RESPONSE TO SURREY COUNTY COUNCIL’S RIGHTS OF WAY IMPROVEMENT PLAN
PREPARED BY MALCOLM JOHNSON – COUNCILOR MOLE VALLEY DISTRICT COUNCIL
13TH AUGUST 2007
Contents
The use of byways by mechanically propelled vehicles
I am responding to the Rights of Way Improvement Plan as drafted by Surrey County Council. I am the district councilor for Leith Hill Ward.
My response is limited to the Draft Plan’s reference to Byways open to All Traffic ("BOATS") and the use of those byways by mechanically propelled vehicles.
As Surrey Council will be aware, local residents have made a number of complaints about the use of Byways Open to All Traffic ("BOATS") by four wheel drives. In particular there is concern about the byways that run up and around Coldharbour.
The problem is not of course confined to Coldharbour. I have also received a complaint from a Leith Hill resident with regard to the public right of way known as the Drove Road, which runs from Ranmore Common Road westerly to Sheepwalk Lane and A25 at Abinger.
In 2003 Surrey Police and the "Surrey Byways User Group" took action on Ranmore Common to stop in appropriate use of paths by four wheel drives and other vehicles.
See www.surrey.police.uk/news_item.asp?artid=3032
Surrey Police are concerned to prevent careless and dangerous driving on BOATS, or driving that damages fences, crops and wildlife habitats. On their website they are running a joint operation between Surrey County Council Rights of Way and the National Trust to offer advice about safe and legal riding on BOATS at the Devil’s Punchbowl and Hindhead Commons in Hindhead.
See www.surrey.police.uk/news_item.asp?artid=3321
In the 2006 Coldharbour and Leith Hill Village Survey (see Mole Valley’s website at www.molevalley.gov.uk) 78% of residents canvassed said that they wanted to restrict the use of BOATS by motor vehicles.
It is alleged that the vehicles that use these byways:-
Many residents feel that an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty should be protected from an activity that they feel, damages the unique character of Leith Hill.
The 2005 report from DEFRA
A DEFRA/Countryside Agency report entitled "Report of a research project on motor vehicles on byways open to all traffic – January 2005" said that byways in a poor state of repair tend to attract the more irresponsible drivers, because difficult terrain will present more of a challenge.
At the same time the researchers who prepared the report, found evidence that where a byway had become impassable, users were deviating from the byway onto adjoining land. This is an offence under the Road Traffic Act 1998 (unless one is parking within 15 yards of the road.
The report also says that that there was a general agreement that highway authorities do not maintain byways open to all traffic for lawful purposes.
The report includes the result of a consultation with the various organizations that exist for recreational motor users. It was found that many will travel up to 300 miles to drive on BOATS. Yorkshire, Wales, Devon and Wiltshire were the most popular destinations. In Surrey some 52% of vehicles on a number of sample sites were vehicles being used for recreational purposes.
See www.defra.gov.uk/wildlife-countryside/cl/mpv/pdf/researchrep-veh.pdf.
In addition, DEFRA has published a guide for local authorities in December 2005 - "Making the Best of Byways" which can be found on their website www.defra.gov.uk under their Wildlife and Countryside section.
Input from the National Trust
One of the main landowners in this area is the National Trust, which has also considered this issue. They have published a set of guiding principles for all recreational activities. See their website at www.nationaltrust.org.uk under "Access and Recreation" and then "Other Activities". Whilst they do not oppose well founded claims for vehicle rights of way, they make it clear that "recreational informal use of vehicle in open country off Vehicular Rights of Way should be strongly resisted…….."Where problems associated with this activity are caused or anticipated, voluntary solutions should be sought through liaison with the motoring organisations' Land Access and Recreation Association (LARA) and the local highway authority. Only if these efforts fail should the implementation of Traffic Regulation Orders be sought."
The Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 and Surrey County Council’s Rights of Way Improvement Plan
The Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 put local authorities under a duty to prepare a Rights of Way Improvement Plan (ROWIP) for their area.
Surrey County Council has invited comments on their plan.
