Open Access Cycling

[LongYP]

First post here - simply because its been about 20 years since I last cycled
anywhere (the shame) and finally just got back in the saddle since I
recently moved house.

Lucky enough to have great countryside to cycle through until I clocked this
morning when I bothered to read council signs that no cycling is allowed on
open access land.

My question is does this apply 100% to the entire land including paths which
may encircle the land or does it mean don't stray off the path and cycle
across fields etc???

Hopefully it's the later as I will be disappointed that of all the land and
views here you can only walk on the paths...

Any advice?

 

[[email protected]]

> Hopefully it's the later as I will be disappointed that of all the land and
> views here you can only walk on the paths...


where is this and what sort of land?
TerryJ

 

[Stevie D]

LongYP wrote:

> Lucky enough to have great countryside to cycle through until I clocked this
> morning when I bothered to read council signs that no cycling is allowed on
> open access land.
>
> My question is does this apply 100% to the entire land including paths which
> may encircle the land or does it mean don't stray off the path and cycle
> across fields etc???

You can cycle on bridleways and marked cycle routes if they cross open
access land. What you can't do is just ride off over the fields, in
the same way that people may walk across them.

--
Stevie D
\\\\\ ///// Bringing dating agencies to the
\\\\\\\__X__/////// common hedgehog since 2001 - "HedgeHugs"
___\\\\\\\'/ \'///////_____________________________________________

 

[Andy Leighton]

On Sat, 16 Dec 2006 16:47:14 -0000, LongYP <[email protected]> wrote:
> First post here - simply because its been about 20 years since I last cycled
> anywhere (the shame) and finally just got back in the saddle since I
> recently moved house.
>
> Lucky enough to have great countryside to cycle through until I clocked this
> morning when I bothered to read council signs that no cycling is allowed on
> open access land.
>
> My question is does this apply 100% to the entire land including paths which
> may encircle the land or does it mean don't stray off the path and cycle
> across fields etc???
>
> Hopefully it's the later as I will be disappointed that of all the land and
> views here you can only walk on the paths...

I assume you are in England (things are different in Scotland).

The sign is absolutely right. You may not cycle on open-access land.
You may cycle on bridleways, byways (these used to be called BOATs),
and RUPPs (even those that cross the open-access land) - you always used
to be able to do this and that right hasn't changed.

You can of course walk on all of those, on the footpaths and on the
open-access land.

--
Andy Leighton => [email protected]
"The Lord is my shepherd, but we still lost the sheep dog trials"
- Robert Rankin, _They Came And Ate Us_

 

[vernon]

"LongYP" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> First post here - simply because its been about 20 years since I last
> cycled anywhere (the shame) and finally just got back in the saddle since
> I recently moved house.
>
> Lucky enough to have great countryside to cycle through until I clocked
> this morning when I bothered to read council signs that no cycling is
> allowed on open access land.

If you are in the countryside then surely you have lots of quiet country
lanes to cycle on?
>
> My question is does this apply 100% to the entire land including paths
> which may encircle the land or does it mean don't stray off the path and
> cycle across fields etc???

If the sign says no cycling allowed then that is what it means. If cycling
on the paths was OK there would be signs saying so.

> Hopefully it's the later as I will be disappointed that of all the land
> and views here you can only walk on the paths...

It's generally agreed that that is the designed purpose of paths ;-)
>
> Any advice?

Get an ordnance survey map of the area surrounding where you live. You can
have hours of fun finding roads and lanes where cycling is permissible and
even more hours of fun riding along them. I've discovered a lot of quiet
roads in north west Leeds that I didn't know existed until being directed
along some of them by Audax routes and curiosity getting the better of me,
further discoveries via the aforementioned maps.

-=V=-

 

[Phil Cook]

LongYP wrote:

>Lucky enough to have great countryside to cycle through until I clocked this
>morning when I bothered to read council signs that no cycling is allowed on
>open access land.
>
>My question is does this apply 100% to the entire land including paths which
>may encircle the land or does it mean don't stray off the path and cycle
>across fields etc???

You can wander where you like on foot over access land in England and
Wales but on a bicycle you are limited to rights of way that are at
least bridleways. So if a bridleway crosses access land you may ride
along it.

In Scotland there is a more enlightened attitude to access to the
outdoors generally and you can go where you like as long as you act
responsibly.
--
Phil Cook looking north over the park to the "Westminster Gasworks"

 

[LongYP]

Thanks for the responses.

The path bordering (or contained within the open access land) is detailed on
OS map as green diamonds and listed as a 'National Trail or Recreational
Path' - it is the Icknield Way Suffolk/Norfolk.and occassionally
crosses/borders open access land.

Does this help?


Yes - it does make sense - paths are for people and walking - obvious really
"LongYP" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> First post here - simply because its been about 20 years since I last
> cycled anywhere (the shame) and finally just got back in the saddle since
> I recently moved house.
>
> Lucky enough to have great countryside to cycle through until I clocked
> this morning when I bothered to read council signs that no cycling is
> allowed on open access land.
>
> My question is does this apply 100% to the entire land including paths
> which may encircle the land or does it mean don't stray off the path and
> cycle across fields etc???
>
> Hopefully it's the later as I will be disappointed that of all the land
> and views here you can only walk on the paths...
>
> Any advice?
>
>

 

[Phil Cook]

LongYP wrote:

>Thanks for the responses.
>
>The path bordering (or contained within the open access land) is detailed on
>OS map as green diamonds and listed as a 'National Trail or Recreational
>Path' - it is the Icknield Way Suffolk/Norfolk.and occassionally
>crosses/borders open access land.

