
 

Lorraine Kelly: “I meet so many people from all walks of life and I find one thing affects us all, travel. How many times have we stood on the edge of a busy road waiting for the traffic to ease or had to travel miles out of our way to get to the one bridge over the river? Connect2 deals with just these daily challenges and gives us the option to do the journey in a way that helps the environment. And, of course, it gets us fit - forget the gym, Connect2 is the answer to our obesity problems”.
 

Sustrans’ CEO John Grimshaw said, “Three years ago the National Cycle Network was voted Britain’s favourite large-scale, lottery-funded project. Connect2 will build on the NCN and provide local opportunities for people to combat two of the most pressing issues facing us - obesity and climate change. We ask anyone who would like to see local travel transformed across the UK to vote for Connect2 in December.”

Cardiff Council Leader Rodney Berman said: “This is fantastic news. It means we are one step closer to winning the Big Lottery funding which will go towards building Pont y Werin. The bridge would give access to cyclists, wheelchair users and walkers across the River Ely. It’s now important that everyone in Penarth and Cardiff vote for Connect2, and they can do it online from November 26.”
 

To find out more about Connect2, and to register support, visit www.sustransconnect2.org.uk

or, text Connect2 to 80010
 

The Cardiff Bay Barrage has been short listed for a prestigious British
Construction Industry Award (BCIA) to find the best construction project over the last 20 years - in a competition of champions to mark the 20th anniversary of the BCIA.

To vote for the Cardiff Bay Barrage just email Hollie Mitchell and send.

For further information about the British Construction Industry Awards and the other nominated schemes visit www.nceplus.co.uk.

The Barrage is up against Building and Civil Engineering award winners from the past two decades, including the Channel Tunnel; the Second Severn Crossing; Tate Modern and nine other high profile projects from which a worthy winner will be honoured with a special award at the gala awards dinner in October in London.

The competition has also gone out to a public vote for readers of industry magazine New Civil Engineer. Each week for 13 weeks, readers are voting for their favourite project, and each week one of the contenders will drop off the list, until there is a winner left standing. Readers will then see if their choice reflects the panel of 11 eminent BCIA judges. So far two competitors have gone – Britannia project in the North Sea, and
Stansted Airport Terminal.

The Barrage is managed and operated by Cardiff Harbour Authority, from where Operational Manager Roger Thorney said: “It’s gratifying to be considered one of the major construction projects of the past 20 years, particularly in such illustrious company.
 

It would be great to win, and to be considered highly by people in the industry.”

The construction of the 1.1km Barrage transformed Cardiff Bay’s tidal mudflats into a freshwater lake and has been praised by BCIA judges as a catalyst for the regeneration of the Bay. The citation says: “Seven years on, a thriving waterfront development illustrates the success of a project that involved some major civil engineering challenges.”
 

The Cardiff Bay Barrage was completed in 1999 and was the catalyst for the regeneration of the docklands of Cardiff and Penarth. It created a 500 acre freshwater lake surrounded by 13 kilometres of waterfront entertainment and hospitality, maritime and recreational facilities, high quality housing, and a wetlands and wildlife area.

The Civil Engineering shortlist for the award is:
 

Cardiff Bay Barrage
Channel Tunnel Rail Link Section 1
Second Severn Crossing
Jubilee Line Extension
Sizewell B Power Station
Britannia Project, Central North Sea
Channel Tunnel
The Building shortlist for the award is:
City of Manchester Stadium
Eden Project
Tate Modern
Broadgate Phases 1-4
HM Treasury refurbishment
Stansted Airport Terminal

The main contractor on the construction of the Barrage was a Balfour Beatty and Costain joint venture. The principal designer was Gibb, architect Alsop and Stormer and client Cardiff Bay Development Corporation.
 

Novice fishing enthusiasts of all ages are welcomed to join this two day event being held on Cardiff Bay Barrage on 27th and 28th July. Working in partnership with the Environment Agency Wales, Federation of Welsh Anglers and the Sports Council for Wales, this FREE event encourages people of all ages to come along and have a go!

The event from 10am – 3.30pm each day will feature tackle demonstrations and expert instruction by some of South Wales’ top anglers, across the three disciplines of angling: course, sea and game. It promises to be a fun-filled family event providing an opportunity for everyone who has an interest in fishing. The Barrage is already being hailed for its access for shore fishing, offering ample pay and display facilities and easy access for elderly, disabled and children.

Councillor Nigel Howells, Executive Member for Sport, Leisure and Culture said “Angling is a very enjoyable pastime and we welcome this opportunity to promote the facilities available in Cardiff Bay through this unique event. Our aim is to teach participants the right way to fish and, through that, how to care for the environment.”

Cardiff Harbour Authority is delighted to be supporting the event, particularly in light of the new Fishing Strategy which is currently being developed to identify opportunities for developing sea, game, and coarse angling facilities around the Bay. The Strategy will provide a platform for building productive relationships with key stakeholders to ensure that the best possible facilities are provided for the benefit of all.

The event forms part of a wider National Fishing Week 2007 in the UK, which is organised by the Angling Trades Association and the Environment Agency.

For further information, please contact Chris Bond, Angling Development Manager for the Federation of Welsh Anglers on 07917 025708.