The local transport plan for Surrey County Council’s local transport plan:-
The draft Plan mentions the Surrey Hills AONB Management Plan, which states:-
"recreational facilities should, where possible, contribute to the local economy and enhance enjoyment, while being low impact and respecting tranquility."
The Draft Plan then goes on to list the users of Byways. The most numerous users are walkers, followed by cyclists and then horse riders. The Draft Plan also says at paragraph 8 that:-
"Surrey has an above average number of carriage drivers and some recreational motor vehicle users."
The draft Plan sets out a number of areas where access to rights of ways can be improved for users. It outlines measures to be taken, including the setting up of local forums. The Plan states that the County Council has already received more than 300 specific improvement proposals.
he reference in the Draft Plan to the use of BOATS by mechanically propelled vehicles
Section 84 of the Draft Plan says that Surrey County Council completed the reclassification of its "Roads used as Public Paths" ("RUPP’s") in 1996. RUPP’s are now reclassified by "Restricted Byways" under the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 and they represent about 4% of the network by length. Under the 2000 Act adjoining counties have reclassified their RUPP’s to prohibit them being used by vehicles. The Draft Plan concedes that the demands for Surrey to do the same are also increasing. However the downgrading of a byway (i.e. from a BOAT to a pathway) can be a difficult and expensive process.
At Section 112, the Plan states:-
"Recreational motor vehicle users are a minority group often controversial with other users. Their use of the public by way network, although lawful, can nevertheless be actively opposed by other users. They can be broadly sub divided between motorcyclists and 4 wheeled vehicles….a minority of users actively seek out rough terrain and sometimes cause significant damage to path surfaces and areas of adjoining land."
In November 2002, DEFRA issued statutory guidance to local authorities on the way in which Rights of Way Improvement Plans should be prepared:-
Paragraph 2.2.14 of DEFRA’s statutory guidance states:-
"The rights of way improvement plan may identify demand for recreational motoring in the countryside. Insofar as motor vehicles are lawfully able to use public rights of way, local highway authorities will need to consider how to respond to this and whether there are ways to manage demand."
See paragraph 2.2.14 of the guidance on:-
www.defra.gov.uk/wildlife-countryside/cl/rowip/rowip.pdf.
Comments on the Draft Plan
The Draft Plan deals with a number of important issues affecting rights of way and the use of BOATS by off road vehicles is only one issue amongst many.
However I would comment that the Draft Plan does not give enough detail on precisely how the problem of off road vehicles using BOATS is to be addressed. This is a problem affecting the enjoyment of the countryside by other byway users, and in the context of protecting the environment; it is also a threat to wildlife habitats.
I would also comment that recent legislation such as the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 and the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006 appears to be aimed at reducing the number of byways open to all traffic. Consequently the problem of off road vehicles should be more of a priority within the Draft Plan.
There are a number of options. The 2005 DEFRA report (referred to above) advocates two management measures:-
The Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 authorises the making of road traffic orders. They can be applied to all classes of way and all classes of user. Local authorities are under a duty to use these orders where this is necessary to secure safe, convenient and proper use of the way. Road Traffic Regulation orders can also be used to determine the times at which access is allowed to certain byways.
The DEFRA publication – "Making the Best of Byways" published in December 2005 contains guidance for local authorities in managing and maintaining byways. It recommends working with byway users and the use of road traffic regulation orders, although it says that such orders tend to work better when they have the agreement of the relevant parties.
The guidance cites the example of the Lake District National Park Authority. This authority said in 2004 that recreational driving was an inappropriate activity in its area, however it recognized the demand and acknowledged that legal rights existed, and that there was a need to manage this activity effectively.
Other local authorities, Derbyshire and Northumberland County Council have produced their own specific plans on this issue whilst Cornwall County Council introduced measures to tackle illegal motorcycle use in the countryside.
Surrey County Council does have its own record of maintaining byways. The report mentions the Surrey Byway User Group which meets quarterly and has proved successful in facilitating a successful approach to this problem. The maintenance of Wolven’s Lane led to better drainage of that byway and volunteer groups have helped with the work of clearing obstructions.
Councilor Malcolm Johnson - August 2007