It depends on the status of the path. Is the path a footpath or
bridleway? Parts of a National Trail will have differing status. For
example most of the South Downs Way is bridleway but most of The North
Downs Way is only footpath.
--
Phil Cook looking north over the park to the "Westminster Gasworks"

 

[LongYP]

"Phil Cook" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> LongYP wrote:
>
>>Thanks for the responses.
>>
>>The path bordering (or contained within the open access land) is detailed
>>on
>>OS map as green diamonds and listed as a 'National Trail or Recreational
>>Path' - it is the Icknield Way Suffolk/Norfolk.and occassionally
>>crosses/borders open access land.
>
> It depends on the status of the path. Is the path a footpath or
> bridleway? Parts of a National Trail will have differing status. For
> example most of the South Downs Way is bridleway but most of The North
> Downs Way is only footpath.
> --
> Phil Cook looking north over the park to the "Westminster Gasworks"

As I trace the Icknield way I can see the status changes from foot to
bridleway to byeway - (I have done plenty of walking and there are sections
I often see 4X4, Motorbikes etc on the track) -

I guess as a cyclist I was hoping we would get treated as fairly as walkers
but it is becoming clear where you can walk in the country does not
necessarily mean you can ride a bike.

 

[Phil Cook]

LongYP wrote:

>I guess as a cyclist I was hoping we would get treated as fairly as walkers
>but it is becoming clear where you can walk in the country does not
>necessarily mean you can ride a bike.

Some of us are adamant about /not/ riding on footpaths. I don't expect
to ride on the footpath to the shops. I ride in the road. Cycle
farcilites are the work of stan
--
Phil Cook looking north over the park to the "Westminster Gasworks"

 

[Tony Raven]

LongYP wrote on 16/12/2006 17:45 +0100:
> Thanks for the responses.
>
> The path bordering (or contained within the open access land) is detailed on
> OS map as green diamonds and listed as a 'National Trail or Recreational
> Path' - it is the Icknield Way Suffolk/Norfolk.and occassionally
> crosses/borders open access land.
>
> Does this help?
>

The Icknield Way & Peddars Way proper is not cyclable along its whole
length but there is a cycle route that has been created that can be used
instead

http://www.nationaltrail.co.uk/PeddarsWay/uploads/CyclingPeddarsWay.pdf

The Icknield Way Path - A Guide for Horseriders, Cyclists and Others by
East Anglian Trails.
Available from: Wimpole Books, Pip's Peace, Kenton, Stowmarket, IP14
6JS, tel: 01728 860429. Cost: £3.50p+£0.40 p&p.


--
Tony

"...has many omissions and contains much that is apocryphal, or at least
wildly inaccurate..."
Douglas Adams; The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

 

[Simon Brooke]

in message <[email protected]>, LongYP
('[email protected]') wrote:

> First post here - simply because its been about 20 years since I last
> cycled anywhere (the shame) and finally just got back in the saddle since
> I recently moved house.
>
> Lucky enough to have great countryside to cycle through until I clocked
> this morning when I bothered to read council signs that no cycling is
> allowed on open access land.
>
> My question is does this apply 100% to the entire land including paths
> which may encircle the land or does it mean don't stray off the path and
> cycle across fields etc???

In what barbarous and benighted part of the Kingdom are you? Cycling is
legal anywhere in Scotland, with /very/ few exceptions. It's illegal to
put up 'no cycling' notices. England is patchy, and the new access
legislation in England nothing like as good as the the Scottish Land
Reform Act. But, as I say, it's patchy, and some places in England are
worse than others.

--
[email protected] (Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/

;; All in all you're just another nick in the ball
-- Think Droid

 

[LongYP]

Many thanks for this Tony.

"Tony Raven" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> LongYP wrote on 16/12/2006 17:45 +0100:
>> Thanks for the responses.
>>
>> The path bordering (or contained within the open access land) is detailed
>> on OS map as green diamonds and listed as a 'National Trail or
>> Recreational Path' - it is the Icknield Way Suffolk/Norfolk.and
>> occassionally crosses/borders open access land.
>>
>> Does this help?
>>
>
> The Icknield Way & Peddars Way proper is not cyclable along its whole
> length but there is a cycle route that has been created that can be used
> instead
>
> http://www.nationaltrail.co.uk/PeddarsWay/uploads/CyclingPeddarsWay.pdf
>
> The Icknield Way Path - A Guide for Horseriders, Cyclists and Others by
> East Anglian Trails.
> Available from: Wimpole Books, Pip's Peace, Kenton, Stowmarket, IP14 6JS,
> tel: 01728 860429. Cost: £3.50p+£0.40 p&p.
>
>
> --
> Tony
>
> "...has many omissions and contains much that is apocryphal, or at least
> wildly inaccurate..."
> Douglas Adams; The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy