This video can not be playedTo play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser.By Malcolm Prior and Claire MarshallBBC News rural affairs teamWalkers wanting to enjoy footpaths across the British countryside are being blocked or obstructed in nearly 32,000 places across England and Wales.But they are fighting back, with one rambler even training as a lawyer to force councils to keep the way clear.A BBC investigation found councils which have responsibility for footpaths had 4,000 more access issues on public rights of way in 2023 than in 2022.Campaigners said this showed a “growing abuse and neglect” of the path network.Local authorities said “funding constraints” limited what they can do.In Cornwall, which has 2,796 miles (4,500km) of public rights of way, Lucy Wilson is one walker determined to make sure countryside footpaths are kept useable. BBC/Claire MarshallStanding on a footpath tucked into the folds of the Tamar Valley, Mrs Wilson points up at a sheer muddy bank, topped with a thicket of brambles.”That’s where the path should go,” she says. “You can’t see anything. It’s just gone.” Her finger traces the registered right of way on a map on her phone. We scramble up the bank but have no chance of forcing our way past the thorns. She explains that people have been trying for five years to get Cornwall Council to make this path accessible. “The council doesn’t have the resources – but that’s not an excuse, because they have a statutory duty to do this. It’s not a choice,” she explains.All landowners have a duty to keep paths clear but the ultimate responsibility rests with the local highways authority – usually the local county or unitary council or national park authority.’Shocking neglect’Mrs Wilson, a campaigner with the Open Spaces Society, estimates that half of the Cornish footpath network has unresolved issues. She began her fight to get paths cleared in 2015 and is now training as a lawyer to try to force the council to act. “I was trying to enjoy the countryside, and I found on quite a few occasions, I couldn’t because there were gates locked, they were overgrown, impossible to get through. “I thought rather naively, that just reporting the obstructions to the council, the council would come along and clear them. And it didn’t happen. And so here I am in 2023, some of those same paths remain obstructed,” she said.Cornwall Council told the BBC that it was “committed to protecting the public rights of way across Cornwall”.”Each case is determined on its own merits and we will consider the best course of action to ensure any obstructions are removed. “The council has a finite resource and must prioritise workload accordingly,” a spokesperson explained. Getty ImagesMeanwhile, across England and Wales, The Ramblers – Britain’s walking charity – say they are coming across similar problems – but the true scale of blocked and obstructed footpaths has so far remained unknown.So the BBC used Environmental Information Regulations to ask 118 local councils outside of London and national park authorities how many blockages and obstructions were recorded at the end of 2022 and on a specific day – 31 October 2023.Seventy-three authorities were able to provide t …
Article Attribution | Read More at Article Source
[mwai_chat context=”Let’s have a discussion about this article:nnThis video can not be playedTo play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser.By Malcolm Prior and Claire MarshallBBC News rural affairs teamWalkers wanting to enjoy footpaths across the British countryside are being blocked or obstructed in nearly 32,000 places across England and Wales.But they are fighting back, with one rambler even training as a lawyer to force councils to keep the way clear.A BBC investigation found councils which have responsibility for footpaths had 4,000 more access issues on public rights of way in 2023 than in 2022.Campaigners said this showed a “growing abuse and neglect” of the path network.Local authorities said “funding constraints” limited what they can do.In Cornwall, which has 2,796 miles (4,500km) of public rights of way, Lucy Wilson is one walker determined to make sure countryside footpaths are kept useable. BBC/Claire MarshallStanding on a footpath tucked into the folds of the Tamar Valley, Mrs Wilson points up at a sheer muddy bank, topped with a thicket of brambles.”That’s where the path should go,” she says. “You can’t see anything. It’s just gone.” Her finger traces the registered right of way on a map on her phone. We scramble up the bank but have no chance of forcing our way past the thorns. She explains that people have been trying for five years to get Cornwall Council to make this path accessible. “The council doesn’t have the resources – but that’s not an excuse, because they have a statutory duty to do this. It’s not a choice,” she explains.All landowners have a duty to keep paths clear but the ultimate responsibility rests with the local highways authority – usually the local county or unitary council or national park authority.’Shocking neglect’Mrs Wilson, a campaigner with the Open Spaces Society, estimates that half of the Cornish footpath network has unresolved issues. She began her fight to get paths cleared in 2015 and is now training as a lawyer to try to force the council to act. “I was trying to enjoy the countryside, and I found on quite a few occasions, I couldn’t because there were gates locked, they were overgrown, impossible to get through. “I thought rather naively, that just reporting the obstructions to the council, the council would come along and clear them. And it didn’t happen. And so here I am in 2023, some of those same paths remain obstructed,” she said.Cornwall Council told the BBC that it was “committed to protecting the public rights of way across Cornwall”.”Each case is determined on its own merits and we will consider the best course of action to ensure any obstructions are removed. “The council has a finite resource and must prioritise workload accordingly,” a spokesperson explained. Getty ImagesMeanwhile, across England and Wales, The Ramblers – Britain’s walking charity – say they are coming across similar problems – but the true scale of blocked and obstructed footpaths has so far remained unknown.So the BBC used Environmental Information Regulations to ask 118 local councils outside of London and national park authorities how many blockages and obstructions were recorded at the end of 2022 and on a specific day – 31 October 2023.Seventy-three authorities were able to provide t …nnDiscussion:nn” ai_name=”RocketNews AI: ” start_sentence=”Can I tell you more about this article?” text_input_placeholder=”Type ‘Yes'”]
