ORGANISERS of a popular weekly parkrun are having to look at an alternative route after a "surge" of people taking part raised safety concerns. 

Colchester Castle parkrun had to change its route after the collapse of the weir on December 10. 

The usual ‘King Meadow’ route is currently unusable, and the group has since used the ‘Duncan’s Gate' route to avoid the lower park, which had worked well during summer, according to parkrun. 

But an increase in participant numbers has organisers worried. 

Gazette: Collapse - a section of the weir in Castle Park has collapsed. Picture: Nicola Dines

In a statement parkrun said: “The recent surge in participants has raised concerns from both runners and the core team, regarding the sustainability of this route for a larger number of runners. 

“The health and safety of all our participants has to come first, so we have decided to look at the viability of another route. 

“We are enquiring with the relevant council team regarding how long the weir bridge will be out of commission for."

A change in route is not an easy process, according to the organisers, as permission has to be sought from the parkrun headquarters and landowners, in order to use certain areas. 

The statement added: “All possible alternatives have to be manually measured and risk assessed. This is likely to take at least a month before any new route is approved.” 

As a cancellation is the only alternative option parkrun will continue to use the ‘Duncan’s Gate’ route for the foreseeable future. 

The statement said: “However, we would ask that, although we are so grateful for your ongoing support, you consider supporting our neighbours at Highwoods, Mersea Island or Markshall, or consider touring further afield, to attempt to keep our numbers at manageable and safe levels.” 

Runners and members of the running event have suggested a return to the old route, which has been changed due to permanent flooding during the winter months, halting the event for ten weeks.